New UL Durston dome tent

[slparker]

Dan Durston just released a new tent design - a sub 1kg (less pegs) freestanding dome for $AUD560.

Silpoly, carbon poles and the parallelogram setup.

https://durstongear.com/products/x-dome ... cking-tent

[Moondog55]

I do wonder what it will be like under our wet soggy snow in a big dump

[Parkinson]

He has a video showing the top of the tent holding ~8-10 litres, the tent looks really solid. Safe to say I'll be purchasing the 2 person as soon as its available, it hits all the important points for me

[stry]

Freestanding has always been very attractive to me, although I have owned (and still own) only one such tent- a Hilleberg Unna.

A light freestanding tent exhibiting Dan's clever design nous, will be very hard to resist.

[stry]

I do wonder what it will be like under our wet soggy snow in a big dump

No worse than many others and better than some I expect.

Personally if planning on such conditions, I would choose something other than UL. The less time spent clearing snow during what should be sleep time, the better.

[stry]

$64 question. Buy now or wait for V2 ?

The Xmid gradually evolved with several bits of fine tuning. None of them were bad, but the gradual evolution led to an improved product.

Perhaps what has been learned with the Xmid will enable the Xdome to be as good as it can be from the get go.

[Warin]

$64 question. Buy now or wait for V2 ?

The Xmid gradually evolved with several bits of fine tuning. None of them were bad, but the gradual evolution led to an improved product.

Perhaps what has been learned with the Xmid will enable the Xdome to be as good as it can be from the get go.

There are always tweeks to be done on the first run of anything. Even after 'in house testing' the feed back from the early enthusiasts can lead to improvements. Using the walking poles to reinforce the tent is a good idea ... however I like to use a walking pole to keep my backpack off the ground ...
I'll wait. I do like the concept for use on, say, the Larapinta.

[Neo]

Looks pretty good. Nice to see an exoskeleton design. Seems very similar to the BigSky revolution, which is a great tent! Maybe this one will get a vertical drip inside as the 'roof' is narrower than the side...

[stry]

There are always tweeks to be done on the first run of anything. Even after 'in house testing' the feed back from the early enthusiasts can lead to improvements. Using the walking poles to reinforce the tent is a good idea ... however I like to use a walking pole to keep my backpack off the ground ...
I'll wait. I do like the concept for use on, say, the Larapinta.

I agree, although I do think V1 of the Xdome will be closer to being fully sorted than was V1 of the Xmid. The magnets to hold the doors open are one example, and I'm sure there are others.

BUT, as I am well past my biblical "three score and ten", I have opted for the bird in the hand and placed an order rather than wait.

[north-north-west]

I don't need another tent.

I do, however, have a feeling that this would be come the go-to. It looks just about perfect.

[JohnnoMcJohnno]

I'll put a contrary point of view. I've never liked tents where the poles are clipped to the outside of the fly. Wind loads on the fly are transferred to the poles only at the clips, meaning the poles are point-loaded instead of loads being distributed along the length of the pole. That and the fact that the poles are carbon fibre means I wouldn't trust it in strong wind conditions. Clever layout design, but not for me.

[crollsurf]

Kind of agree with JohnnoMcJohnno. Not a fan of poles on the outside. Interesting to see if it is a true 4 season tent.
But, I have always wanted a MSR Hubba, so if I was to scratch that itch, I think I'd go for this one instead.

[Moh]

I'll put a contrary point of view. I've never liked tents where the poles are clipped to the outside of the fly. Wind loads on the fly are transferred to the poles only at the clips, meaning the poles are point-loaded instead of loads being distributed along the length of the pole. That and the fact that the poles are carbon fibre means I wouldn't trust it in strong wind conditions. Clever layout design, but not for me.

Similar. As soon as I saw carbon poles, my interest dropped. A mate and I got caught in a bad storm above the treeline one night (came from nowhere). The carbon poles of his MSR reflex lasted about 20 minutes before they snapped, tearing some nice holes in his fly in the process. My Hubba Hubba poles lasted about 3 hours before the aluminium started to split at the joints. It was a pretty rough night. As much as I love my Hubba Hubba, my go to tent is now a hilleberg (weight be damned)

[Warin]

I'll put a contrary point of view. I've never liked tents where the poles are clipped to the outside of the fly. Wind loads on the fly are transferred to the poles only at the clips, meaning the poles are point-loaded instead of loads being distributed along the length of the pole.

Given that the pole is 4 legged, you'd have to use clips across the top section. Might be possible to use sleeves on the legs...

