OWNER REVIEW – BIBLER BOMBSHELTER

Richard Lyon

September 25, 2005

 

Product: Bibler Bombshelter mountaineering tent
Manufacturer: Bibler Tents (Black Diamond Equipment, Ltd. acquired Bibler subsequently to my purchase.)
Year of manufacture: 1990
Year of Purchase: 1990
URL www.bdel.com (Bibler tents are still accessible directly at www.biblertents.com)

PRODUCT DETAILS

Weight:

Item	Weight – listed*	Weight - measured
All-in (Tent, poles, stakes, stuff sacks, guy lines)	9 lb 12 oz* (4.4 kg)	9 lb 6 oz (4.25 kg)
Tent and large stuff sack**	not listed	6 lb 4 oz (2.84 kg)
Poles, stakes, and small stuffsack**	not listed	3 lb 2 oz (1.42 kg)
Ground cloth	12 oz (335 g)	10 oz (280 g)
Pocket Pal (see review)	2 oz (57 g)	2 oz (57 g)

*These are weights listed in September 2005 on the Black Diamond website.  Listed weight includes seam sealer, syringe, instructions, and packing.  Tent and poles are listed at 8 lb 13 oz (4 kg).  I bought the tent in 1990 and it is likely that listed weight has changed slightly since then.  See review, last section.
**The best way to divide the tent between two backpackers is to have one take the tent body and groundsheet and the other take the poles and stakes.

Dimensions:

Dimension	Listed	Measured
Tent body length	90 in (2.3 m)	89 in (2.3 m)
Tent body width	80 in (2.0 m)	80 in (2.0 m)
Tent body height (at peak)	44 in (1.12 m)	45 in (1.14 m)
Front vestibule (trapezoidal) length (tent door to vesti door)	35 in (90 cm)	33 in (85 cm)
Rear vestibule (triangular) length (tent door to vesti door)	21 in (54 cm)	20 in (52 cm)
Packed size	not listed	With poles, stakes, groundsheet and small repair kit: 10 x 21 x 6 in (25 x 53 x 15 cm) Tent, groundsheet, and repair kit: 10 x 21 x 4 in (25 x 53 x 10 cm) Poles and stakes only**: 20 x 5 x 3 in (51 x 13 x 8 cm)

 

Floor area: Tent 50 sq ft (4.6 m2); total vestibule space (two vestibules) 20 sq ft (1.9 m2)
MSRP: Tent $799; ground cloth $49.95.  (All dollar figures are U.S. dollars.)  These are 2005 prices.  When I bought the tent in 1990, list price for the tent was $995.
Color: Yellow.  Once available in Bibler's signature green, but Black Diamond's website now lists only yellow. It can today be purchased with regular or fire retardant fabric.
Includes: Five shock-corded Easton aluminum poles, twelve stakes, separate stuff sacks for tent and poles, extra guy lines, and a syringe and tube of seam sealer. 

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

The Bombshelter is a two-door, dome style, single wall, four-season tent designed and marketed for extreme conditions.  (When I bought mine, Bibler's advertising blurb began "Denali? Been There.  Everest? Done that.")  The tent body is ToddTex, a proprietary waterproof and breathable PTFE fabric named after tent icon and company founder Todd Bibler.  The floor is black heavy-duty laminated polyurethane that has one seam and extends two inches (5 cm) up the walls.  There's a door at each end (front door is slightly larger), each with two separately double-zippered panels: no-see-um netting on the outside and fabric on the inside.  Separate hook-and-loop tie-offs at the side of each tent door may be used to keep an opened door out of harm's way. 

There are four staking loops along each sidewall.  The optional ground cloth has loops of nylon twine that are threaded through the corner staking loops.  Each sidewall has a three-point guy line (two points attached to tent wall) that can be staked out for added stability.  Loops of reflective material on each corner of the tent body can also be used for guy lines and BD supplies guy rope for this purpose.

Two attached vestibules are made of grey treated polyurethane (lighter weight than the floor).  The front vestibule is hooped with a pole and has two stakeout points; the triangular rear vestibule has no pole and a single stakeout point.  The fabric overlaps at the top of each vestibule, creating a small vent at the top, with the front vent reinforced with a thin wire hoop.   Each vestibule has a fabric door with double zippers.

The vestibules give the tent something of a tunnel or bunker look (maybe that's how the tent got its name) when viewed from outside, but with a 45 in (1.14 m) ceiling and high sidewall angles even a tall adult like me can sit up naturally inside.

