"New" Locus Gear Dome Tent

[Franco Darioli]

A couple of comments…

The BD (formerly Bibler) i Tent/Eldorado and Awanee are still made with Todd Tex (PFTE) rated at 10,000 mm.

many climbers had their butt saved by “pop up” tents.

Hard to set up a tunnel tent on ledges like these :

 

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Sam

Well, I use the term ‘dome tent’ for a tent which has 4+ poles – that’s often called a geodesic tent. Very stable design, but usually rather heavy. Also usually for 4+ people because of its square base.

I use the term ‘pop-up’ for tents with just 2 crossing poles, even if they have an extra pole holding up the entrance. Those two poles are long and weak. Am I being derisive? I don’t know. Mind you, I would like to see someone trying to erect one in a storm. That could be entertaining.

You mention that a self-supporting tent places less pressure on the stakes. That may be so in still conditions, but it is NOT so in storm conditions. A pop-up will place higher loads on the stakes than a tunnel in those conditions because it is less aerodynamic. That big flat expanse of fabric on the side will take a huge battering – and the battering will go on the stakes. The long weak poles will bend more easily than short one, and so their guys will also place higher loads on the stakes.

Cheers

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Franco

Yeah, places like that are difficult. You still need the space for two air mats though. But Tunnels have been used in similar places …

Windy Creek, Kosci NP
The rear end of the tent was over a bit of open space.

Cheers

[Franco Darioli]

That purple Olympus is about 1 m longer (almost 1/3rd)  than the Bibler in my photo , if it is an Eldorado (2.2m) .

[Roger Caffin]

Yes, it is of course longer over all, but that does not matter.
What matters is the groundsheet. It has to accommodate two adults plus gear. The rest is just a myth that pop-ups are smaller: where it counts they are not. Facts follow:

Eldorado and Ahwahnee groudswheets are both just over 220 x 130 cm.
Strangely enough, the groundsheet on the Olympus is the same size!

So the Olympus would fit on the same spot in your photo. To be sure, one would have to be a shade creative about guying out the rear pole, but the tent would fit!

Yes, I have been in a few spots where we had to be a bit creative about the pitching. As long as you have that groundsheet area, the rest does not matter.

Cheers

[Matt Dirksen]

C’mon, Roger. It’s just a much as a stretch to say the Locus Gear popup is an “a really innovative new tent”, as it is to say that a tunnel could nest itself just as securely in that granite crevice as a “pop up” tent. (Or wedge tent, as I call it.)

As Franco’s pic shows, the Eldorado appears to be anchored high up on the granite face, and not at it’s floor. I’d simply love to see what an Olympus would look like in that same spot. As we all know, tunnel designs are completely dependent on the proper anchoring of the front and the rear of the tent, in order to achieve their strength and aerodynamic form. When those points are not found, too close to eachother, or too far away from eachother, its advantage of strength to weight disappears, compared to a pop up. That may not happen in most places, but many climbers out there will there are definitely places it does.

Again, as others have said, a well made “pop up” design is a specialized tool – like an electric “impact driver” compared to an electric drill.

Sure, a one can use a cordless drill to drive screws into walls all day long, even though it’s designed for “drilling”. Many homeowners out there only have & use a cordless drill. But an impact driver is specifically designed for screws & bolts – and is better at it than a drill – hands down. Some mountaineers out there wouldn’t think twice about type of tent to use, depending on what they were doing.

Tunnels have their place, but so do mid’s, tarps, “pop up’s”, and geodesics. Hilleberg learned this years ago & that’s why literally half their tent designs are non-tunnels now.

:)

 

 

[Roger Caffin]

Yeah, well, I reckon they were scratching for a spot. Must have been a bit desperate.

Cheers

[Franco Darioli]

apparently that is the case with climbers

who would have thought ?

[Roger Caffin]

Be a bit more desperate if it was raining heavily. Groundsheet would fill up.

Cheers

[Sam Farrington]

Hi Roger, – Only 24 hours, and the thread has taken quite a turn, levitation actually.  There are a few very high posts to hold up the gates to our dog kennel, and our feral cat likes to sit perched on top of one of them for long periods when he is not battling coyotes and fisher cats.  I think he has more sense and a lot more agility than the folks who pitched those tents in some of the photos just posted.

Thank you for your definitions.  There are four 6.5′ long poles that use two elbows in this prototype structure posted in 2011 (You have to imagine the ‘verandahs’):

Would a tent built in this manner be a pop-up using your definition?  It certainly would not have anything close to vertical walls, certainly less than the sides of a tunnel.  Maybe your definitions break down a bit here.  Agree with you about the excessive pole weight factor for what you term ‘dome’ tents.  But without established definitions, it may be hard for many to gauge your meaning.

