Reviews > Shelters > Tents > Sierra Designs Hercules Assault AST > David Sowards-Emmerd > Initial Report

Initial Report - Sierra Designs Hercules Assault AST
October 13, 2005

Name: David Sowards-Emmerd
Age: 28
Gender: Male
Height: 5' 8'' (1.73 m)
Weight: 155 lb (70 kg)
Email Address: drunken_marmotATyahooDOTcom
Los Altos, California, USA

Backpacking Background:
I began backpacking semi-frequently about six years ago, soon after moving to California. I generally take weekend (1 night) trips, and occasionally take 3-4 day trips. Most of my backpacking experience is at moderate altitude, 6,000'-12,000' (1,800-3,650 m), in conditions ranging from dry desert to hail/heavy snow in the mountains. In winter and spring I split time between Southern California (SoCal) deserts and snowshoeing/skiing/snowcamping in the Sierra/Cascades. Summer and fall I tend to stick to the high country. I have reduced my packweight, including food and water down to less than 50 lb (23 kg) for snow camping and mountaineering and under 30 lb (14 kg) for 3-season camping with temperatures down to freezing. I'm trying to include more mountaineering, climbing and bouldering in my trips.

The product was received on October 11, 2005.

Product Description:

Manufacturer's Description:
Manufacturer's Specifications:
Trail Weight 6 lbs 10 oz (3.01 kg)
Packed Weight 7 lbs 2 oz (3.23 kg)
Packed Size 22'' x 7'' (56 cm x 18 cm)
Number of Doors 1
Interior Area 35 sq. ft. (3.25 sq. m)
Vestibule Area 7 sq. ft. (0.65 sq. m)
Peak Height 30'' (76 cm) / 42'' (107 cm)
(30'' is a typo both on the hang tag as well as the manufacturer's website, the tent dimensions diagram lists the correct height of 42'')
Floor Type SuperSeal
Floor Material 70D Taffeta Nylon, 118'' (3000mm)
Body Material 40D Rip Stop Nylon, DriZone 2L
Fly Material 40D HT Rip Stop Nylon, 59'' (1500mm), PU/Silicon
Number of Poles 3
Poles DAC Press-Fit 7001

Features:

• 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 (check if the zippers are reflective)
• Stash Door
• SuperSeal Floor
• Tent Guard with Ultra Fresh

Specifications (as measured by tester):

Weights:
Main Poles: 11.5 oz and 11.53 oz (326 g and 327 g)
Vestibule Pole: 2.15 oz (61 g)
Stakes (each, 6 included): 0.49 oz (14 g)
2 Guys Lines and 2 Tighteners: 0.71 oz (20 g)
Pole Stuff Sack: 1.09 oz (31 g)
Main Stuff Sack: 2.58 oz (73 g)
Stake Stuff Sack: 0.25 oz (7 g)
Tent body (including 4 attached hub sets): 5.46 lb (2.477 kg)
Total: 7.51 lb (3.406 kg)

Dimensions:
Length (at center): 82'' (208 cm)
Length (at side): 83'' (211 cm)
Width (at middle seam): 48'' (122 cm)
Width (at end): 52'' (132 cm)
Max Height: 42'' (107 cm)

Main Pole:
Collapsed Length: 21.375'' (54 cm)
Diameter: 0.5'' (1.3 cm)

Vestibule Pole:
Collapsed Length: 14'' (35.5 cm)
Diameter: 0.375'' (0.95 cm)

Hub Assembly:
Overall Length: 21.75'' (55 cm)
(this is the minimum length for packing the tent since these are sewn to the tent body)
Pole Length: 20.125'' (51 cm)
Pole Diameter: 0.5'' (1.3 cm)

Product Description and Initial Impressions:

The tent with everything packaged nicely in the main stuff sack. Included were:

• 2 black guy lines and 2 plastic line tighteners
• tent body and hubs
• 2 main poles (slightly bent shape)
• 1 vestibule pole (very bent shape)
• pole stuff sack
• main stuff sack (holds everything)
• 6 stakes (to stake out the 4 corners and the vestibule)
• stake stuff sack
• hangtag
• instruction and care sheet

After unfurling the tent, the first two things that struck me were that the colors were those of the University of Michigan (my wife and I are alumni) and the amount of metal on the tent. The poles were larger diameter than I'm used to seeing, and the hub assemblies look bombproof and heavy (they're actually quite light though).

The Hercules is a good sized 2-person, 4-season tent with a small vestibule. The 3 poles are all external, with two large poles crossing over the top of the tent, and a third short pole connected the two main poles just above the vestibule. The main poles attach to 'hubs' which connect the main poles to two short poles that attach to each corner of the tent (if confused here, see the photos and the description below of the Jake's Corners). The poles are secured (secondary) to the tent with clips as opposed to sleeves, and the top, central clip attaches to both poles and includes a shock cord to further secure the poles together.