SETUP and TAKEDOWN

It took me several trial runs at home and some frustrating experience on the trail to get the hang of pitching the Bombshelter, but once learned it's not difficult and can be completed quickly by two people. 

All Bibler tents use interior poles and, since the Bombshelter's vestibules are attached (not standard on all Bibler tents), it must be set up from the inside.  In wet conditions two (or one, just takes longer) can pitch the tent with each sitting inside but keeping feet with snowy boots in a vestibule.  There are no pole sleeves; the proper track for the poles is shown by "twist ties," nine flexible plastic fasteners on the tent walls and ceiling that when cinched hold the poles in place.

After assembling all five poles, with the four long four poles (all the same length) inserted through a tent door, we set two into grommets in the tent's corners so that the poles extend from corner to corner diagonally, crisscrossing at the top of the canopy.  The third pole ends fit into small sleeves on the sidewalls, at the base of the tent one-third of the way from the rear door, and the arched pole is canted forward.  The fourth pole fits into small sleeves one-third of the way from the front door and is similarly canted back.  The third and fourth poles thus have an inverted U-shape, with the peak of the arch secured by a twist tie just above the top of a tent door. 

The poles fit very tightly and require some manipulation (particularly of the third and fourth poles) in order to get them seated properly.  Fifteen years of bending the poles has made an exact fit difficult but the tent is stable if we can cinch the ties at each of the seven points where poles intersect. 

After setting up and staking the tent and rear vestibule, I set the fifth pole (shorter than the others) to complete the front vestibule by placing the ends in grommets on each side near the tent door (another tight fit), canting it forward, and securing it with Velcro ties on the vestibule ceiling, just above the vestibule door.  I then stake out the front vestibule and the guy lines.

Striking and storing the tent are most efficiently accomplished by proceeding in the following order.  With the tent doors zipped open, I first remove the poles, then the stakes.  If it's windy, I leave one corner stake on the windward side.  I then fold the vestibules over the tent body, making a large rectangle.  This I fold in half longitudinally twice, leaving a rectangle approximately 90 by 20 inches (2.3 m x 50 cm), with the underside of the tent floor on the outside.  I carefully roll this up from front to back, compressing the folds with my knees as I do so.  If tent and groundsheet are folded in this manner both fit easily into the main stuff sack with room to add the separate stuff sack with stakes and poles, and a small repair kit.  Random stuffing and all won't fit.

EVALUATION

Field Conditions.  The Bombshelter is my winter tent.  I have used it occasionally in other seasons, when I need shelter for three (more on this below), when weight isn't a special concern (the occasional canoe or stock-supported trip), or when I expect heavy weather.  Short of climbing conditions, this tent has been through it all.  Normal winter nights in the Rockies mean temperatures down to 0 F (-18 C) or lower, and I have used this tent several times at -25 F (-32 C).  It kept our group dry in an eighteen-hour winter blizzard in the Sangre de Cristos Mountains, Colorado, and has stood up to ferocious winds in all seasons.  The worst beating the tent took came in summer from repeated thunderstorms in Alaska Basin, Wyoming.  This area is relatively exposed and the Big Rock immediately to the east, popularly known as the Grand Teton, wouldn't let the storm pass through.  For two days we were bombarded with heavy rain and at one point with marble-sized hailstones.  The taut pitch and fabric strength of the Bombshelter handled all this and the attendant windborne debris without a problem. 

Features.  For organized storage there's a small net pocket in each corner, just above the floor section, ideal for small items like a flashlight or sunglasses.  I often supplement this with a "Pocket Pal," a six-pocketed mesh panel ($19.95 from BD) that extends along one wall and ties onto the tent poles.  BD also sells ($15.95) a small "attic" that can be attached to the poles for additional storage at the top of the tent.  The interior poles make it easy to hang a lantern or tie a clothesline inside the tent.

Capacity.  Three adult backpackers with winter kit is a crowded but workable fit, at least in an emergency, as I discovered early in the tent's career on the Sangre de Christos trip when two fellow travelers' tent collapsed under the weight of snow and one had to share shelter with us.  I never plan to use the Bombshelter for more than two in winter though.  The tent is spacious for two; packs can be stored in the smaller rear vestibule and the front vestibule used for smaller items and cooking.  With packs outside in summer and fall this tent accommodates three adults comfortably. 

