MSR - Mutha Hubba

Came here to say MSR. I've had the Mutha Hubba for about 15 years, so also can't speak to current quality but I haven't heard of any issues. I also have a larger 6 person REI brand tent that seems to be very high quality at a better price point. They use the same style aluminum poles as MSR. The main thing that made me choose MSR originally was that you can't even purchase their poles. If you somehow managed to break one, they will always replace them for free. Aftermarket parts don't exist because they'll just send you one.

By the way I’m a member of r/snowpeak and thought your question asking about the Alpha Breeze entertaining to a bunch of Snow Peak nut jobs. lol I’ve had various tents for various situations over the years. Earliest memory was using a Coleman four man tent with my family when I was a kid, an acceptable tent for a child, but I also didn’t know any better. I would say any sub $200 tent now probably falls in the same quality of cheaper tent fabric and lower quality poles. In my teens and throughout my 30s, I got big into backpacking so it was with brands like MSR and Big Agnes. In that time of lightweight backpacking tents, I really loved the original MSR Mutha Hubba (3p), it was lightweight and very packable and was spacious relative to its total weight. I’ve since gotten a newer MSR Hubba Hubba (2p) which I like, slight lowering in quality since the 2000s era of MSR quality. Which brings us full circle to the Alpha Breeze, it’s now my dedicated car camping tent, having also slept in and seen other tents that friends bring on car camping trips. It’s something I view as a long term investment that features thoughtful tent design along with the durability that comes with quality. Last thing, the price is high, but I’m seeing this as something that will last me +10 years, if not 20. Which over time breaks down to about $60/year if using 10 years.

I bought a Big Agnes Copper Spur 3-person this past summer. It packed down much smaller and was half the weight of my old REI Mutha Hubba. Had a few rainy nights and it was perfectly dry inside. And if you have trekking poles, you can create an awning with the door. It's not as light as some of the ultralight tents, but some of those really cut corners.

I've had my MSR Mutha Hubba (now just sold as the Hubba Hubba LT 3-Person) for over 10 years and it is in perfect shape. I reccomend MSR gear to anyone because of how great they've been for service and repair for me over the years. They replaced the shock cords in my tent poles, sent me a video link for how to change them, and gave me some extra tips about how to make it even easier, all for free just because the parts manager felt that they shouldn't have lost the bit of tension so quickly (5 years). I also own an MSR stove and pot set that's over a decade old and they look and work like new (but I also try to take really good care of my gear). For a cheaper tent that punches above it's price point though, just for comparison, I would reccomend the Midori from Eureka, I have a Midori 1 as a spare tent and it's amazing for it's cost, but it hasn't seen enough use to compare it with my MSR directly for wear or waterproofing and such.

Thanks for sharing. Don’t see a lot on Litefighter which in this day (of easy youtube reviews) it might be a little concerning, but the specs seem to be pretty nice, either way. Nowadays, I’m pretty fond of my HMG Ultamid 4, since it’s so light and versatile.. and I sure love to cook in the same place as I sleep. I have extensive experience with Bibler (Eldorado), TNF Westwind, and many of the venerable Moss Tents from 20-30 years ago (bought by MSR). Interestingly, one will often pay more $ on EBay for a good conditioned Moss tent than they were ever sold for when they first came out. They were the only manufacturer whose tent fly seams never required seam sealant due to the type of thread that they used. But based on what you’re looking at, Kuiu might have some good offerings to compare to as well as the top lines of all the major tent makers. My sense is that once one is committed to a certain level of quality and durability, most of the tent makers will have some tent model which should be “pretty good” at what your going to use it for. Yet I have a hunch that Hilleberg seems to be in their own category, but don’t have any personal experience to corroborate that. And I’m sure someone can still find one of those TNF/Eureka ECWT designs out there which appear to be as strong as a tent could get, I’d suspect.

1. Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL3 Weight: ~3 lbs 14 oz (trail weight) Price: ~$650 Pros: Freestanding with excellent interior volume Two doors and two large vestibules High-quality materials and DAC poles Good for long trips and moderate weather Cons: Expensive Thin fabric requires some care 2. MSR Hubba Hubba 3P Weight: ~3 lbs 12 oz (trail weight) Price: ~$600 Pros: Excellent balance of weight and durability Symmetrical design, spacious for two or cozy for three Great ventilation and weather resistance Cons: Slightly tighter vestibule space than Copper Spur

From the standpoint of flexibility - I have a 10F down quilt and a 40F synthetic quilt along with a 3.5R pad and the cheap 2R waffle pack thing from Walmart for when I go out in anything under 20F conditions. It is cost effective, warm, and I saved a bunch of money by having four pieces that mix/match to cover camping year round. Granted this is for Scouting and I'm normally walking in only a mile or two to get to our site, so weight isn't a huge deal, but the overall penalty isn't that big anyway. My tent is the previous version of the Hubba Hubba and it works beautifully in winter as well. Coldest trip so far is 6F with a couple inch accumulation overnight. I will say the warmest I've slept in these conditions is when my 16 year old decided to share my tent because he was too lazy to put up his own. I put the 40F quilt over top of both of our bags and it was nice.

Big Agnes, MSR, and Nemo are 3 of the best tent brands available. I ran the warranty desk for an outdoor gear company, and saw the least amount of warranty issues with those brands. They’re not inexpensive, but, you get what you pay for. I have a Big Agnes tent that’s at least 10 years old, we use it regularly and only have to hose the dirt off. It’s amazing. Nemo is awesome too, I know a lot of people with Nemo tents and they love them. I just got an MSR 3 person tent and absolutely love it. Definitely get a 2 person tent. The general rule is to take however many people will be sleeping in the tent, and add 1. So 1 person = 2 person tent, 2 ppl = 3 person tent and so on. A 2 person tent is more comfortable for having your gear inside the tent, changing your clothes, etc. If you don’t plan to go backpacking with it, I’d get a 3-4 person tent just for the space.

Just a quick note, after Cubs when they get to Scouts there is no more family camping. So I would go cheap on the "family" tent for now, unless you guys are planning on using it yourselves for separate family trips. Most cub packs only camp once or twice a year. I got my son a three person MSR tent and myself a single person tent. The three person fit him and his buddy perfect. Those sizes are also a lot easier to hump to a camp site. I'd put the extra money in an inflatable pad to sleep on. That makes a huge difference. I used my old closed cell foam pad the first trip with my son and I woke up sore. The inflatable pad was so much more comfortable and kept me a lot warmer.

love my MSR Hubba Bubba

My only comment on Big Agnes in my experience is that the tents are fragile because they are so ultralight. I’ve had my Copper Spur poles snap twice. BA is great with repairing stuff but it’s not great when you’re in the back country and you’ve got to hold everything together with duck tape just to make it through the rest of the trip. My MSR on the other hand, while a little heavier, seems a lot more substantial while still being a light weight backpacking tent.