Need recommendations on a tent

The Tarptent Moment double wall might work for him. It's a little over 2 lbs.

The BA Copper Spur UL1 might work, but he'd have to try it. I'm 5'8", but I like to stretch out. It works fine for me. It's 2.5-2.75 lbs, depending on stakes. I think I got mine on sale in the $240-$270 range a few years ago.

At 90 inches in lenght, the Copper Spur is one of the longer single's around.

and the width is very good as well.

Now's the time to buy. as they tweaked the tent for 2014 . so, they are dumping the 2013 model.

I saw one go on ebay. .brand new w/ tags for $ 212.00 ……. new price for 2014 appears to be $369.00

BTW, I own one … and Love it.. 10 sq. ft vestible.. among other things

I don’t own either of these shelters but the Lunar Solo LE weighs in at 30oz at $130 and the Lunar Solo weighs in at 23oz and $215. Floor dimensions appear to be 48″ x 90″ but your friend would have to do a bit more research to see how much of that would be usable for him and how the condensation compares to other shelters. I’ve been really happy with my Hexamid Twin but if he wants a tent version, I’m afraid $300 won’t get it done.

EDIT re read your post and see that he has concerns about the guylines associated with the Hexamid. I really don’t see that it’s all that big of a deal to pitch this shelter or something similar but it’s his money and he knows what he likes.

I own the Copper Spur 2P and bought the 1P, thinking it might save me a few ounces. But I found it too short for me; and I'm only 6' tall.

My impression was that the ends had a lesser slope to them. My head or toes would touch, lying on my neoair.

A good tent, but I stayed with the 2p for that reason.

If your friend gets the 1p, he should check the length and make sure he can return it if it doesn't work out.

Bill

Matthew,
I know this is unsolicited advice, but I would highly recommend a hammock + tarp setup for the AT. There is no better situation to employ this setup than in the Appalachians. You will always have suitable trees to use throughout the trail, and as a huge added bonus, you can usually set your hammock up right inside shelters as well (the mice won't be able to crawl over you then!).

You will find that for long stretches of time the ground will be soaked (as in standing water and mud). This is a nightmare for tent camping but no problem at all for hammocks. There is really no better way IMO to stay high and dry in the Appalachians than in a hammock.

Just food for thought. This might not be a viable option for you, but if it is, I'd reconsider it.

Good luck on your trip!

For something light, simply design, and good price check out Six Moon Designs. For solo trips I will be going with the Gatewood Cape

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fJZ2ki4eX8

In this video this guy shows how it holds up in a snow storm! plus it only weighs 11 oz and replaces rain gear.

They have a lot of other options for fully enclosed shelters as well.

I like the hammock approach, $300 is on the edge unless you use a CCF pad. I would want a good durable hammock for that many nights. You could use many hammocks with integrated bug screens like a bivy with a CCF pad inside a shelter.

That aside, with the use of shelters on the AT, I would look at a tarp and bivy approach. The bivy will keep the bugs at bay and allow cowboy camping in good weather, with the tarp filling in the gaps. One of the models with a waterproof floor, breathable top fabric and insect screen is what I'm thinking of.

If he wants low weight and cost, I would get over the guy line thing. All the so-called free-standing double walled tents use a ton of stakes and breakable gee gaws to pull it off.

Adding another simple carbon fiber pole is hardly a stumbling block for weight or cost.

I use a Gatewood and it works well for me. Like any enclosed single wall shelter, it will get some condensation. It may be too short for taller guy. There are plenty of shaped tarp shelters that don't double as rain gear. I would point him to SMD or Henry Shires/Tarptents

If you guys are going together, a couple bivies and Borahgami would make a good 2 person setup. If you both used ponchos with the bivies, you could camp solo or together with the Borahgami.

There are plenty of good mids out there. Sounds like a pole extension and bug protection lead there. As above, if it is single wall, it will get some condensation.

I keep seeing folk quoting floor length and I keep reminding that it is almost meaningless IF you don't also know or factor in usable space above it.
Here is the reason why someone that will not fit inside the 90" long Copper Spur :

may fit inside the 84" long Moment:

For reference I am 5'8" and as you can see on top of a thick mat I still have almost a foot of space at either end.
To make it clearer, here is a shot of an 86" long shelter (can't remember the height but around 43"), note that I am on top of an almost flat mat this time :

BTW, another comment I have seen is the idea of sleeping sideways (to make up for lack of length) inside a solo tent.
The problem here is that you can't turn a mat sideways inside most solo tents and gain much headroom at all…

To add.
looking at the "inside Moment" shot I remembered that I took that to compare it with a typical 90" long shelter with 45 degree inward sloping walls, you can see the yellow line showing that.

franco@tarptent

+1 on the Moment DW.

I sold my Moment single wall and am ordering a Moment DW very soon. I want a 4 season solo tent so I'm getting the ripstop inner but your freind may prefer the netting inner.

I actually tried the Gatewood Cape myself but its WAY to short for me. My friend is almost as tall and I doubt it will work for him either.

That sucks.. I am a moderate size for all gear so I forget to refer to those sort of dimensions. I am 5'11 so the regular length everything fits and I am 155 lbs so Medium size anything fits perfectly lol.