All of this is somewhat amusing since BD sells the Bombshelter as a four-person tent.  I tried it once (in summer, with three adults and a twelve-year old boy) with no large pieces of gear in the tent, and all participants still complained of overcrowding.  Do the arithmetic: twenty inches' (51 cm) width per person makes for tight quarters.  This tent was designed for serious mountaineering.  All I can say is that four adult climbers who live in the Bombshelter, with all their equipment, will give new meaning to the expression "cheek by jowl."  However, if used for four the tent is lightweight by any standard.

Speaking of weight, when I bought this tent its single-wall construction placed it near the lightweight end of the spectrum for all three-person tents and particularly for those suitable for four-season use.  For summer backpacking there are today significantly lighter weight options, including full (i.e, sewn-in floor) tents, from reputable manufacturers, though the Bombshelter still holds its own in the four-season category. 

I've never liked cooking inside a tent, but have used the Bombshelter's front vestibule for that purpose. 

Protection.  Though seam-taped at the factory, Bibler recommends seam sealing and provides a syringe and tube of sealer with the tent.  ToddTex has made me a lifetime single-wall proponent.  At very low temperatures (well below 0 F, -18 C) it can lose some of its ability to breathe and the poles will then accumulate minor amounts of frost, but the only water on the tent body is what occupants have brought in on their clothes or gear.  With the single wall, wet things that are brought in dry faster.  Snug and dry in all weather, immovable, and with no rainfly flapping in the wind much quieter than a double-wall tent.  Ventilation is not a problem in summer because I can leave the vestibule doors open without fear of rain into the tent even with only the screened doors closed. 

Durability and Maintenance.  The Bombshelter is as tough a backpacking tent as I have ever owned or used.  I've never had to treat the tent fabric, and the only patching I've done over fifteen years is to repair the consequences of my own carelessness with sharp objects.  I re-sealed the seams a few years ago strictly as preventive maintenance.  After extended use I wash the tent with mild soapy water and dry it outdoors or treat it with an anti-mildew product such as MiraZyme. 

What I like

Bombproof (It really is a bombshelter.)

Single wall (Saves weight, easier and faster to pitch, quieter in the wind, dries quickly in the sun.)

No condensation on inside tent walls

Built in vestibules (Clip-on vestibules on other Bibler tents are difficult (when wearing gloves, impossible) to attach (see my review of the Ahwahnee) and I consider a vestibule a necessity on a winter tent.)

Design (There's no wasted space inside.  Snow slides right off the roof.) 

Customer service (BD employees are friendly and helpful over the phone, with all products the company sells.)

Nitpicks

Bibler/BD's claim of four-person capacity. 

Vestibule pole is fastened with Velcro instead of twist ties (Much more difficult to manage when wearing mittens, and not as reliable.)

Vestibule doors have no tie-offs.

Large footprint for a two-person tent.

Bottom Line 

Today's Bombshelter looks much the same as the one I bought fifteen years ago.  That doesn't mean the tent hasn't been improved.  BD is constantly tweaking the tiniest details to improve its tents and bivy shelters.  Once upon a time the tent poles were held in place by strips of material tied together with Velcro.  BD replaced that with the twist ties, which are both easier to fasten and more reliable.  Today's hook-and-loop fasteners for the doors are adjustable, using a movable toggle (similar to those used on a jacket or backpack).  If a bright idea or new technology improves a tent, after proper testing it becomes standard equipment.  If Bibler got it right the first time (e.g., ToddTex fabric, tent design), BD doesn't mess with success.  This philosophy and truly exceptional workmanship make any Bibler tent good value. 

The Bombshelter is a terrific all-season expedition and base camp shelter. 

Backpacking background

Male, 59 years old
Height: 6' 4" (1.91 m)
Weight: 200 lb (91 kg)
Email address: rlyon AT gibsondunn DOT com
Home: Dallas, Texas USA

I've been backpacking for 45 years on and off, and regularly in the Rockies since I moved to Texas in 1986.  I do a weeklong trip every summer, and often take three-day trips.  I'm usually camping in alpine terrain, at altitudes 5000 to 13,000 ft (1500 - 4000 m). I prefer base camp backpacking, a long hike in with day trips from camp, but I do my share of forced marches too. Regardless of type of trip, I'll tote a few extra pounds to have the camp conveniences I've come to expect.