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 Sierra Designs Electron-2-Person 3-SeasonTent By: Sierra Designs Average Rating: 3.0 Total Reviews: 1 More Information Beware - not a 3-season tent without adjustments - but has good points  On: 2006-08-13"Sahara" Designs is what should be the label on this tent, though in that environment, it would be a disaster in a sandstorm since the netting cannot be closed up at all, as is very normal for almost any other tent. The tent is 85% net and no tent wall fabric to zip over this netting if needed. The rainfly shelters but does not come close to sealing the netting in case of significant wind (whether dusty-warm or frigid). This is a cute, easy-to-pitch, warm weather tent. Period. It is much like sleeping under the stars ... the Electron is NOT a 3-season Mountain tent unless you take care to take a warmer sleeping bag in summer. It is TOO well ventilated, even with the fly attached. It is COLD in a typical Sierra night in mid-August (!) at altitude (main forest areas and higher). I just about froze in my summer bag in this tent at 9400 feet in a lodgepole forest with the fly attached and gentle breezes at night. I carefully chose a dry spot away from wetness and reasonably sheltered. I wished Id brought my heavy sleeping bag. I had to put on most of my clothes and only one pair of wool socks wasnt enough, eventually. The tent afforded almost no increase in temperature and let the breezes flow all night (it got down to 38 degrees, which is fairly typical in Sierras in the height of summer). There were very light breezes but not even enough to make any sound of wind. Just down-mountain flow. BUT, the tent can be adjusted if you snug down the rainfly on all sides. That makes it pitch sloppier and it doesnt look as neat. Plus, of course, you lose the vestibules entirely. But that does pretty well solve the coolness problem. GOOD POINTS: - as close to sleeping under the stars as a tent can be short of being just a net tent. - super well ventilated (ideal hot-weather-only tent) - fast to pitch (something I really appreciate) - tent alone about 3 pounds without fly (great if can leave fly home) - lots of extras (nice ground cloth, cup holders and all sorts of light weight equipment holders for inside organization) - lots of head room - small footprint - spacious vestibules BAD POINTS: - not even a 1-season tent in Mtns - like sleeping under the stars, even with fly attached! - so take a much warmer bag than normal tent would require - too short (Im 59" and I barely fit - is OK but taller person would bump head and foot) - too many zippers (main zippers will soon fail especially since they have to make an arc in order to open enough for entry). Ive had MANY zippers fail in recent years, on pack, clothes, tents. I think zippers are too flimsy nowadays. This tent has LOTS of zippers and I fear they will fail in maybe 2-4 years and make the tent impossible to use (hard to fix). After only 4 days of use, Im already having the rain fly zippers snag on adjacent fabric. These are the straight-line zippers and more robust than the main entry zippers. But the flap covering the zipper run too easily snags on the zipper. - the main zippers are very light and are already starting to snag on the adjacent fabric and are already giving signs of difficulty in the curviest part of the zipper track. Most tents have curved zipper tracks but the Electron zipper track makes a more acute bend than most. Bad news, I think. SO ... this thoughtfully made and clever tent has its specific use but beware that it is NOT at all a 3-season or even true 1-season Sierra tent unless you carry extra weight in sleeping bag and clothing. And take care with the zippers. As for me, I think this will prove a useful tent but not as is. Ill add some velcro flaps to allow rapid tie-down of the vestiblues. I often need no fly (warm Big Sur trips). So it is great for that. As for the zippers, maybe I can live with that. The tent basically has 4 different entry points. As one zipper fails, I can sew it off and use the next and the next. I dont need 4 entries, though as a 2-person tent, it would be nice to have at least 2 sides available. Well see. Id still buy it again (got a good deal) but only because I can adapt it as noted. I think Ill get a lot of use out of it, but less adaptable people might find the problems unacceptable. Beware - not a 3-season tent without adjustments - but has good points On: 2006-08-12"Sahara" Designs is what should be the label on this tent, though in that environment, it would be a disaster in a sandstorm since the netting cannot be closed up at all, as is very normal for almost any other tent. The tent is 85% net and no tent wall fabric to zip over this netting if needed. The rainfly shelters but does not come close to sealing the netting in case of significant wind (whether dusty-warm or frigid). This is a cute, easy-to-pitch, warm weather tent. Period. It is much like sleeping under the stars ... the Electron is NOT a 3-season Mountain tent unless you take care to take a warmer sleeping bag in summer. It is TOO well ventilated, even with the fly attached. It is COLD in a typical Sierra night in mid-August (!) at altitude (main forest areas and higher). I just about froze in my summer bag in this tent at 9400 feet in a lodgepole forest with the fly attached and gentle breezes at night. I carefully chose a dry spot away from wetness and reasonably sheltered. I wished Id brought my heavy sleeping bag. I had to put on most of my clothes and only one pair of wool socks wasnt enough, eventually. The tent afforded almost no increase in temperature and let the breezes flow all night (it got down to 38 degrees, which is fairly typical in Sierras in the height of summer). There were very light breezes but not even enough to make any sound of wind. Just down-mountain flow. BUT, the tent can be adjusted if you snug down the rainfly on all sides. That makes it pitch sloppier and it doesnt look as neat. Plus, of course, you lose the vestibules entirely. But that does pretty well solve the coolness problem. GOOD POINTS: - as close to sleeping under the stars as a tent can be short of being just a net tent. - super well ventilated (ideal hot-weather-only tent) - fast to pitch (something I really appreciate) - tent alone about 3 pounds without fly (great if can leave fly home) - lots of extras (nice ground cloth, cup holders and all sorts of light weight equipment holders for inside organization) - lots of head room - small footprint - spacious vestibules BAD POINTS: - not even a 1-season tent in Mtns - like sleeping under the stars, even with fly attached! - so take a much warmer bag than normal tent would require - too short (Im 59" and I barely fit - is OK but taller person would bump head and foot) - too many zippers (main zippers will soon fail especially since they have to make an arc in order to open enough for entry). Ive had MANY zippers fail in recent years, on pack, clothes, tents. I think zippers are too flimsy nowadays. This tent has LOTS of zippers and I fear they will fail in maybe 2-4 years and make the tent impossible to use (hard to fix). After only 4 days of use, Im already having the rain fly zippers snag on adjacent fabric. These are the straight-line zippers and more robust than the main entry zippers. But the flap covering the zipper run too easily snags on the zipper. - the main zippers are very light and are already starting to snag on the adjacent fabric and are already giving signs of difficulty in the curviest part of the zipper track. Most tents have curved zipper tracks but the Electron zipper track makes a more acute bend than most. Bad news, I think. SO ... this thoughtfully made and clever tent has its specific use but beware that it is NOT at all a 3-season or even true 1-season Sierra tent unless you carry extra weight in sleeping bag and clothing. And take care with the zippers. As for me, I think this will prove a useful tent but not as is. Ill add some velcro flaps to allow rapid tie-down of the vestiblues. I often need no fly (warm Big Sur trips). So it is great for that. As for the zippers, maybe I can live with that. The tent basically has 4 different entry points. As one zipper fails, I can sew it off and use the next and the next. I dont need 4 entries, though as a 2-person tent, it would be nice to have at least 2 sides available. Well see. Id still buy it again (got a good deal) but only because I can adapt it as noted. I think Ill get a lot of use out of it, but less adaptable people might find the problems unacceptable. |