Great post Robert!

The Tenshi does look like the total package. Good luck finding a deal though. Let us know.

Pierre,

I've had my Firstlight out in some nasty rain and sleetstorms and never had a bit of leakage. I have total confidence in it.

What about a BD Megalight or something comparable? Light, and big enough to count as having a vestibule inside.

I made the call and ordered the Vaude Power Odyssee. It should weight 2050g including a more than adequate vestibule. I hpe to be able to cut a few things off in order to make it slightly lighter. I must confess that I was and am too skeptical of the BD epic tents at present. Some "ebayshop" is still offering the Rab Summit Moutain Bivi (event) a higher version of the S. Extreme and it was really tempting but the lack of even a tiny vestibule drew me off. I also felt ridiculous buying a tent that would require me to buy a vestibule and cary a tarp just in case (with the BD epic's).

Time will tell if I made the right choice. I'll let you know.

Again, thank you all for your input.
Cheers
Pierre

yo pierre its brayden and colton from school im sure you rembere us =) If i were you i would go climb a muntain with my udder mudder and eat the putine tarla

Cheers
Brayden and colton

I'm going to have to say check the Jannu. As a disclaimer, I've never camped in the conditions you describe, but I'm an experienced "wanna-be". I've played around with many tents in my native Southern Appalacians, and my conclusion is the Jannu. It is so easy to put up compared to internal poled tents. I have all of the ID tents with vestibules, and a couple of the Rabs. I've had the BD firstlight. All these tents are about the same shape and require snaking the poles into an open tent, not fun in the rain, and epic leaked one rainy night for me. Event fabric is amazing. I've had and sold the Nallo 2. It was too short for me (I'm 6') on a pad, and you are right the acute angle is the problem. The Jannu has plenty of room for me and my daughter (6yo); and the vestibule houses my Belgian Sheepdog nicely. A really great tent for me.
Don

"All these tents are about the same shape and require snaking the poles into an open tent, not fun in the rain"
Only if you want to...
Here is what you do. First peg down the corners. Then get inside . Unfold 4 pole segments. Insert the tip into the grommet. Bend the folded pole sections and add to it one at the time. Insert at the opposite corner and repeat for the other side...
Not my idea BTW, they are designed like that so you can get out of the weather very quickly.
Franco

I live in Washington where our winters are snowy but wet. My BD Lighthouse didn't work well here- I got wet inside. I'd consider this a dry winter tent.

I love my Hilleberg Nallo 2. I'm about 6'2" and I had plenty of room with another climber. These days I have a Kaitum 2 which is incredible but out of your weight range. Both of these tents have been great in high winds and horrible conditions and the usable space is much higher than in a two pole wedge tent. The trade off is a little bit of high speed wind stability when getting slammed from the side and not being freestanding. Still, I've had my Nallo up where it was hard to walk and the tent was a drum. I love Hilleberg.

Good choices out there!

Doug

"They will not stand for their products and won't admit they "screwed me""

Yup, that's definitely their reputation.

I have a much older 2R, but haven't seen (or am just unaware of) issues with the PU coating "curing" and failing over time.

I'd also add a few other issues with my tent:

- in the cold the fabric contracts, and it's a real b**tch to get the poles in the pole pockets (the ends are not adjustable). I've taken at least 10 minutes, at zero degrees when I'm cold and tired, just to get them set up.
- when you open the door the rain can drop right into the tent! There's no real vestibule to keep out snow and rain, so good luck in bad weather.

Thanks for the tip, Franko. I'm headed out this weekend, and may just give that a try.
Don

Pierre,

Can you report back your findings on the performance of the Vaude Odyessee Powerframe?

I just received one in the mail and it is way heavier than yours for some reason. I wonder if we got the same tent.

If you see this post, please email me at: [my bpl member name][at]mac.com

Thanks!

I got a 2 ppl tent with an attached vestibule that is all supported by 3 poles. It is the Power Odyssee and it is somehow less then 4 pounds. I did cut some extras like some bits of elastics that where simply not needed, some of the zipper pulls, and tags. Also, I got ride of the metallic pulls and only left some tat. I was very surprised at the weight but since my scale can accurately weight a full nalgene, why would it not weight the tent properly... Maybe we got the same model but from a different year. They may have changed the fabric?

Edit: After doubting my kitchen scale for the last little while... I took my Vaude Power Odyssee to my friend that has bought a high end digital scale. The fly, inner and poles weight 2789g!!! Much heavier than on my cheap scale... Also of note, I have slightly modified the tent to make it lighter and still as functional (removed some zipper pulls and some unneeded bits. It seems that anything over 2000g is not weighted properly on my home scale. Bumer... I hope this did not misguided anyone. I apologize to all.
Poles: 654g, bag: 86g, Inner + fly: 2135g

The only good news: 3 people can fit in it for an alpine climb. It won't be comfortable but... Better yet, bring only the fly and poles for 3 people for a summer push. I'm also convinced a more handy person could make it lighter by a few ounces. (modifying the ways the inner and outer are attached to each other.)
Cheers
Pierre

Edited by Pierre on 09/26/2010 09:34:00 MDT.

Hi Pierre,
I've been looking at basically the same tents for the same intent and purpose: Alpine/Mountaineering, ~<5lbs, 2 person, ideally a vestibule, ~40" tall, long enough for 5'10" plus winter bag, reasonable footprint.

I'd love to hear your feedback on the Vaude, as its come down to the Rab Summit Mountain Bivi + tarp or porch, Nallo 2, and now the Vaude Power Odyssee (its been off of my radar).

FWIW, I've been leaning towards the RAB due to simplicity, eVent, and storm-worthiness, but hemming and hawing nonetheless due to lack of included vestibule. Which has led me to the Nallo 2 and now the Vaude Power...

Much thanks

Edit: Vaude is saying the Power Odyssee (external poles) is 2850g/6.28lbs vs 1870g/4.12lbs for the Odyssee (internal poles) - which if that's the case the Power is too heavy. Do you have the Power or the reg Odyssee?

Edited by nicktruax on 09/20/2010 21:09:59 MDT.