Perhaps I should have said ‘dismissive’ rather than ‘derisive’ about your umpteenth reference to ‘pop-ups.’  But having read your articles and posts for quite some time, I suspect that derision may have crept in to some extent, not that dismissiveness cannot be equally infuriating.  That is what I’m worried about.  I don’t want folks willing to share new designs to be deterred by either ‘D’ word.  Otherwise, these forums can get pretty boring and confusing in no time.

While we’re on the subject, is the tent in this thread a ‘tunnel”?  Would it be more aerodynamic if elbows connected the poles at the peak to make the sidewalls less vertical?  Or if the end covers had a longer slope?  The OP’s last photo on the thread shows that it certainly requires a lot of supporting guylines:

https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/103317/

Remember the cheap ‘tube-tents’ of yore?  Don’t force me to coin the term ‘tubes’ to apply to all tunnels.   The devil wants me to do it.

[Franco Darioli]

The DIY tent in your link reminds me of the Exped Venus II (minus the cross spreader pole .

described by Exped as :

“The combination of tunnel and dome tent designs results in a freestanding tent with generous head room and dual entrances”

[Roger Caffin]

Injured, replies brief.
tunnel: short poles straight across and threaded into fly. both parts mandatory. else something else.
that means if the fly is thrown over the poles, it is a pop-up in my book, not a tunnel.

sorry about the ‘derision’ – not intended.

cheers

[Sam Farrington]

Roger,  I am sorry to hear of your injury, but thank you for the clarification.  It is much appreciated.  I hope you are well soon, and would like to post with you then about issues with the the poles being threaded into the outer fly, and the fly not being thrown over the poles.  You have been immensely helpful with my projects for many years, and I hope you will be reading about your contributions to them in my posts in the future.  – Sam

 

 

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Sam
Post away. Else day gets boring.

Cheers

[BlackHatGuy]

Hi Rog, hope your injury heals quickly and you’re back to being your normal insufferable self soon… :-)

[Roger Caffin]

Ta mate
Cheers

[Franco Darioli]

Roger, is there a cure for tunnel vision ?

[Roger Caffin]

yes. one night in a good tunnel tent in a 100kph storm. solves all doubts.

cheers
roger

[Steve Collins]

My new “pop up” has been working out really well this winter. Breathability seems to be on par or slightly better than the Black Diamond single walls. Love the size, full length pad doesn’t come close to the ends and I can finally stretch out in the winter!

Djedi in the wild:

PS – not making fun, really embracing the pop up terminology here :)

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Steve

Just curious: no guy ropes?
Deep forest, no wind maybe?

Chers

[Steve Collins]

Roger – good catch. I had the center lines pulled out but not the four corners. Deep in a coniferous forest. I pulled the stakes and moved it over to some fresh snow for a picture. :)

[Steve Collins]

[Mario Caceres]

Very Nice.  I have the BD (previously Bibler) El Dorado which I use in winter / early spring (snow backpacking) and has similar shape.  I always use the “mid rib” tie outs and is amazing how much rigidity they add to the whole structure.  Tent is able to endure pretty strong winds without any issues.  Also easier to stake out with deadmans not so close to the shelter.

[Jon Solomon]

How is the condensation/frost buildup in very cold weather?

Those carbon fiber poles must be stout given the reported weight (300g/10.58 oz). I have a set of three carbon poles from Fliegfix Austria for the Hillberg Soulo that weigh 270g and are much stiffer than the standard DAC poles that came with the tent. (For comparison, the 9mm DAC poles weigh 530g, while a set of 11mm scandium poles, also from Fliegfix, weigh 700g and are obviously incredibly burly).

Carbon reportedly isn’t as good at snow-load bearing as alloy (it will break whereas alloy will bend). Does Locus Gear have any advice about that? Have you had any experience with snow buildup?

I’ve only read one user report in Japanese from Japan. Fellow sliced the floor on the first set up (ouch!).

[Steve Collins]

<p style=”text-align: left;”>Definitely burley pokes, much heavier (thicker) than my Fibraplex set. You can stick a pole through any tent that sets up from the inside, I know a few folks that have done it with Bibler/BDs.</p>
No real experience with snowload, but tent tends to shed snow well and I always seem to wake up during storms anyways and give everything a shake from the inside.  Letting your tent load is just asking for trouble no matter what the poles are made of – just my two cents

I have mostly had it in very cold high humidity (low single digits F). Some frozen condensation a couple nights but I was also trying to dry out damp clothes so that could have co tributes.  Like I mentioned, I think it performs a bit better than the new BD fabric but that’s just my unscientific opinion and a couple months of use.

– Steve

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