Name: Gail Staisil
Age: 53
Gender: Female
Height: 5'9" (1.75 m)
Weight: 132 lb (60 kg)
Email: woodswoman2001@yahoo.com
Location: Marquette, Michigan USA
Photo Album Website: http://community.webshots.com/user/isleroyalegirl

Backpacking Background:

For the last 16 years, backpacking has become a passion. I am a four-season backpacker and an off-trail navigator. Although I do take yearly trips to the American West or Southwest, the majority of my trips are in Michigan and Canada. My pack weight varies considerably, but my base weight is under 20 lb (9.1 kg). I am primarily a tarp camper, who averages over 50 nights a year backpacking in a huge variety of weather conditions, including relentless rain, wet snow and sub zero temps.

Sierra Designs Hercules Assault AST Tent--Description

Product Information:

Overview

The Sierra Designs Hercules Assault AST is a four-season single-wall tent. It is a sizable

tent with great headroom that can accommodate two people nicely. It has a number of features that make it structurally sound to withstand high winds and heavy precipitation. For more detail on the materials and the construction used in the tent, please review my initial report on the product.

Specs per manufacturer

Manufacturer: Sierra Designs
Website: http://www.sierradesigns.com
Phone: 1.800.635.0461
Model: Hercules Assault AST
Model Year: 2005
Packed Size: 22 in x 7 in (56 cm x 18 cm)
Manufacturer's Packed Weight: 7 lb 2 oz (3.23 kg)
Manufacturer's Trail Weight: 6 lb 10 oz (3.01 kg)
Number of Doors: 1
Interior Area: 35 sq ft (3.25 sq m)
Vestibule Area: 7 sq ft (.65 sq m)
Manufacturer's Peak Height: 30 in (76 cm)
Floor Type: SuperSeal
Floor Material: 70D Taffeta Nylon, 3000 mm
Body Material: 40D Rip Stop Nylon, DriZone, 2L
Fly Material: 40D HT Rip Stop Nylon, 1500 mm, PU/Silicon
Number of Poles: 3
Poles: DAC Press-Fit 7001
MSRP: $549.95 US

Specs per tester

Total Packed Weight: 7 lb 5 oz (3.32 kg)
Tent Body with Hub Assemblies: 5 lb 6 oz (2.44 kg)
Main Arch Tent Poles (2): 11.7 oz ea (332 g)
Vestibule Pole: 2.1 oz (60 g )
Stakes (6): 0.5 oz ea (14 g)
Line Fasteners (2) and Guy Cords (2): 0.7 oz (20 g)
Main Stuff Sack: 2.6 oz (74 g)
Pole Stuff Sack: 1.2 oz (34 g)
Stakes Stuff Sack: 0.2 oz (6 g)

Tent Length (center): 83 in (211 cm)
Tent Length (side): 85 in (216 cm)
Tent Length including vestibule: 111 in (282 cm)
Tent Width (center): 48 in (122 cm)
Tent Width (end): 52 in (132 cm)
Tent Peak Height: 42 in (107 cm)

Main Arch Pole(s) (extended): 112.5 in (286 cm)
Main Arch Pole(s) (collapsed): 21.5 in (55 cm)
Main Arch Pole(s) Diameter: 0.5 in (1.3 cm)
Vestibule Pole: (extended): 41 in (104 cm)
Vestibule Pole: (collapsed): 14 in (36 cm)
Vestibule Pole Diameter: 0.375 in (.95 cm)
Hub Pole(s) Length: 20 in (51 cm)
Hub Poles Diameter: 0.5 in (1.3 cm)

Field Testing Data

Field Locations/Conditions

During the field-testing period of two months, I have used the Sierra Designs Hercules Assault Tent for two trail-head overnighters both in the Upper Peninsula and in the Lower Peninsula of Michigan.

Locations ranged from a pine plantation forest to a clear-cut area that was recently logged. Late-fall to early winter weather varied from dry, overcast and windy to heavy snowfall. Temperatures ranged from 24 F (-4 C ) to 40 F ( 4 C ) with humidity in the normal range of 60 to 95 percent for those areas. All of the trips were at low altitude ranging from 600 ft (183 m) to 2000 ft (610 m), with a moderate amount of elevation changes.

Field Test No. 1--Hiawatha National Forest

Set-Up

This was my first experience with setting the tent up in the dark. I donned a headlamp and pulled the Hercules out of its protective storage sack. The storage sack is very accommodating to the size of the tent and poles. Having previously set the Hercules up only once in full daylight, I wondered what challenges lay ahead for me in the dark. I assembled each Jakes Corner and put the poles together. The straps on the Jakes Corners are easily twisted, so I assured that they would lie flat when assembled rather than being tangled. I then attached the clips to the poles. Most of them went on easily but the vestibule center-clip took a bit of strength to fasten it to the pole. Overall the tent material was very taut when pitched. Since this was my first back country use of the tent and the tent wasn't being set up on a tent pad, I decided to use a piece of Tyvek under the tent as a ground cloth. Overall, the set-up time was less than five minutes and it went rather smoothly.

