New REI Quarter Dome Tents

[Derek M.]

Dan,
Valid points about double-wall vs. single-wall tents.

Having the option of the ceiling liner for the Double Rainbow does potentially alleviate many of the drawbacks of its single wall design, but of course that is only relevant to this particular tent, and not a generality of all single-wall tents.

I had this liner option in the back of my mind when I was writing my previous post but obviously wasn't explicit about it, which I should have been. My bad.

[Kurt Neuswanger]

First of all, the poor guy asked about the new REI Quarter Dome but the conversation changed to the newly introduced Dash 2. Can’t help on the new QD, although I’ve had a QD T2 for six years, and it has been a great 4 pound tent for me and my two dogs.

I think REI does a great job of watching the market and producing competitive products, usually at a much lower price. I bought a Half Dome ten years ago for just $150. My Quarter Dome has been very durable, with awesome rain protection and extremely low condensation issues.

Now I’m looking to drop some more tent weight, and was quite intrigued by the Dash 2. That is, until I read the posts about the Tarptent Double Rainbow, intrigues me even more.

A close look at the stats reveals the Dash and the Double Rainbow are, in fact, quite similar:

DASH
$349
47 oz.
90"x54" (42" foot)
40" height
5.3 sq. ft. vestibules
semi-freestanding
“semi-double walled” (since the ends are exposed to rain)

DOUBLE RAINBOW (incl. optional 4 oz. $30 liner)
$319
45 oz.
88"x50" (50" foot)
41" height (2” for liner)
7.5 sq. ft. vestibules
semi-freestanding
“semi-double walled” (using the liner)

The Dash has more length and shoulder room. The DR has more actual floor space, including room for two 25” mats (barely!) and wins most of the other comparisons.

I think the Dash would have more usable headroom because its walls are more vertical. There is a YouTube video by a guy who returned his DR because he and his wife couldn’t both sit upright without touching the walls. I haven’t seen any pictures of two people sitting up (as in sleeping bags) in a DR. This isn't an issue for me right now, but I usually sleep to one side of the tent.

I’ve read some posts that complained about the mesh in the DR hanging down and getting in the way. Maybe someone with experience can add some insight into that?

My dogs tend to curl up against the wall of my Quarter Dome, but it keeps them from touching the rainfly, so they stay dry. I’m hoping the liner accomplishes the same thing if I get a Double Rainbow.

Nonetheless, the factors that make me inclined to choose the DR are the more practical vestibule area and the lighter weight, plus the cheaper price. And the liner, of course, is removable for use on trips when rain is not expected. You can’t leave the liner of the Dash at home!

[John S.]

Length and shoulder room should be taken with grain of salt since once you set it up that bathtub floor can effectively lessen those dimensions.

[Sam Farrington]

Beg to disagree with Dan's positive comments about the tents. "REI's doing some good stuff."

The QD1 looks like someone started with the old Eureka Crescent design and jettisoned a pole to save weight; thus losing most of the stability of the Eureka, not to mention the freestanding feature.

The Dash is not just a matter of the fly not coming all the way to the ground. One may want to do that at a vestibule on one side of the tent just to allow some air to enter for low venting. Rather, it extends the coated WP floor up the insides of the tent, at head and foot ends no less, and eliminates fly coverage at these locations, thus making the tent partially single wall.

Sierra Designs tried the same trick with the Bike Light, and more recently, Nemo did the same with Obis. What you get is condensation at the worst possible locations, where your head and feet rub against the unprotected tent walls. It is surprising that a company with REI's experience would do this yet again.

The TarpTent tents that were raised as comparisons have some issues, but nothing of the magnitude of what REI has done here. Strange.

Submit that a couple features are a must if a single wall is to have any versatility:
> Head, foot and sides must be protected, at least closer to the ground, by some kind of barrier, usually inner netting.
> The canopy material must not absorb water, like most coated nylons. Rather, a film-coated matrix like Cuben, or polyester, or specially treated nylon must be used.

Otherwise, the occupant will be perpetually subjected to wet inside walls above the protective netting. 'Oh I just have to occasionally swab the inside walls,' some say. More likely we swab them with our heads when we get up in the night. And swabbing won't help much once the nylon has wetted out, as it is prone to do. Are a couple ounces of weight reduction with a single wall worth it, when fairly durable netting is readily available at 0.8 oz/sq/yd to protect against the wet walls?