Materials:
The materials used in the tent are clearly specified by the manufacturer on their website, so I will not go into detail here. Suffice to say, both the materials and construction appear to be very high quality and I'm happy with the choice of colors. Also, I could definitely smell the fabric treatment. I have never had a problem with tents molding or mildewing, but I dry them thoroughly after every use.

Setup:
After arrival of the tent, the first thing I did was go out to the small patch of grass at my apartment complex and set it up according to the instructions. The included setup instructions are available online and contain a through description of how to set up the tent so I will not discuss it here. However, if I encounter any issues with setup or takedown during the course of testing, I will be sure to comment on them. I have already set up the tent several times during the first 24 hours since receiving the tent and it's very quick and easy, just taking a couple of minutes to set up or tear down.

Interior Pockets and Attachment Points:
One mesh pocket is located above the door (this is the stash pocket) and two more are located at the opposite end of the tent, well above the floor level. Near the top of the tent are 5 small loops, four of which are part of the internal guy system and are designed to be tied off to the four loops in the corners of the tent. Any of them, however, would work fine for hanging a flashlight, lantern, or wet clothes to dry.

Hub Assemblies/Jake's Corners:
The hubs are mostly hollow, wide, short cylinders which act as a interface between the poles. The hub has three holes that accept the poles. Two of these holes are filled by the short corner poles which are permanently attached to it - that is, shock cord connecting the two corner poles runs through the hub. Either of these corner poles can be pulled out of the hub, and normally one would be for packing since these have to be rolled up along with the tent body. A third hole accepts the main poles that cross over the top of the tent. When assembling the tent, the main poles are inserted into the hubs, and then the connected corner poles are inserted into the grommets on the tent. This method obviously does a better job of distributing/reducing the stress on the poles during setup and takedown compared to setting up the hub first and then forcing the main pole into the hub. I find this to be a very interesting setup, and am curious to see if there are any obvious drawbacks that appear during use. Below is a photo o the Jakes Corner.

The Jake's Corners/Hub Assemblies are connected to the tent with webbing, so this requires some extra effort in rolling up the tent as well as packing, since the tent can't be rolled up separate from the hub poles. This webbing on the corners of the tent form a triangle between the tent corner, the hub, and the stake loop. Only the webbing segment between the hub and the stake loop is adjustable, so tightening the tent floor to the stakes isn't possible. However, I don't see this as an issue since all I really want to tighten to the stakes is the poles, I'm just used to having the poles attach right at the corner of the tent.

Vents:
Three vents provide ventilation through the tent. Two small vents are located on opposite sides of the vestibule, near the floor level. These can be opened by unzipping an access panel and propping the flap out with a small pole that can be fixed in place with a hook-and-loop fastener. The third and much larger vent is located centrally on the ceiling at the opposite end of the tent. In this case, the supporting pole has to be fit into a 'half pocket' (see photo below) and then this is secured with a hook-and-loop fastener. The vents are still sealed off from the outside with mesh when open, so bugs should not be a problem. It doesn't appear that rain could find it's way in through these vents. Hopefully these vents will be sufficiently large to provide a nice airflow.

The Vestibule:
I'm not sure what shape I'd call the vestibule, but as far as size goes, it seems small. I will have to verify this in the field and see whether I can fit a winter pack or two inside or just a pair of boots. The zipper has a reflective pull tab and an extra rain flap covers the zipper to keep water out. A clear plastic window is located at the top of the vestibule door (part of the door).

The Doors:
The tent door has two layers, a thin, white nylon outer door, and mesh inner door. Both are very circular in shape and have double zippers. There are two ways to keep the door open, either stashing the door(s) in the pocket above the door or piling the door in the inside corner of the tent. The doors are plenty large and very easy to get in and out of. The zipper pulls are color coded such that the inner pulls are yellow and the outer pulls are blue (for each individual slider). This seems a bit odd to me, since I would rather differentiate between the nylon and mesh doors than whether I'm pulling on the right side of the slider (which is just as easy to see as the color coded pull tabs).

Special Features and Manufacturer's Claims:
Many of the manufacturer's claims are quantitative, so since there's no easy way to evaluate them, I will not be able test them (e.g. 66% stronger). There seem to be a couple typos on the manufacturer's website in the description of this tent. The webbing is not color coded, except for the two reflective side guy outs, all the webbing is gray. The tent does not have two sets of grommets for each pole. And finally, the peak height is significantly greater than 30'' (76 cm). The zipper pulls on the vestibule are reflective, but this is not the case on the other zippers. I can only assume that the 'locking pole tips' refer to the larger diameter bits on the ends of the poles that help keep them in the grommets - these are present on the poles of all the tents I've every used.

