The past 6 months ago I have been slowly upgrading/changing my gear trying to achieve "lightness" and have been stuck for months trying to pick out a new shelter. I have compared what feel like hundreds or tarp and tarptent shelters with no luck on a decision.

I like cuben because of the non-stretch. Spinnaker looks good, but I think I want something a little more durable, and the weight savings and upgrade-proofness of cuben are just too appealing to pass up.

Please, someone make a 1+ cuben tarptent, I will buy one, and I bet many others would too. I would love to see a slightly larger version of the TT contrail, moment, rainbow, smd lunar or simiar in cuben. I think tarptents are great because you can add a little extra floorspace to a 1 person (minimal weight penalty) , that will accommodate 2 people in a pinch, and be super comfy for solo use.

I would like to have
-Full wind/rain/bug protection
-Expandable bathtub floor (like the 1 person TT rainbow)
-Cuben



PS: Sorry for the blog but I feel there is a real niche in the market here. I think a company would really profit with a design like this right now.

Anyone else in the same boat?

MDL- Take a grace tarp and add beaks, velco opening on the front, tarptent style floor

GG - Slightly larger tarptent version of the spinnshelter in cuben, tarptent style floor

Tartpent - Any design in cuben.

SMD - Lunar in cuben.

Edited by handyman439 on 04/06/2011 21:20:02 MDT.

I totally agree with you that there is lack of floored, cuben, single walled tents. You can buy lots of cuben tarps/fancy tarps and there are a couple double wall options (HMG Echo, Zpacks Hexamid with net tent, PyraTent w Inner) but no true single walled bathtub floor cuben single wall tent. The closest thing so far is likely the SMD Refuge X, which was all of these things but the floor wasn't a bathtub design.

I do know one manufacturer is working on something, but I don't want to throw out names or even suggest that design will make it to market.

try checking out the new light heart solo cuben. http://www.lightheartgear.com/LightHeart_Gear/Home.html it doesnt fit your exact specs but its a great tent.

I do like the design of the lightheart tents. If I used trekking poles, they would fit the bill pretty well, but the weight of two large poles adds quite a bit i think (8.5 oz. for theirs)

I think Big Sky came out with a 2 person cuben single wall tent.

It weighs under 2 lbs.

It costs ~$900

http://www.bigskyinternational.com/SummitShelters/Big-Sky-Mirage-2P-details.htm


Scott, while many hear you on the Cuben Tarptent idea, Henry Shires has spoken out against that. I'm not pretending to speak for him, but I do recall some posts a while back. Basically, he said that the drawbacks of cuben (price, abrasion resistance, and maybe something else) were just too big to invest in production of cuben shelters. Again, I'm just recalling from memory.

Edited by T.L. on 04/06/2011 22:05:46 MDT.

http://www.terra-nova.co.uk/Downloads/Factsheet/Laser%20Ultra%201.pdf

Double wall 1+ person tent @ 1lb 4oz

Some of those tents have some impressive specs, but I couldnt imagine spending that much money on a shelter.

I guess like others have said, maybe there is a reason more manufactures are not doing this. The price just gets to ridiculous.

I will probably end up buying a TT moment or something similar. I would think eventually cuben tents will come down in price and be more popular. I guess this is the first year manufactures are making them (asides from cuben tarps). Things could be alot different this time next year.

With more manufacturers using cuben, hopefully Cubic will ramp up production and lower the cost of the stuff. And maybe even develop some cuben variants that are more geared toward shelters and such than toward sails. The hybrid silnylon/cuben fabric that HMG uses for their Windrider packs comes to mind as an example, even though that particular variant may not be ideal for a shelter.

The Terra Nova and Big Sky examples listed are double wall tents and it sounds like the OP is looking for a single wall.

Cuben is somewhat expensive stuff, but it doesn't need to be ridiculous like Big Sky makes it. In terms of material cost, a cuben tent likely has $150-$300 worth of cuben in it.

One of the other issues with cuben tents is there is not as significant a weight savings as one might think.