If using the inner only then it would be fair weather so clips would do...

[stry]

I agree with the concerns about the external frame and joining thingies at the top, but I'm backing the brand to have these things working well.

I also think it's a tad unfair to be assessing this, or any other UL as a four season tent. If that's your go, get something stronger and heavier.

[Moondog55]

I guess most people don't visit the Alpine areas in winter, those of us who [ or did] will naturally pick strength as the first priority

[slparker]

It's a strange criticism of a 3+ season UL tent, though - that it may not handle wet snow loading as well as a dedicated 4 season tent.

Most people, such as myself, have a dedicated tent for conditions where snow loading is expected.

A 3+ season tent is for conditions where strong winds and snow is unlikely not probable. So, 3 season alpine conditions. This tent, along with others of its ilk, ought to be judged for the conditions for which they are designed.

[Warin]

Tarptent have an 'arcdome' 2P with sleeved poles... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Z6NFLi ... Z6NFLiZJgQ

Dan says he is gona do a solid inner for the Xdome ...

A prototype has a pole failure https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HoFw2a20EZA possibly due to a pre-production error ...

edit..

... Thinking about an infield repair of a carbon fiber pole... the ends of metal sleeve places a stress point on the pole.. would be better if the sleeve were tapered at each end..possibly with silastic used to glue each end and provide some flex... humm some heat shrink tubing could also aid stress relief too...

[Moondog55]

Maybe because in that situation I've always used a tarp or fly and have always considered double skin tents as Winter only shelters, I don't think I'm alone in that. I take the point tho. But that 3+ rating seems to imply the possibility of being stormworthy. Most UL tents would seem to me; although my experience is minimal; to be 2+ season tents, Summer with a bit of Spring and Autumn if conditions are mild

[Warin]

Maybe because in that situation I've always used a tarp or fly and have always considered double skin tents as Winter only shelters

Flys and mossies have me considering double skinned tents for spring, summer and autumn.

[Neo]

Having the similar style Revolution 2p, it was my go-to tent for probably 100+ nights. So convenient to clip the poles on then two or four pegs and it's done. Perfect if it's raining. Also super easy to pack down. I have never camped in alpine conditions (as they are a long way away!). Any moisture gets spread throughout when packed up though, but that dries pretty quick next setup. I'd definitely choose a less ultralight design if I was expecting more extreme conditions.

[stry]

From my Mum many years ago - "Act in haste, repent at leisure"

A little deeper dive reveals that a X-Dome + 1 is likely to be available with a solid inner in 2025. The current iteration certainly has nice band of solid above the tub which should greatly reduce drafts and eliminate splash, but I think I will wait (just) for the solid version.

Still have my X -Mid 1P solid to use in the meantime.

And who knows, my fickle self may swing back to the mesh version in the meantime, although for my usage, I think the solid would be a little better.

[Moh]

I also think it's a tad unfair to be assessing this, or any other UL as a four season tent. If that's your go, get something stronger and heavier.

I agree, it is a bit unfair. I guess my point was that the outdoors is unpredictable, and s#@t happens. Carbon unfortunately fails in a dramatic way if it reaches its limit. Not so concerned about the idea of external poles. My hilleberg has external poles & clips and it has so far shrugged off some pretty bad summer alpine storms & wind (albeit the 3 pole design is very sturdy, the pole dia is large and so are the clips and their connection to the fly). Also, with the poles on the outside of the fly, they are unlikely to slash the fly if the do fail.

I think this looks like a great tent, and (funds permitting) I see one in my future for local overnight trips, bike packing, and NZ when on popular tracks where you can’t book the huts (such as Nelson lakes, Rees dart etc). Until then, looking forward to following its success.

[Kott]

I was so close to pulling the trigger on this tent, but I didn't.

I think its completely unfair to compare this to proper 4 season tents. Its a great strong 3 season tent.

I have Xmid1 and as 1.89 (6'2) person it is short for me while everything else is great.

I want something longer and I think Xdome would be perfect yet I want to see how it stacks up with the youtube and other influencers.

The youtube link above is a classic clickbait influencer video and is completely crap "review".

I used to have Mont Moondance 1 and that had one big door just like this one. After living with tents that have 2 doors.....I kind of want two doors.

[Warin]

Dan has now said he'd like to do this tent with dynema ... however that would be in the $800 range..

He has also said the external poles are so you can pitch with the inner only ... humm

2 door is 'nice' but adds weight.

[stry]

100% of first production run has been sold on pre-order.