My Hexamid with SMD serenity net!

Very nice, thanks for sharing.

Great versatile setup there, Michael!

I love my Serenity's (original model) easy side entrance and low weight/space. At 6'1" w/ size 13 feet and a thick pad my quilt's loft gets diminished at the foot end, though.

How tall are you? I was wondering if your (newer) Serenity helps this issue.

WOW. That looks perfect.

I am 6 foot with size 10.5 feet and length of the net has been a non issue for me. The New version (that I have) came with the updated sides, thanks for pointing that out, I bet this is a lot better, very good design.

They pair very nicely together, I'm using the same setup, only difference is my tarp has the extended beak and I use mini linelocs on 6 of the guys. Comes in at 14.1oz. Here's a write up.

http://cenazwalker.wordpress.com/2013/11/13/zpacks-hexamid-solo-tarp-six-moon-designs-serenity-nettent/

What points are you not guying out to only use 6 stakes? Leaving the back two off that pull the tarp out? From all my money wasting and searching, the ZPacks Hexamid tent or tarp seem about the best for weight. You choice gives versatility and close to what my Hex tent with stakes weighted. 12.5 oz. I'm looking at the MLD bug bivy as my solution and maybe a small tarp matched to it.
Duane

How does it work in blowing rain and highish winds?

Since I did not get the beak, I got a cuben cloudkilt. It is a great multiI use item, I plan on uSing the stick on loops to affix it over the main guyline hanging over acting like a beak. I will attach a picture of Chad Poindexter using this method on a flat tarp. I would just need a little time to cut the lines and stick the loops. They’re are also a few other ways you can use the kilt to block wind driven rain I’m sure, along with laying over my down bag to deflect water if it gets in. I have mostly been using the kilt as a vbl and extra warmth for legs making breakfast etc.

In the rain: I pitch it low. I can slam the hex to ground by puling the pole slanted or digging a little hole reducing pole height. This is probably the easiest way and seems to be all I have needed in addition to site selection and wind direction awareness. I have not had this in very intense super scary storms yet, but it handles heavy wind well. It would take alot for this to fail in my opinion. I would imagine the stakes would come out of the ground before anything.

I should have played with my Hex tent before I sold it, to see how much I could reduce the big footprint and still have enough length to fit my 6' bod in it. I went without the beak, thinking my Gram Weenie anorak could be rigged to act as a beak and my trash compactor/pack liner used to cover my foot end of the sb just in case. I like MLD's bug bivy, bathtub type bottom, zippered, tent shaped bug netting for ease of access. I'll see what I go with this winter to have in time for Spring. MLD's bug bivy would be cheaper (vs their cuben) using the silnylon bottom, which some say would have better wear properties than the cuben at only an oz. penalty.
Duane

My personal experience with a Hexamid Solo with Beak it that it is SCARY in high winds… It did not come down, but I was convinced enough that it would that I took it down before it blew away. I dropped it and spent the rest of the night on top of it in my w.p. BD Twilight bivy.

As far as 'wind awareness'… lol
With 40 years of experience, I still I don't know of any way to predict wind direction for a storm in the high mountains above tree line. And even I could, it's unlikely that site selection would align with predicted wind direction. Site selection meaning I want my head up slope. That puts the Hexamid opening (w or wo beak) at a right angle to the slope. So you have two, just two preset directions for the opening. If the wind comes from one of those directions you are good. If it comes from the other, like it did for me, you are going to have a wild ride.

Billy

Duane the mld bug bivy looks good, all mesh is nice, I'm not a fan of fabric I've had bad luck with condensation those bivys. 6oz, for another 1.9 ounces you could get what I have the smd net tent. Sil vs cuben, sil floors are more forgiving I think, they tend to stretch over sharp things where cuben gets cuts easier, and abrades quicker. What shelter system are you using now? It's going to be hard to beat the weight of the hex solo.

Michael, what length pole are using for this setup? The net tent calls for a 45" pole and the hexamid calls for a 48" pole. I use fixed length 45" poles and would love this setup if it work with my poles.

Thanks in advance!

Just tie a short loop of shock cord into the apex of the hexamid with a cord lock on it to adjust the size. Clip the top of the inner to loop above the cord lock so that the length of the loop can be adjusted to properly support the inner.

