Is the TarpTent Double Rainbow the only 2 person (let's say >48 inches wide), free-standing tent (i.e., fully enclosed, bug- and rain- 'proof'), with two doors that is under 3 lbs? Seems like the next step is a big one - to something like the BA Copper Spur UL2 at 3 lbs 13 oz.

No. The warmlites are around 2.33lb or so. All options add weight, of course.
http://warmlite.com/tents/tents-technical-data

Many others in that weight range. Too many to list...

Frommy understanding, the Warmlite 3 person tents have a door at either end. But these are over 3 lbs The two person is under 3lbs but has only one door. What are a couple of these other options you mention? Much prefer two side doors as end doors don't avoid the problem with one door - a contorting sort of awkward entry or exit in the middle of the night.

Edited by ShawnB on 09/04/2011 07:47:28 MDT.

Free-standing seems to be the kicker here. Right off the top of my head I cannot think of one, but maybe others here will. If you were to take free-standing out then that would open more doors for sure.

Yep, the free standing is the real trouble in that equation. I really like the idea of the SMD Haven (and there are others too). So, I know the options if that bit is removed from the question. Still, I'd really like to know if there are any that fit all these parameters. Thanks for input so far!

An not a fan of Big Sky, but don't they have some 2Ps that meet your criteria?

Thanks - that does fit. I'll look in to it more. Is Big Sky not well regarded?

EDIT: search forum - ouch - rocky times for them a couple of years ago.

Edited by ShawnB on 09/05/2011 11:57:31 MDT.

Sorry Shawn, missed the two door thing...

Shawn,
Inasmuch as you intend to look into the Big Skies, be advised that many of the posts suggested either ordering from a retailer with the tent you want in stock, or ordering from BS only with their assurance that the tent is in stock and is the one that will be immediately sent to you. Most of the posters put it more nicely, but that seemed to be the gist of it. Good luck.

I have a Big Agnes SL2 that comes in under 3lbs and is totally free standing. Nice 3 season. It fits me and my wife beautifully. I've had it for 6 years and needs to be seam sealed again, but other than that it has no problems after lots of use! I'd highly recommend it!

Of course you could drop the freestanding requirement.

I know it can be nice sometimes, but is it really worth it overall?
If you are wishing to not have to attach your shelter, you are inviting trouble.

I would like to hear people's impressions of the TT DR set up as free standing. I searched the forum but haven't really found any clear discussion of how people feel it works in this configuration (stability, etc.).

The TT DR is the only tent that seems to be designed to go either free standing or not and this could help us transition away from purely free standing (convincing us that it isn't worth the weight for free standing). That was the idea behind my post because my wife saw some of the review videos of it on YouTube and hated it - mostly the look of the floor and the pull strings to adjust floor height for ventilation/splash tradeoffs. I know this is meant to be a positive 'feature' but it just completely turned her off of the tent. It's not done yet and we may still consider it further. I personally don't like the narrow space for headroom - I want us both to be able to sit up comfortably for periods of time facing each other in the middle of the tent - or the large space between tarp and ground (I know it can be adjusted by sudden and unexpected wind storms in the Idaho mountains at 3am make that unpleasant). Ultimately, we may just get both a new free standing and something like the SMD Haven (that tent just speaks to me), or go for the TT DR, so that we can have our own real world comparison since these choices often come down to personal preferences.

Edited by ShawnB on 09/06/2011 16:07:44 MDT.

That "narrow space for headroom" is what ultimately led us to sell the Double Rainbow in favor of a Six Moons Designs Lunar Duo. We never used the "free standing" feature of the DR, so we don't miss it, and we gained significant interior volume at the cost of a slightly more difficult setup. We did have several years' experience with Tarptents before buying the DR, and we hadn't had a freestanding tent in many years.

The Lunar Duo has been a terrific tent for the two of us.

You're mostly comparing a single wall tent to double walls with this question, because virtually all 2 person single wall tents are not freestanding because of the additional weight you can save. Off the top of my head, I can't think of any other 2 person single wall tents are are freestanding, so the DR would be the only one.

For double wall tents, the lightest are the Easton Kilo, Big Agnes Fly Creek UL2 but they aren't really 2 person according to your criteria.

Shawn, after using non-free standing tents for a little while you'll probably come to realize that you never needed one to begin with. Even on rocky terrain, loose sand, or snow there are methods to non-free standing tents. Sure you have to learn a few things, but stuff stored in the brain is a lot lighter than stuff stored in your pack.

If you're thinking about purchasing two tents I would suggest to get the DR and either the Haven (or Lunar Duo if you're looking at the Haven) and compare those if they're the ones you're considering. Keep the one you like best.

If your wife's main point of contention is the floor, you may also want to look at the Lightheart Duo which has a very upright bathtub floor. The floor would be the least of my concerns with any of them, but keeping wives happy is always a smart move :)

To me another name for a free-standing tent is a kite.

Can't think of a reason not to be prudent enough when out in the wild that you don't take a few seconds to push half-a-dozen stakes in the ground to keep your house from going bye-bye or getting shredded in a tree as I have seen many times.

Free standing tent= oxymoron unless your just sleeping in your back yard in nice weather Lol. Sometimes being on an ultralight BP forum can twist your brain a bit farther than it should and some compromise considered for practicality and safety.

Edited by breeze on 09/07/2011 19:50:53 MDT.

So often someone posts on this site about finding something, and the poster is told that is not what h/she really wants, etc., etc.

As for the merits of the issue, the key difference between freestanding tents and non is that one is anchored, and the other is supported by stakes.

For some reason, the argument frequently goes that because the freestanding tent needs to be anchored, or otherwise might blow away; therefore the non-freestanding are better. Not an oxymoron, but certainly a non sequitur.

There are plenty of great arguments for hoop and other non-freestanding tents. Roger Caffin posted a comprehensive discussion of them: http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=36912 (scroll down)
No need for the silly stuff.

(Edited for link)

Edited by scfhome on 09/07/2011 21:55:10 MDT.

looking at the range available from most of the larger manufacturers we can see that they have free-standing as well a s non freestanding.
They have domes,hooped,tunnel , mids and A frame or variations on the theme.
There must be a reason for that..
Franco

The idea of freestanding has nothing to do (in my opinion) with staking or not. We should stake tents. Rather than reinvent a definition, I'll just say I agree spot on with Roger Caffin's definition from a post long ago "My definition of 'free-standing' is that the tent can take its final shape without ANY stakes. Any other definition is really meaningless". The final shape in such a tent requires some additional weight (such as a pole system) but does have some benefits. Thus my inquiry was one to learn the state of the market and current technology and whether we have many lighter weight options in this style of a tent with all the comforts of two doors for two people (not necessarily to help me find a new shelter).

Thanks to all for a lively discussion and informative input.

Why do you require a free standing tent?

I have the double rainbow, and mainly got it because I don't have trekking poles, and wanted a lightweight tent that didn't require trekking poles. I haven't tried it out in free standing mode...but that would need trekking poles! lol.

I think I read somewhere the double rainbow in free-standing mode is not as sturdy as when it is staked out.