Ventilation/Comfort

It was rather late when I set the tent up so I struggled to find a relatively flat stretch of ground. I was essentially in a pine plantation in a national forest. The ground consisted of dry pine needles. I gathered up my gear and brought it inside the tent. The interior door is quite large so it was easy to enter the door without getting hung up on the door. It was time for sleep anyway, so I zippered shut the vestibule door but left the tent's interior door open. I stuffed the interior door into the large pocket above the doorway. This is a really cool feature as it allows the door to be stashed away when it is not needed. Since I am used to camping under a tarp, I really didn't feel any urgency to close the door to keep critters out of it. The Hercules is a spacious two-person tent, but I was the only one sleeping in it so there was plenty of space for my gear. I decided to sleep right in the center of the floor space and stow my gear on each side of me. I opened the Air Flow Vent System with the Delrin rods to see how effectively they would assemble. I probably didn't need the additional ventilation but those openings are very small. It was quite windy and the pines whistled all night long through the tent. I got up once during the night and reached to pull the zipper open on the vestibule so that I could exit. Everything went fine with that exit procedure.

A Little Problem

In the morning, I tried to exit the tent but I couldn't get the zipper open. I most likely got some extra fabric stuck in the zipper when I had exited during the night and now I was sort of stuck. I was in an awkward position, most of my body was still in the tent itself, but I was trying to reach and open the door of the vestibule. After a few minutes of trying to get the zipper open, I thought it would be best to just pull the two tent stakes that were supporting the vestibule. That would bring the zipper much closer to me. It was a quick solution and I examined what indeed was a piece of the fabric in the zipper. I carefully retracted it and the zipper could be opened.

Take-Down/Storage

No precipitation occurred during the night and the tent didn't have any signs of condensation in the morning. Take-down went smoothly. Since I was going to stow the Hercules in an unattended vehicle for a few days, I decided to loosely gather it and store it without the stuff sack. The tent felt dry but I didn't want to take a chance of storing it without some ventilation.

Field Test No. 2--Pigeon River State Forest

Set-Up/Take-Down

I arrived at the bivouac location during light-to-medium snowfall. It was late in the evening so dark conditions prevailed. Even though the ground had a half-foot of snow on it, the area had recently been logged so there was much debris that was covered. I decided not to use a ground cloth as there was hopefully enough snow to protect the bottom of the tent from the assorted branches underneath the tent. I found a suitable spot and went to work setting up the Hercules. It was about 28 F (-2 C) but I managed to set the tent up while wearing fleece gloves. I did have to remove the gloves to assemble the pole sections as they are quite slippery. I made a mental note to start carrying gloves with sticky dots or grips for the upcoming trips that I will take with the Hercules. The conditions will be much colder and I will not be able to have bare hands without the risk of frostbite. The set-up went smoothly and I only struggled with the center-clip on the vestibule again. I staked the tent in the snow as I could insert the stakes quite easily into the still unfrozen ground.

Comfort/Ventilation

I settled in the tent with my gear. It was now heavily snowing and I could hear the snow sliding off the walls of the tent at regular intervals. I once again kept the interior door stashed and only the vestibule door shut. I decided that I could always get up during the night and zip the interior door if it was an issue.

The single-wall tent and my sleeping bag had no visible condensation on them in the morning. During the late-evening set-up, I didn't open the vents for additional ventilation so I was happy that the tent walls stayed frost-free. The interior of the Hercules is roomy and my sleeping bag ends did not touch the headwall or end of the tent. I can sit up quite comfortably without hitting my head on the ceiling of the tent. I am impressed with these attributes as I don't like being confined in a tight space where every little move results in hitting a part of a tent.

Materials

In the morning, some snow remained on the roof sections but most of the snow had slid off during the night as it accumulated. Maybe 3-4 in (8-10 cm) of snow had fallen total. As I disassembled the tent, I had difficulty pulling apart one of the long pole-sections. After trying several times, I got it apart and discovered what the root of the issue was. During the previous night's assembly, a bunch of snow had got into the pole section opening and had "frozen" the pole sections together. Most of the snowfall in Michigan leans towards the wet side rather than the powdery dry side. The low temperature during the night was 24 F (-4 C).

Overall Thoughts and Future Testing

During the few nights in the field, I gained enough information to evaluate what considerations I must make during the long-term testing-period. I will be carrying/sledging the Hercules on at least two long trips during the winter months of January and February. While the overall weight and bulk of the Hercules is somewhat of an issue, I will evaluate whether the convenience outweighs that. I will look at many issues revolving around usage during heavy snowfall, sub-zero temperatures, durability of materials in those conditions and more.

Likes:

Nice large interior space and good headroom
Interior door stuffs out of the way
Easy set-up
See-Thru Window on vestibule

Dislikes:

Vestibule size is very small
Vestibule zipper got easily stuck
Straps on Hercules Corners are easily twisted

Comments:

Thanks to Sierra Designs and BGT for this great opportunity to test such a neat product.
(Photo and Logo courtesy of Sierra Designs)

Read more reviews of Sierra Designs gear
Read more gear reviews by Gail Staisil

Field Report