BackpackGearTest.org - Sierra Designs Hercules Assault AST Chuck Carnes

Sierra Designs
Hercules Assault AST
Tent
FieldReport
by Chuck Carnes
Report Date: February 2, 2006

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

Name: Chuck Carnes
Age: 36
Gender: Male
Height: 6 ft. 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight: 175 lb (79 kg)
E-mail address: ctcarnes1(at)yahoo(dot)com
City, State, Country: Greenville, South Carolina USA

BACKPACKING BACKGROUND

I love the outdoors – I’ve spent time camping in the outdoors since I was born, and have been actively hiking and backpacking since then. I consider myself a lightweight hiker, usually carrying 20 – 30 pounds (11-13 kg) for hikes up to a week in length. I hike at an easy pace, averaging 2 mph (3 kph). I am a one-man tent camper for now. I like to carry a single trekking pole when I hike to help relieve stress to my legs and knees. I like to get out on the trail as often as I can.

PRODUCT INFORMATION BY MANUFACTURER

Manufacturer: Sierra Designs
Model: Hercules Assault AST
Year of manufacture: 2005
Season: 4
Person: 2
Color: Yellow / Navy Blue
URL: www.sierradesigns.com
Trail Weight: 6 lbs 10 oz (3.0 kg)
Fastpack Weight: n/a
Packed Weight: 7 lbs 2 oz (3.2 kg)
Packed Size: 22 in x 7 in (56 x 17 cm)
Number of Doors: 1
Interior Area: 35 sq ft (3.2 sq m)
Vestibule Area: 7 sq. ft. (0.6 sq m)
Peak Height: 42 in (107 cm)
Floor Type: SuperSeal
Floor Material: 70D Taffeta Nylon, 3000mm
Body Material: 40D Rip Stop Nylon, DriZone 2L
Fly Material: 40D HT Rip Stop Nylon, 1500mm, PU/Silicon
Number of Poles: 3
Poles: DAC Press-Fit 7001
MSRP: $549.95 US

Features (taken from the web site):
The Holy Grail of tents just got lighter and faster. All the great technology and superior strength of our high altitude tested Hercules AST, but with a lightweight single-wall construction. Includes a large vestibule made from our lightweight fly material and the new Air Flow Vent System preventing condensation.

Air Flow Vent System
Arch Support Technology
Clip-Locs
Color Coded Webbing
Computer Aided Design
DAC Featherlite Poles
Double Grommets
DriZone Laminated Fabric
Gear Pockets
Hercules' Jake's Corner
Locking Pole Tips
Reflective Guy-outs and Zipper pulls
Stash Door
SuperSeal Floor
Tent Guard with Ultra Fresh

PRODUCT WEIGHTS AND DIMENSIONS OBTAINED BY TESTER

Weights

Tent Body (w/ Jakes Corner Poles)	5 lb 4 oz (2.3 kg)
Main Body Poles	22.6 oz (641 g) for both sets
Vestibule Poles	2.0 oz (57 g)
Stakes (6 stakes)	3.0 oz (85 g) (0.5 oz (14 g) each)
Total (not including stuff sacks):	7 lb 0 oz (3.1 kg)

Dimensions

Tent (dimensions measured inside):
Front to Back	81.5 in (207 cm)
Side to Side	51.5 in (131 cm)
Height in center	42.0 in (107 cm)

Main Body Poles (broken down)
Length	21.4 in (54 cm)
Diameter	0.5 in (1.2 cm)

Vestibule Poles (broken down)
Length	14.0 in (35.5 cm)
Diameter	0.3 in (0.7 cm)

Packed size	22 in x 7 in (56 x 17 cm)

FIELD REPORT

The Hercules Assault AST Tent is a single wall, four season tent that is very spacious and practically bomb proof. The ventilation opptions are plentiful for a four season tent. The tent comes equipped with a system called the Hercules Jake's Corner that creates a very sturdy skeletal pole system. For more information on my initial thoughts, see my Initial Report.

The first trip I took was a two-night stay to a small area in Clayton, Georgia. It has a few trails and a few campsites but is only known by the locals. I am not a local but I know someone who is and he showed me some of his favorite spots. The weather was great for this time of year. The temperature was 75 F (24 C) during the day and 47 F (8 C) at night. There was no precipitation on this trip so I didn't get to experience any rainy conditions. I had to pack the tent into my pack in the vertical position because of the Jake's Corner poles. The packed dimension is 22 in (56 cm) wide and this is just to wide to fit horizontal in my pack. It wasn't that big of a deal, I was able to pack other things around it. After getting to the campsite I errected the tent a lot easier and in less time than I did the initial time. I opened all of the vents to get some air flowing through the tent since the temperature was not very low that night. The next morning there was light dew on the outside of the tent but no condensation on the inside. The second night and subsequent morning were about the same. I hung the tent along a laundry line to dry from the dew being on the outside of the tent. It only took a few minutes for the tent to dry and I was able to pack it up.