Nonetheless, I decided to build a tent with single walls at head and foot ends from about a foot height up. It will either be Cuben, or nylon specially treated to resist moisture absorption. Could not find an ultra light (sub one ounce) polyester that wasn't as stiff as sail cloth. What deterred me was not so much the condensation issue, what with the fair amount of protective netting, but that the lack of elasticity in the materials would make the canopy more likely to tear apart in high winds. Will give it a go, anyway. But the point is that these are the kinds of issues that manufacturers should be addressing. Instead they are making worse tents.

[Steve K]

> The QD1 looks like someone started with the old Eureka Crescent design and jettisoned a pole to save weight; thus losing most of the stability of the Eureka, not to mention the freestanding feature.

As someone who has spent many nights in the QD T1 2012 (REI #827783) I have to say it is both stable and freestanding.

It's easy to think you can judge something based on the way it looks but there is a lot more going on with this tent than meets the eye. There are some clever tricks with tension that they do on this tent that gives it a surprising amount of rigidity and it does in fact happily freestand. The sewn seams on the tent are all part of a tension structure that adds rigidity. It's one of the cleverer designs I've seen.

You must stake it out to get the full interior room, but it does not rely on the staking for structure, although a sturdy staking does increase structural stability.

> and more recently, Nemo did the same with Obis. What you get is condensation at the worst possible locations, where your head and feet rub against the unprotected tent walls. It is surprising that a company with REI's experience would do this yet again.

I spent a night in fairly tough conditions for a tent like this in the Obi 2P. Two people, subfreezing with light snow and still wind. We did not experience what I would describe as excessive condensation, although it was humid enough inside the tent that our glasses and camera fogged up tremendously.

I am not convinced it is an ultimate design flaw, although I do worry about the durability of the waterproof in a design like this, since there is very little keeping water from wicking in straight through the material when it is pressed up against bodies. This is a primary failure point in cheap family-style car camping tents.

[Megan P]

Has anyone gotten their hands on the new quarter domes? I have the older Quarter Dome 3 that I use as a 2 person + dog tent and I LOVE IT! The fact that they shaved significant weight off the newer models is SUPER appealing to me.

Curious to know what people think when they actually start using them. Any have any experience yet?

[Sam Farrington]

Stephen,
Agree with your comments about the previous model of the QD T1. The only issues I had with it were the weight, smallish door and limited floor width, but nothing life threatening. The new model is something else again. As for the Dash, not for me thank you, for the reasons already stated.

[Trace Richardson]

Megan: I picked up a T3 last night (had older version as well) for a trip to Havasupai … I'm going to be hanging but my two friends will be using it … will post any thoughts two weekends from now when I'm back … you're right, they're a great camping, dog or concert tent …

[Megan P]

Awesome! I look forward to hearing what you guys think! If it's anything like the old one I'll probably be upgrading really soon :-)

[Alex Eriksson]

While my original plan was to get the Quarter Dome 2P it didn't work out. "Why," you ask? Well…

I've had and been using a Quarter Dome T2 Plus for a year or so, perhaps 8-9 nights in use in easy conditions. Nothing too cold, nothing too rainy. Little or no wind. The problem was that the loops on the underside of the fly that keep the fly attached to the poles were tearing off. I don't think a tent should be re-glued after just a few uses, plus the doors were honestly hard as hell for me to get in and out of as someone 6'4" tall. So I headed to REI….

I figured the T2 would suffice but after getting the display tent down onto the floor, fetching an Exped UL7 LW (what I use) and a normal width short pad (what my girlfriend uses), I loaded them up into the tent and…..WHOA WTF?! Why so small?! What contributed to the apparent (usable) space decrease?

– 4" in length removed = less room for my dog! How could they?!
– Decreased height at foot = my feet now touch the inner tent
– Shallower angle on the walls = less shoulder room once on a mat
– 4" less width = the mats just barely fit without riding onto the vertical portion of the floor, but…
– Tapering towards foot area = the short mat road up onto the long mat about half way down

By adopting a clone-and-improve design based on what looks like the Fly Creek / Copper Spur school of design, they've introduced a lot of issues for me since I'm a large dude. Long story short, there's no way myself, my 5'2" petite girlfriend, and my 70 pound boxer are fitting into the 2P tent. So…..

I bought the 3P.

Sigh. Yes, it was a bit of an upcharge. No, I didn't get the expected 1 pound 7 oz weight savings over my old T2 Plus (grrrr!!!!). I did however setup the 3P today and here's what I have to say about all that….