Tarps are simple – there's more or less one piece of fabric. Cuben can drastically reduce the weight because it is, well, all there is to it.

Tents are complicated, though. They have a fly, a net inner, a groundsheet, poles. You can use cuben to reduce the weight of the fly, but the poles are still heavy, not many are comfortable with a cuben groundsheet (perhaps justifiably so), and you can't reduce the weight of the inner net. Cuben doesn't have as much to offer here because there are too many other parts – cutting five ounces from the fly just doesn't make that much of a difference when your tent still weighs three pounds.

"If I used trekking poles, they would fit the bill pretty well, but the weight of two large poles adds quite a bit i think (8.5 oz. for theirs)"

Pretty much all ultralight solo shelters are designed to use trekking poles. It's the only way you can get a fully enclosed shelter down to UL weights. Using separate tent poles adds enough weight to negate most of the savings of cuben versus silnylon.

"Some of those tents have some impressive specs, but I couldnt imagine spending that much money on a shelter."

And if Ron or Henry were to invest in making and stocking cuben versions of their tents, I bet you (and others as well) would say the same thing. Wow! Impressive! Glad the options are now out there! And then we move on to something saner and cheaper...

That is a good point.

To make a cuben tent effective, I guess it would have to be very simple. Few stakes, poles, etc. Basically just a simple fly, perimeter netting, and groundsheet. Something I guess I could just put together myself using existing cuben flys.

Maybe use a mld patrol shelter, netting attached to an improvised groundsheet or bathtub floor, and a velcro door on the netting.

BTW, is cuben a poor material for a ground sheet? Maybe because of abraision resistance or too slippery?




Trekking poles.

Ya, they defiantly have advantages. Many time I wished I used them, (for their use in shelters) but they are just not for me at this time. And the truth is, I really am not at "ultralight" weight, so buying 25-30 ounce shelter would fit my gear more appropriately.

But its all about the gear, gotta have the latest and greatest, haha. That being said, I will probably stick with sil-nylon for a couple more years.

"Many time I wished I used them, (for their use in shelters) but they are just not for me at this time."

I thought the same way until I actually used trekking poles on a hike. Now I can't imagine hiking without them.

Based on other people's comments, if I gave them more of a chance, they would probably grow on me too. But the little I have tried them, I thought they were cumbersome, and didnt make my hiking any easier. (probably was not using them to their potential)

If I ever plan a thru hike or something of that scale, i would certainly give them a better try.

Depending on configuration, adding dedicated pole(s) in lieu of using trekking poles carry only a small weight penalty. A dedicated carbon fiber pole (3 or 4 sections with elastic cord) for the SMD Lunar Solo, for example, weighs just 1.3 oz.

Edited by ben2world on 04/07/2011 12:11:35 MDT.

Ben,

Great point. I have been thinking about doing just that. I really like a single hiking staff much better. Actually I already bought a pole from MLD and did use a staff and the pole for a while. But for some reason I still grab the trekking poles on every trip, without thinking about it. Mentally I don't see much advantage. Oh well, must be "senior moments" :)

I'd given up on power walking with trekking poles when I realized how often they were lashed onto my pack. So I picked up a 3-section carbon pole, as Ben mentioned, for my SMD Gatewood. Works great, super light. And I don't power trek anyway.

As Nick mentioned, there's also that attachment to a walking stick. The romantic or emotional tie to picking up a stick/staff from the side of trail as soon as possible. You can multi-use that stick for your shelter pole if you whittle it to length. Not hard unless you're a gram weenie with only a razor blade, or entirely without.

I've found that we eradicate or dismiss those romantic and emotional bonds way to easily and efficiently. Who the heck went out without a stout walking stick and a good knife. Not Thomas Jefferson (props Nick)

cheers,
-Michael

Digging up a bit of an old thread here, but have you seen the newest SMD tent? Skyscape X, made of Cuben:

http://www.sixmoondesigns.com/tents.html?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage_smd.tpl&product_id=57&category_id=7