I recently purchased a Durston X-Mid Pro Dyneema tent and failed to set it up correctly on my first attempt. I subsequently corresponded with owner of Durston Gear and was given answers to my questions. Dan agreed I could share these on this forum for the benefit of any others who might be struggling to get a taut fit.
If this is the wrong forum for this, I apologize.
I am not trying to market the Durston tents. I simply want to pass along what I think is valuable information for someone who has purchased this style of a hybrid Dyneema tent and struggles understanding the geometry.
The format is:
my question in bold
followed by his answer.
“”I understand that all 4 corners of the Dyneema exterior must be in a rectangle with 90 degree corners after staking.”
It is good to try to be as accurate as possible, but you can also fix it later without moving the stakes. Basically you notice if the rectangle is inaccurate because of how the canopy loops, and then fix it by adjusting the length of the corner cords instead of moving the stakes.
This diagram explains it:
https://durstongear.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/X-Mid-Pitching-Tips.png
The 3 main problems people have are (1) they don’t tighten the base before the the poles are added, (2) they don’t extend the poles firmly enough, and (3) they don’t know how to adjust if the base rectangle is not 90 degrees.
Should the 4 stake out points be at a 45 degree angle away from the Dyneema corners giving an X configuration when viewed from above?
Yes 45 degrees is best so that it is pulling down both sides and not just one.
Should the 4 corner guidelines be under minimal, moderate or tight tension before trying to place the 2 poles in place?
Quite tight. When the poles are added they pull the corners inward and reduce tension around the base so the corner guylines should be pulled quite tight before the poles are in place. The cords can be long or short for a high or low pitch, but should always be tight.
Do I change the length of the poles for a high sidewall versus low sidewall pitch?
The corner cords act like extensions of the fly. For a high pitch, set the corners cords longer before staking them out, so they are staked in a larger rectangle. The poles will be longer too because of this.
Should I shorten the 4 corner guidelines by 50% before staking if I want lower sidewalls?
Yes. Shorten them as much as you want to make it lower.
If i decide to then raise the side walls, do lengthen the guidelines and then restake the 4 corners?
Yes exactly. If you simply loosened the guylines and extended the poles taller the proportions of the tent would be off as it would be pulled too tall but smaller base as the corners pull inwards. So you must lengthen the guylines and restake if you want to raise the height later.
If the short side wall of the bathtub is slack, what should I do?
If the long side wall of the bathtub is slack, what should I do?
For both of these, the best solution is to put the pole tip in the pole tip loop and then move that tip around to adjust the tension on the floor. usually it works best to have the pole tip pulling to the right a bit. If you still have issues, you can adjust the length of the cords that secure the floor but rarely is this needed.
Hope that helps,
Dan
He also told me it is best to store the tent by rolling it up and placing it in the stuff sack while backpacking and while home.
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