Pros (+) and Cons (-):
+ It's 11oz lighter than my old T2+ and bigger!
+ It's waaaaaaay easier to get in and out of with far better designed doors and vestibules
+ The assembly is idiot proof (I managed to screw up the pole layout of my T2+ multiple times when tired)
+ Sets up faster than the T2+
+ Additional storage vestibule at "head" of tent is convenient and you can access it from inside!
+ Better internal layout of pockets
+ Better shoulder room with 2 people in tent
+ Open/close the vent from inside! Whoo!
+ Packs waaaaaaay smaller in my pack (used to split body and fly into two dry bags, now only takes one with extra room to spare)

– Possibly less wind resistant than T2+ which was pretty great. Will need to test.
– It's winder footprint which means it's gonna be larger to fit into tight campsites
– I feel like the new T2 would be fine for 60% of my backpacking which is just me and the dog
– Floor is not a bathtub, has seams, not thrilled about this but we'll see.
– Not sure if open vestibules + rain will be doable in any capacity (it was in T2+)
– It's kind of an ugly tent. Weird shape plus a whole lot of grey. The T2+ was a nicer look (subjective of course).

Overall I'm pretty happy with the purchase. I feel like this is a properly sized 2 person tent for me and my needs….when I have two people sleeping in it. Maybe one day I'll find the perfect "me and the cur" tent but this'll certainly do (and I do have a Fly Creek UL2 if I feel like getting pawed in the face because it too is too damn small for me and the mutt but, ya know, the weight savings!

Hope this helps someone with a decision! Here's some pics from setting it up today just to do a little shakedown as I go stir-crazy waiting for spring….

[Paul Hatfield]

Does the center spine pole of the 3P extend to the ground? I assume that it doesn't, but I can't tell from the photos.

[Alex Eriksson]

In fact it does extend to the ground at the rear of the tent. There ends up being 3 stakes at the foot end, two at the head end, for the tent body. However only at the head end is there the extra bit of vestibule, whereas at the foot end the fly comes right down to the ground at each stake. I don't know if the 2P features the same design or not, wish I could recall.

One other piece of info on the 3P….

You end up needing 11 stakes to stake it out completely with all guy lines. The following points are staked:
– 2 stakes at the head-end for corners
– 3 stakes at the foot-end for corners and center
– 3 stakes for vestibules (1 each side and 1 at head end)
– 2 guy line stakes at the orange ties on the head end poles
– 1 guy line stake at the foot end, center, around the foot-end hub

[Kevin Schneringer]

I got my QD 3p today it is a big step up in REI equipment in my opinion. As others have mentioned its a roomy 2p but with me and 2 kids it'll work fine I'm sure.
Alex hit all the high points in his PRO/CON list.
I am going to weigh it tomorrow and post some picks, but for the price I think I'll be happy. And since the kids are getting big enough to carry some pieces of the tent the weight is not an issue.

[J Mag]

I think any move REI takes in the UL direction is a welcome one. Even if you choose not to buy their products, at least they are putting pressure on the big names to step their game up and their weight down.

Obviously tarptents are great (I own a contrail), however after spending almost 20 years in Florida I can tell you there are some situations where a double wall tent is more necessity than convenience.

[Kevin Schneringer]

I have weighed each piece and listed below. I removed the original stakes as, I assume, no one will use.

Stuff Sacks(minus FP sack) 77g

Pole assembly in Stuff sack 538g
Tent body 635g
Fly 531g
FP(no sack) 305g
FP in original sack 325g

Tent, Fly & Pole assembly in Original Stuff sack 1806g (63.70 oz.) 3.95 lbs.

Advertised Minimum Trail Weight 3 lbs. 12 oz.
Advertised Packaged Weight 4 lbs. 3 oz.

The tent is very nicely thought out in my opinion. and weights advertised seem close to reliable.
one thing I like is the zipper access to the top vent which also can be zipped shut. it should eliminate rain entry from wind driven rain.

[Paul Hatfield]

It took me a while to figure out that FP meant footprint.

What size pads are those?

It weighs essentially the same as a 2014 Big Agnes Copper Spur UL3. What do you think are the advantages/disadvantages compared to the Big Agnes Copper Spur UL3? The Copper Spur is 70" inches wide (manufacturer spec) at both ends, while the Quarter Dome tapers to 64" at the foot.

