The 2-lb freestanding tent

[Oneil]

What is state of the market for a 2-ish  pound freestanding tent? This is for one person at all times. I have historically purchased ‘two person’ tents which we really know is 1+, but will purchase a true one-person tent to save the weight and bulk.

Typical use is friendly Sierra 2-3 seasons. So typically dry but wind can be a factor. But also like coastal vibes so need to manage condensation. Coming from Tartptent and similar single wall minimal shelters and sorta tired of playing the ‘perfect site’ game. I want a no-nonsense err day tent. Willing to pay…

Looking at the Nemo Dragonfly. Also need this tent to work for bikepacking so pole/hub lengths need to be about 18” or less.

Suggestions? TIA.

[Edward John M]

Why 18″? Can’t you fit the poles along the top brace bar?

[bradmacmt]

The Dragonfly seems like a solid choice. I like Nemo.

[Mike M]

appears the Nemo Dragonfly is much closer to 3 lbs than 2 lbs (2# 13 oz)

what Tarptent are you coming from?  have you looked at any of their dcf offerings?

I have a Aeon Li and have not had any condensation issues (Montana), roomy for one, wind (save crazy winds) are not an issue, decent vestibule and weighs 1 lb all in

also check Big Sky tents, they have a few free standing tents

[J-L]

The Nemo Dragonfly 1P is listed at 33oz minimum weight. That’s the weight I pay attention to from manufacturers, as they typically have unnecessarily heavy stakes, guylines, and stuff sacks.

The Big Sky Mirage 1P and Big Sky Evolution 1P come close to your 2lb goal. My Mirage 1P came in at 33.4 oz.

Tarptent has a freestanding option on their Rainbow tents. Both the single Rainbow in silnylon and the Double Rainbow Li are around or under 2lbs.

The Locus Gear Djedi is completely freestanding and also around 2lbs, although it is shockingly expensive – you could buy three full-price Nemo Dragonfly 1Ps for the same price!

If you don’t want to go semi-freestanding (like the Nemo Hornet, Big Agnes Fly Creek, etc), there really aren’t a lot of options out there. You still need to stake out or anchor freestanding tents, and almost all require staking out the vestibules.

[Oneil]

Do you mean the top tube? Can’t go above the top tube because I will lose much needed standover. I have a frame bag where the preferred spot for the poles is inside the bag along the down tube, hence the 18″ requirement.

[ij395]

Nemo Hornet Elite

[Oneil]

I have a Double Rainbow that quite honestly has been a great tent. Although not free standing, it is easy to set up and easy to find a good spot. But as stated I would like to delve into a free standing unit.

The Aeon certainly look like a great tent. Similar to, but better design and execution than, the SMD Lunar Solo, which I have and will likely sell to fund the new tent.

Big Sky is very interesting! The Evolution looks about as simple a tent one could imagine. Price to weight looks pretty good, not amazing. What is up with this company? Anybody know the story? The ‘about’ tab on the website reveals no info. And that website is very 1998.

[Anonymous]

I recently discovered Big Sky.  Google shows two (?) sites.  I ordered some accessories a coupla days ago.  CS has been great due to one of the items on BO.  I used the bigskyproducts.com hit. Still comes up as Big Sky International.   I dunno.  Anywho, just another vendor I now bookmarked. http://bigskyproducts.com

[Brett A]

https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/1p-dual-wall-dual-vestibule-freestanding-tent/

Don’t own one (yet) but the Big Sky Revolution 1P seems to be about as “no fuss” as it gets.

https://bigskyinternational.com/collections/tents-and-shelters/products/big-sky-revolution-1p-tent

[Anonymous]

Trekking pole or free standing, they both need staked down.  If you want a free standing due to the mechanics, Nemo is hard to beat.  I had had an earlier Hornet 1P.  Fast set up.  Small footprint.  But the material wets out.  Supposedly they changed but I’m not sure.

[Oneil]

Man, is there any beating the BA Tiger Wall UL 1? I realize not totally free standing but I can deal with two stakes, ala the Nemo Hornet. $350 retail for something just under two pounds…seems too good to be true. I know the fabrics require care but I am careful with my gear.

