Durston - X-Dome 2

Agreed. Freestanding tents are not ultralight. If you have to go freestanding, the only kind of ultralight answer is the X-Dome or maybe the Tarptent Rainbow.

Thats true, cheap tents waterproofing doesn’t hold up to extended periods of rain, but a good tent might go 10 years or more. REI has the Mountainsmith Cottonwood 6p for $220 in their outlet which means you can get an additional 20% off if you are a member. That a great price at $176, and much better then a Coleman in terms of quality (good waterproofing and aluminum poles). Then you can get a higher end backpacking tent for yourself. The Nemo Dragonfly mentioned earlier is 30% off at several online retailers. 3P is plenty of room for two adults, though I’d still get the 2p and make your friends get their own tent. Or for a little more money get the Durston X Dome 2P w/ Aluminum poles.

The X-Dome is commonly recommended because it’s the lightest freestanding tent on the market when equipped with the carbon poles while still being spacious. Their 2P actually fits two, so you’d have to compare that with many other 3P tents which makes the weight really stand out. Personally I’m not a fan of Carbon poles as they seem more fragile than aluminum and am ok with a little extra weight. Fortunately Durston sells the tent with aluminum poles now. The 2p is still about 6-7oz lighter then the Nemo Dragonfly 3P with aluminum poles but a bit more expensive then the current sale price of the Dragonfly. Personally I’d go with the Dragonfly since it’s on sale. Also the OSMO fabric is supposed to have very long lasting waterproofing. It’s too new to be sure (came out in 2022 I think) but I’d guess these tents will go 10+ years typically before re-waterproofing. The fabric is also a big reason why I’d choose that over MSR, BA etc. I hate tents that sag and most manufacturers use nylon which sags. Nylon also absorbs water which makes packing it up really messy if the fly is still wet. OSMO and Poly fly’s (Durston uses poly, as does Mountainsmith) can be shaken dry before you put it away.

towards the end in a larger group I was skinny pitching my 1p durston and both 2p tents in my group had 2 people in them just to fit in tent sites. honestly 2p solo tents in some of the sites on this trail felt like a selfish move. if you fit in a 1p, you aren't spending enough time in it to need extra space, save the weight.  except the very very tall, solo 2p durston owners seemed to agree it was a little ridiculous to hog that kind of real estate. it was usually their first ul tent. 1p durston owners should all know how to skinny pitch. for one thing, it saves you when your door zippers start to go. in bad weather, 1p let me sneak off to a tiny wind protected ledge and have a peaceful night. 2p would have been stuck w the brunt of the wind up on the ridge spots established by fair weather weekenders.... 

Ill get bashed for suggesting it, but if the ordering wait isnt an issue (around a month) The X-Dome 2 from Durston is $480 and much lighter. I get not caring about if your ultralight, but if there are no clear downsides to going lighter, why not? Price is less then the hubba hubba and marginally more then the hornet, and living space is the same. (32sq ft for the Durston and MSR, 27.5 for the NEMO) So if price is the same, living space is the same, and it weighs much less, why not?

Not that the option is bad, just saying its better is bad. Just throw in abit of stats and reasoning and suddenly its alot more attractive

Recently I have finally received Durston X-Dome 2. Very happy with it: palace inside, 2 entances & vestibules, freestanding, total weight <1.5kg, light poly so no sag in a bigger rain, short very packable poles that fit nicely in a backpack / moto bag. There is an option for solid interior for windy weather.

I also enjoyed Mongar 2 as a not expensive but quite roomy tent for backpacking. Recently update to x-dome 2 and I enjoy it - even more spacious, still has 2 entraces & vestibules and is over 1kg lighter (I had mongar polyester 240 version).

ive got the x dome 2, its very nice and light, sea to sumit has a similar one (telos tr2), that is a bit heavier, aluminum poles, and has a more conventional floorlayout, they sell it in a bike packing kit too. durston also has short pole option, replaceable interiors for like 130-160. id recomend just getting the groundfly too or diy one, the floor is sorta thin but im used to cheaper/ older tents. with the way the durston sets up its a bit more involved going from no rain fly mode to rainfly mode, ther tr2 is a more traditional rainfly ontop of frame vs suspended. ill say the durston is one of the fastest tents ive put up and im normally a slowpoke

Buy once cry once. I did. Opted for the x dome 2. Glad I did, such a quality lightweight tent

Durston X-dome has treated me well

A lot of good points about it’s gonna come down to him. As a big guy (6’6” and not skinny with very wide shoulders) it is very important for me to have head room when sitting up and being comfortable when laying down. I only backpack with my 2 person tent so I am looking for light 2ish pounds or less and roomy enough where I could fit 2 wide 25” sleeping pads although generally just room for me and my stuff to stretch out. I really like the xdome 2 and the packs triplex which I find to be just a large 2 person tent. The zpacks is not affordable at all and I don’t even own one I’ve only borrowed. The xdome I own but it is still around $500. The only budget friendly tents ive tried all lack in one way or another so it’s going to come down to his preference. Good luck to you!

This is what I carry: https://durstongear.com/products/x-dome-2-ultralight-tent 2.7 lbs Compact stowed Very fast pitch (can pitch fly and tent in one go after first pitch) Freestanding Works well with 2 and tall people Great vestibules Great company I switched from hubba hubba for many of these reasons

I have an X Mid Dome 2 freestander: https://durstongear.com/products/x-dome-2-ultralight-tent It’s much pricier at $470 but weighs only 2.7 pounds. One great feature is after the first time setup, you can keep the fly and tent connected and pitch it all at once quite easily. I had a Hubba Hubba 2 person (much heavier, a little bit cheaper) and used it a lot. I keep thinking about a 1 person or the X Mid Dome 1+ but in the end I keep coming back to loving the room to stretch out (esp nice if you have to hunker down in bad weather).