[Kevin Schneringer]

The pads are exped 72" x 20" however they were inflated Sotheby's would be a bit narrower once inflated. I just di not fell like blowing them up :)

I researched the BA FlyCreek three before this purchase. It wider foot end is definitely a plus.
But I have heard multiple accounts of the wind collapsing the foot end. With the 3 points of contact on the rear of the QD3 this should not happen. The adjustable ceiling vent and zippered third storage area there is tons of storage in a tent this size.

[Joe S]

I too wandered into my REI thinking that the new design would be great, with a 90" floor. I'm 6'3", and sleep on my stomach with size 13 feet, so with these dogs pointed out, I'm looking for useable length.

On paper, the new T2 should have been great. However, once I got in it, it just seemed like there was no way it would work out. I'm reluctant to get a T3, but I'm thinking about it.

[Nathan Wernette]

My wife and I purchased the qd3 and love it. We owned a heavier cheaper eureka amari pass 3 and hiked with that last year.

We took the qd3 out this weekend to Sleeping Bear Dunes. Got down into the low 30's. Besides that though.

We love the tent. Well my wife does. I tried to convince her we only needed the qd2 but she likes the space this has to offer. We can fit everything inside the tent… Everything!!

I like the stakeout cords for the vestibules and wish they'd use that method for the rain fly as well.

Pros

Tent is easy to set up

Good weight for two people to carry

Ventilation is good

Spacious!

Cons

Wish it has double zippers on the vestibules so you can vent the top if need be.

Non bathtub style flooring

Third vestibule could be considered a gimmick especially for two people, it involves it's own stake out.

What I imagine w/o the third vesty. May have to modify it!!!

Would love to vest this vesty from the too but no double zipper

[Lance Cunningham]

After just 4 years I pulled my Quarter Dome T3 out of the bag to use it at PCT kick off as a day visitor this weekend. I always clean my tent, shake it out when I get home, and rinse it if necessary, and put it away DRY in a plastic bin after it has had time to dry out in the yard. Mind you, the tent was DRY after an afternoon outside. Pulled it out after 10 months of storage, in a bin, in my closet, in my house, at 70 degrees, with little humidity, in San Diego, to find that the ENTIRE tent was sticky as if I bathed it in sugar. It was soooo sticky I had a hard time getting the tent pitched, ever tried to pitch fly paper? When we climbed in, the floor was so sticky, we had a hard time moving around in it cause it stuck to your ass taking your shoes off, sitting up, or otherwise – and the fly was so sticky I could barely get it in place, if I could have turned it inside out I would have. Needless to say, the seam sealer in the corners on the floor was flaking off, and the tent did not look too waterproof.

With rain approaching, 20 MPH winds and gusts up to 40 or 50 on the way, 36 degree temp the first night, and heavy rain in the forecast, we decided to uproot and drive home for the night over an hour away and return the next day. I was pissed for not taking my tent out and inspecting it before hand… but it is REI, should be worth it, spent $350 on it, should be good for 15 years right? Not so with coatings.

(Update) REI did stand behind this after several minutes of discussion, seeing that I paid full price, seeing the overall condition of the tent which was as good as new other than the stickiness, and they had an old model of the tent available at the Outlet as replacement. In the end, I am happy, although I will miss the orange fashion statement and be living in lichen/platinum. I just need to expect a few more years out of this tent and nothing more, coatings degrade over time. Based on comments following my post, I will remove it from the bin and hang it next to the sleeping bag, I have the space. I find it crazy that I am treating my camping gear as if it were a high priced fur coat… who would have thunk it?

[Nathan Wernette]

I've always stored my tents unrolled similar to a sleeping bag. in a stuff sack, never had a problem with coatings and what not. even my parents 10 year old walmart car camping tent is fine.

[James Couch]

It is critical that tents be COMPLETELY dry before storage. No matter where I have lived I have always had a place to set up my tent indoors for it to dry after each trip. (It was always interesting to see the tent hanging pitched upside down above my dorm room bed!)

Once it is dry it should be stored rolled or folded LOOSELY (this means NOT in it's original bag) but either outside of the bag or in a good breathable storage bag such as used for sleeping bags.

Moisture of any kind is a real enemy of the coatings used on tents, tarps and rainflys. You don't have to store the tent pitched or hanging long term but you do want it to have 'room to breath.' I have stored all my tents in this fashion and have gotten decades of use out of my tents.

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