[J-L]

Big Sky is in the process of moving from http://bigskyproducts.com/ to https://bigskyinternational.com/

They seem to be taking their sweet time with the transition (obviously websites are not their forte), but you can order from either site. When Big Sky first started making tents, they had many delivery and customer service issues. Those problems seem to be resolved now, and I have had good customer service from them. I would still email to check the in-stock status of their tents, as they seem to keep some tents in an Asia warehouse and others in a US warehouse.

The only things I did not like about their Revolution 1P are:

1. Only 1 door. It would be annoying to me to be in the tent in the rain and not be able to access the other vestibule.
2. The fly leaves a 6-8 inch gap above the ground. This is for ventilation, but I prefer a fly closer to the ground.

The Mirage 1P gets you 2 doors and 2 vestibules, a little better storm protection (reduced risk of splash-back), and almost a double-wall design. I have sewn several pyramid tents and two dome tents, and can say that Big Sky’s fabric and construction quality are excellent.

[Mike M]

I’ve found “minimum weight” listed for most tents as fly, poles, footprint

worth double checking to see what Nemo is including in their minimum weight

[Brett A]

@johnnyh88

Description on Big Sky’s website for the 1P Revolution says “Large side doors for easy entry and exit”.  I take it that this is not correct then(?).

[J-L]

Whoops – my post above should have said “Evolution” not “Revolution”. The Revolution has two-doors, but the Evolution only has 1. Too bad I can’t edit that post due to BPL’s short edit times…

[Brett A]

No prob.  Just wanted to make sure I understood that correctly.

[Adrian Griffin]

I have a Nemo Hornet 1P. Semi freestanding and easy to pitch on a bed of decomposed granite, where the solid bedrock might be only an inch or two down,  making it hard to place stakes just right for a trekking pole tent. Roomy enough for me, I’m 5’10”.

My full trail weight is 30.3 oz. That’s the tent, fly with one extra guy, zPacks stuff bag (instead of the bag that came with it), poleset, pole bag, home-made polycro footprint, 7 titanium stakes (from Dutch). The footprint is 2.6oz of this.

Since I weighed it, I lightened the poleset by 0.7 oz by replacing the shock cords with a lighter rig made from microcord and 1/16 inch shock cord. See my post under Covid Projects.

[Oneil]

Thanks Adrian, my son has the Hornet 2P and has been happy with it.

I’m seeing that REI has the BA Copper Spur HV UL 1 on sale (ending today) for $285. I think I am going to pull the trigger on this one.

[Pedestrian]

Not a freestanding tent….but a decent price ending today at REI, the Flash Air 2.

Well reviewed by Alan Dixon here. He suggests getting the two person version for 1 or 2 people.

 

[Mike W]

Tiger Wall 2 Platinum

https://www.bigagnes.com/Tiger-Wall-2-Platinum

 

[bradmacmt]

Don’t own one (yet) but the Big Sky Revolution 1P seems to be about as “no fuss” as it gets.

I ordered a Big Sky Revolution 1P (solid interior) in June. Talk about a poorly made tent.

1). Shock cords in the poles were eroded/stretched out to the point the poles wouldn’t snap together. It took 10 minutes of pushing the shock cord into the poles to erect the tent.

2). Interior (solid) panel over the head area was cut too large (saggy/non-taught). It would definitely have flapped in the wind.

3). Velcro closure on one of the fly vents was off by enough that the vent wouldn’t velcro shut.

While a good design, quality was awful. I returned it.

[bradmacmt]

I’m seeing that REI has the BA Copper Spur HV UL 1 on sale (ending today) for $285. I think I am going to pull the trigger on this one.

I have this tent. It’s an excellent choice. Roomy for a 1P freestanding tent.

I also have the Nemo Hornet 1P Elite. My favorite solo shelter. But like the Big Agnes Tiger Wall, it’s not a true free-standing tent so I didn’t recommend it.

[Oneil]

Nemo Hornet 1P elite is a sick tent. Probably would have been my first choice if price were no object, even if it is not truly freestanding. Pretty sure I’ll be stoked with the Copper Spur. It is due to arrive on Friday.

[Brett A]

@bradmacmt

Sorry to hear about your experience with Big Sky.  I had such high hopes for the 2p in particular.  Now I’m having second thoughts.  Thanks for the heads up.

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