Comments on: Tarptent Double Rainbow Review

By: Jason

Jason — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 01:56:29 +0000

I just came across this post because of an ongoing issue.

I purchased the tarptent from backcountrygear.com in August to use in the Wind River Range. Second time I set it up a low gust of wind came down off the mountain and snapped the back hoop in two thus tearing the fabric. I was able to still make the tent work for the remaining five nights by using a second trekking pole in the back.

When I got back I contacted backcountrygear.com and was told that they would check with Henry Shires about it. He didn’t believe that it was a manufacturer defect but would be willing to repair the tent. I sent the tent off for repair and he received the tent on Sept 30th. Meanwhile I spoke with the folks at backcountrygear.com who changed their mind and were willing to issue me a complete refund once I receive the tent back from Henry Shires. It came down to the fact that I didn’t trust this tent to hold up in the backcountry and that it was an inferior product. Who wants to worry about a tent breaking on you in stormy weather.

So the current status is I’ve contacted Henry twice over the past two weeks and have gotten no response. I had a friend send a question in today who got a response from him in 30 minutes. That’s when I started wondering if others have had problems like me.

This is definitely a bummer since his products are so well known in the thru-hiker community. You want to support the smaller companies but I could have had a lot less headaches if I had just bought a Big Agnes tent from REI. And nothing against backcountrygear cause they want to rectify the situation but that can’t happen until I get my tent back from Henry. Not happy to hear he’s taken up to a year with others.

By: Jim

Jim — Fri, 13 May 2011 14:45:55 +0000

Caution about buying from Tarptent!! I own a Rainshadow 2 and used it on the JMT for 3 weeks the tent worked great in the dry high altitudes of the Sierra Nevada Mtns with little condensation problems. I like the roominess of the tent but after only 3 weeks the stitching on many of the stays and pole attach sections started coming apart after several field repairs we were able to complete the hike. I sent the tent back in for repair to Tarptent and to my despair I found that Tarptent took almost a year to repair it! After sending multiple emails to Tarptent they finally responded after I threatened to come by there shop in person to talk to someone. They stated that they had some kind of weather incident and that there shop was damaged and they could no longer find my tent. Low and behold they finally agreed to send me a new replacement tent but what arrived was my old tent and a message stating that they found the old tent in a corner of the shop. The tent had been returned with two large 10″ rips to the bottom and I had identified the areas of repair needed but only half of them were re-stitched. I again emailed Tarptent to see what could be worked out and they have at this time still failed to respond they did although send me a tube of silicone and some patch material which I believe is an unacceptable way to handle the repair. I had heard good things about Tarptent so I am not sure if this is an isolated issue but there lack of communication and fairness to my issue should be considered before buying one of there products.

By: Tarptent Cloudburst 2 Review

Tarptent Cloudburst 2 Review — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 18:05:29 +0000

[...] 2 Review By Bryan Hansel | Published: January 19, 2011 Tweet In early 2009, I traded a Tarptent Double Rainbow for a Cloudburst 2. For various reasons, I didn’t like the Double Rainbow, but I wanted to [...]

By: Bryan Hansel

Bryan Hansel — Sun, 16 May 2010 03:15:18 +0000

Thanks for the feedback, Peter. The other tent with external poles I used was a tent by Big Sky International. When the fly was wet, it was very difficult to get the poles to feed through the sleeves.

I’d like to try an Akto, but I have no desire to spend the premium demanded in the U.S. to try a tent I’ve never seen. If someone from Hilleberg is reading this and wants an honest review, feel free to send me a tent. :)

By: Peter

Peter — Sat, 15 May 2010 15:24:18 +0000

I own a Hilleberg Unna and never had a problem with the external pole sleeves, nor with the sleeves of my Akto, Kaitum and Stalon. Back to the Unna. It’s a 2 kilo gross (1,7 kilo net weight) freestanding tent and gives great protection. On hot nights you can sleep with the big door open and since 2009 there is an all mesh inner tent available. Yes, the Unna has no vestibule, but when stuck in a storm you can create one by unhooking one corner of the inner tent. It’s a very versatile tent, and will survive anything you’ll throw at it.

By: Bryan Hansel

Bryan Hansel — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 15:04:33 +0000

Thanks for the comment and taking the time to read the review. I’d rather my reviews be honest and upsetting than pandering. Someone may buy something based on my recommendation and I’d feel terrible if I recommended a terrible product.

It’s good to hear that my impression about workmanship is echoed elsewhere. From the glowing reviews on the Internet I was concerned that I had a lemon…

I’ve heard good things about Hilleberg. I’d like to try one at some point. I had a chance to use another brand of tent with external pole sleeves and found that I didn’t like it. The poles kept binding up when the fly was wet. I’m still fond of Big Agnes’s Seedhouse SL 2.

By: gnarlydog

gnarlydog — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 06:27:55 +0000

Bryan, I like how you give an honest review of the tent and don’t just praise the product avoiding to upset the manufacturer.
I work with silnylon: it’s very easy to sew, so any manufactruing glitches are poor workmanship.
I have repaired a friend’s Tarp Tent and in my opinon the product is inferior. There was no hemming on the fabric to prevent the fabric from fraying, there was no reinforcement on the thin fabric where the hiking pole is used to erect the tent( so a hole developed after short use), the guy points ripped out … the list goes on.
I initially was keen on the Tarp Tents however after seeing my friend’s I decided that simply a shelter like that would not last.
I went with Hilleberg instead: a very light tent but seriously sturdy, I mean it.
Impeccably made it has the feature of taking down the inner seperate before packing away a wet shell. Not cheap but certainly the best.
Thanks for your review.

By: memory foam

memory foam — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 03:53:29 +0000

Thanks for the detailed review. I have also heard good things about the Cloudburst model and may get that.

I have owned a Squall for years and would mention that I haven’t had any trouble with durability of the tent materials; nothing has failed as yet.