Michael L,
I currently have no summer shelter, sold my old TT Squall, sold my one season Hex tent, sold my once set up SMD Skyscape X a week ago. An oz here and an oz there starts adding up, back up to a pound. The 12.5 oz Hex tent was nice, just the large staked footprint. I think I like the cuben flat tarp and MLD Bug Bivy coupled, but open for further research. I have to add in a tent pole since I do not use trekking poles, close to a pound with a few ti stakes added in and line. Just looking for ease of setup and a small staked footprint. May or may not go with another Hex tarp or the Pocket Hex tarp. There is a BPL group trip in Jan., maybe I can check out others shelters there or ask the vendors who come. I like the no fiddle factor of the MLD Bug Bivy (bug, ground water) protection, but if I could find a nice netting pattern to just hang some separate netting, I'm open to that, which would be cheap. From what I've found, a regular bivy is too hard to slip into, you have to pour yourself into one.
Duane

I checked with Joe Valesko and Ruta Locura and answered my own question. I can add a 3" pole extender, which Ruta Locura will make for $6, or $8 with a metal tip for inserting into a grommet. This, combined with the answer above regarding using some cord for hanging the inner net, gives me a solution.

I use a .6 ruta locura pole (not sure what length), it weighs 3 ounces but is pretty strong. I would say that a trekking pole would work fine especially with a pole jack.

Duane, I wouldn't be surprised if'd you went back to the hexamid. This shelter has helped me get to a complete 5-6 pound baseweight (with 1.5lbs of carried clothing) You can't beat the weight, quick setup, and only one pole. The tent version w/ sewn bug screen is great because you have so much interior living space. But with the double wall tarp plus net tent you have versatility. I love the openness of the hexamid, it offers better protection per yard of fabric than flat tarp.

I would say get the .51 cuben not the thinner pocket tarp. You only save half an ounce it's just not worth it imo. I know you sold it but unless I am biased I think you will be hard pressed finding a better products than zpacks. The seams were taped on mine and it's just so dang light, joe makes good cuben stuff. Let me know what other shelters you are thinking about.

I had planned to try the Hexamid Solo with Serenity Net, but I missed out on a used net at a good price. I guess I'll keep looking. Maybe something will come up on Gear Swap that won't break the bank?

Hey DS, the Serenity is on sale from SMD for $96 through the end of December. Pretty good deal.

I'm trying to hash over things. I am leaning towards another Hex tent or at least a tarp. Big decision, Pocket or Hex. The MLD Bug Bivy is a little lighter than the Serenity Net, just don't know about the fit. Looking over numbers too, I'd be close to a pound by the time I add in pole, line, stakes. I'm shooting for under 8 lbs. or 7, getting there, need a little lighter kitchen. Tbank you for the dialogue.
Duane

Duane,
you might consider the Sea to Summit solo bug net at 2.9 oz. I have not tried it inside my Hexamid, but that is my plan:

http://www.seatosummit.com/products/display/191

Billy

>Hey DS, the Serenity is on sale from SMD for $96 through the end of December. Pretty good deal.<

Yes, I know that's a good deal, but the used one for $50, that I missed, was a better deal. I try to buy used if I can to spread the $.

Billy Ray,
That might be what I was wishing I could find. A BIG thank you, but I'll still wait a little. Man, a shelter getting into SUL territory. Stoked now. Maybe around 10oz. for a shelter and the bug net still lets me cowboy camp with a stick or tent pole and a bit taller than the MLD Bug Bivy. I'll have to check out how easy it is to work with getting it around a pad and bag now. :)
Duane

That looks like a great set up, make sure to let us know how it goes as you put more time on it. And good idea with using the Cloud Kilt as a door/beak.

If I didn't already have an old-school solo Hex net I'd probably get the Serenity net. I dare say it looks like it fits better than my net, but mine's not bad–the walls are a bit floppy, but it's not that big a deal. I usually use a bivy anyhow, or just the tarp on its own.

I had considered that STS Nano net, but when I did some cursory research on it, I noticed that some people noted that the net is not true nano net, i.e. smaller bugs like midges/black flies and such could get in. But this was like a year ago. Does anyone have a newer STS net and can comment on this? If it is true nano net, and the weight really is around 90g, this would be an incredible option if you ask me. Especially for those (like me) that always use a ground cover.

Cesar,
how would one know if any particular netting was 'true nano netting???

I have one of the STS, but don't know what you mean my that.

You could email STS and ask them.
Or look at the many posts on this site. I think I learned about the STS net this fall on some discussions here… perhaps it mentioned that.

FWIW… there are two versions of the STS net… one with bug repellant and one without. It could be that the one with repellant would repel the smaller bugs even if the holes are large enough for them to get in…

For me, I'm not concerned… just about any net will stop mosquitoes, which is the only bug that bothers me in the Sierra.