My second trip was a two-night stay at Jones Gap near Caesars Head in South Carolina. The weather was a little bit colder than my first trip. The temperature was 62 F (16 C) during the day and 39 F (4 C) at night. On this trip, again, I did not experience any precipitation but I did experience some frost on the tent on the last morning which was a little unusual since I only recorded the lowest temp at 39 F (4 C) that night. I recorded that temperature at 12:30 a.m. so the temperature had to have dropped a bit later that night. When I tapped on the fabric above me that morning it was certainly stiffer than normal. Again, there was no condensation on the inside of the tent. I left the tent up for a little while, whilst the sun melted the frost off so I could hang it to dry.

Overall, I am very happy with the design and construction of the tent. I am able to get in and out of it easily. So far, I have been the only one sleeping in the tent so I am able to place my pack beside me instead of the vestibule; which I still think is to small to fit a large sized pack in. The gear pockets come in handy at night to keep all of my belongings right above me. They are big enough to hold a book, personal items, a headlamp and even my shoes and socks if I need to dry them. I have found the zipper to stick right around the window area of the vestibule. Sometimes the storm flap will get in the way of the zipper.

FINDINGS AND FUTHER TEST PLANNING

Some of the questions that I had prior to testing the tent I have been able to answer during my field testing.

Set up:

How quick can I set the tent up in case of a heavy rain or harsh conditions? I have gotten quicker at the set up time but I have not experienced rain or harsh conditions up to this point.
Is it easy for one person to set up this tent in these conditions? I haven't tried it in harsh conditions but it is easy for one person to set it up.
Are the poles easy and quick to assemble? Yes.
Are the guy wires quick and easy to attach to the tent fly or are they already connected? There are guy out loops attached to the ceiling on the inside and in each of the bottom four corners. This is to be able to guy out the inside of the tent to stiffen the skeletal system in harsh winds and snow conditions.
How durable will the stakes be? At this point, they are still holding up well.
Are the stakes strong enough to hold the tent in place during heavy winds? At this point I have not experienced heavy winds.
How easy is it to unpack and pack back up? Very easy. The Jake's Corner poles are attached to the tent by way of web straps so that makes it easy to unroll the tent, put the Jake's Corners in place, place the tent poles in the respective holes and snap the tent body to the poles.

The Tent:

For the floor area to be 35 sq. ft. (3.2 sq m), it seems to be plenty big for me and my gear. Is it big enough for me to stretch out and still not touch the sides of the tent? Yes, the sides of the tent are some what vertical so that gives a lot more room at the sides of the tent.
Is the door easy to get in and out of? Yes.
How well does the Air Flow Vent System keep air flowing through the tent? In the mild conditions that I have been in so far, the vent system works very well.
Is the single wall construction strong enough to prevent punctures or tears? At this point I have not experienced any punctures or tears.
How well does the tent floor repel wet ground water or sweating? At this point I have not experienced any ground water in or on the tent.
How durable is the tent floor? I always try to place the tent over soft ground cover or a place with no rocks or sticks. The tent floor is holding up well.
Does this tent come with a foot print? No.
Will the web straps at the tent stakes soak up enough water to make the tent walls wet? At this point, I have not experienced any precipitation during my testing.
The weight seems to be pretty good for a two person, four season tent. How well does it pack into, or on the outside of, my backpack? As I mentioned before, I have to pack it vertically inside my pack.
How fast does the tent dry after being in the rain? I have not experienced any rain but it dryies very quickly from dew being on the tent; just by hanging it up to dry.
How waterproof is it under harsh thunderstorm conditions? I have not experienced harsh thunderstorm conditions up to this point.
Will the window in the vestibule get scratched easily and will it get to a point of not being able to see out of it? So far, it is still scratch free.
What type of material is the window? A vinyl/plastic material.
To what extent can I open the window to get ventilation but still be protected from rainwater entering through it? The top of the vestibule, above the window, can be opened for ventilation.
Does my sleeping bag touch the front and back of the tent? Yes, the foot box of the bag does touch the tent slightly but I have not experienced the bag getting wet from the dew.

LIKES AND DISLIKES (so far)

Likes:

The design and construction of the tent
The gear pockets
The quality of the poles and tent material
The door storage pockets
A portion of the side walls are almost vertical for extra room

Dislikes:

Small vestibule area

Thank you Sierra Designs and BGT for giving me this opportunity to test this tent.

Reviews > Shelters > Tents > Sierra Designs Hercules Assault AST > Chuck Carnes > Field Report

Reviews > Shelters > Tents > Sierra Designs Hercules Assault AST > Chuck Carnes > Field Report