Misc.:
There appears to be plenty of room for playing cards, changing clothes. The floor is thoroughly seam sealed, although the documentations suggests sealing the webbing attachment points by hand. I may do this if I notice a problem with seepage. Also, I should note that the bottom clips on the door end of the tent seem very tight compared to any of the other clips. I'll keep and eye on whether this loosens up with use.

Specific Things to Test:

• 6 stakes were included, which appears to be sufficient for normal conditions, but how many are needed for a full setup if the conditions are bad?
• Since the Jake's Corner poles and hub are sewn into the tent, is this a problem with 'flying metal objects' swinging around in a strong wind? So far, it seems to make rolling up the main tent body easy. Also on the plus side, this should help keep the tent on the ground even if the wind is blowing when I'm initially staking out the tent.
• Setup is very easy in normal conditions, but I'm curious to see how it goes in windy/snowy/rainy conditions. Is it doable with just one person, is a second person needed to hold down the tent, or does that just make things easier? How difficult is setting up the tent with gloves on?
• How does the tent behave in a strong wind?
• Is it quick/easy to get in/out of the tent without getting too wet in bad conditions? Any places where snow is prone to leak under the vestibule? Where does the water tend to drip off the tent/vestibule in rain? Do both wet and dry snow accumulate or is the tent steep enough that it simply slides off?
• How breathable is the tent (especially with no wind for ventilation)?
• The tent is very tight when set up, even without guy lines. What will rain, sleet, and wind sound like?
• Zippers - easy to operate with one hand? Can I grasp the pull-tabs (reflective) when wearing gloves or big mitts? They're color-coded so that the inner side has a different color than the outer side for the front door. Since I can't figure out any good reason they did this, I will change them to what seems logical and useful to me - one set of colors for the outer door, and another set of colors for the inner mesh. The sliders overlap quite a bit leading to confusion as to which door I'm actually opening or closing.
• How big of a problem is condensation with one or two people in the tent?
• At first glance, the tent looks big enough for my wife and I with minimal gear and normal sized sleeping pads. However, I'm currently using a Therm-a-Rest Expedition mattress (large size) that's 25'' (64 cm) wide for winter conditions or when I'm carrying a larger pack anyways. Will there be enough room for my wife in there too?
• The breathable fabric on the tent is stretchy - will this elasticity disappear with use so that the tent does not pitch drum-tight?
• Any leakage from the seams?
• Is the floor slippery enough that my sleeping pad or pads will slide around?
• Will the top 'clip-lock' freeze up in snow/sleet?
• Is the `Air Flow Vent System' effective? Will it set up a cross-breeze in strong winds between these three vents?
• Does the window fog up on the inside or frost up on the outside? Will it fade or become opaque with use?
• Aside from the two side/floor-level guy line loops, which points seem like good spots to guy out?
• How awkward are the internal guy lines when properly tensioned?
• Is there a good place to stash a water bottle and a pee bottle (with 2 people) in the tent?
• How convenient are the loops and pockets for hanging or stashing gloves, hats, etc. to dry inside the tent?
• Does the tent hold in much heat in winter? I'm used to bivy-teepee setups (doesn't hold much heat) and bivy-snowcave setups (holds in lots of heat and moisture).
• Will the tent fade in color during the test period, or does it have a good UV coating on the fabric?

Test Plan and Testing Locations:

During the field and long term periods, the two main uses for me will be as a snow/bad weather backpacking tent and car camping tent. I will likely use it as a 2-person shelter most of the time, but I expect a couple solo adventures also. I probably won't actually seek bad weather since driving to the trailhead in a blizzard is much worse than hiking in a blizzard, but occasionally bad weather finds me.

In addition to my usual winter snowshoe and ski trips to Yosemite NP, Lassen NP, Mount Shasta, and the Lake Tahoe Area, I have the following trips planned:

• 1-2 weeks In northern MI (Wilderness State Park and Traverse City) over Xmas break will bring the tent along and might spend a night or two outside if the weather outside is frightful.
• A 9 day car-camping trip during the week of Thanksgiving. Destination is still uncertain, but it will probably include the Eastern Sierra and Death Valley NP.
• Overnight group backpack at Point Reyes National Seashore in December.

Otherwise, I'll probably squeeze in a few more local trips and hopefully another Easter Sierra trip before the passes close (although that could happen this weekend!)

Finally, I might try crashing on the roof of the Science Hall at City College of San Francisco (adjacent to my office with a connecting door) if an extra night of cold, windy and humid testing is needed.

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Reviews > Shelters > Tents > Sierra Designs Hercules Assault AST > David Sowards-Emmerd > Initial Report