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Six Moon Designs Europa II Tent Initial Report
Thomas Vickers
35 years old
Male
5 feet 11 inches tall (1.8 meters)
170 lb (77 kg)
redroach@pobox.com
Southeast Texas, Houston Area
Tester Background:
I grew up in
the piney woods of southeast Texas. Camping was a quick trip into the mosquito-infested
woods behind the house. I started hiking in
my college years and my style has evolved over the past 17 years - from my discovery,
heavy gear, period (internal frame packs, sleeping bags and tents) to - believe it or not
- heavier, more expensive gear. Over the
last 3 or 4 years, I have begun to take a lighter weight approach to hiking gear (I still
use sleeping bags and tents, just lighter versions) and I have rediscovered the pleasure
that can be involved in being outdoors with your gear.
While I have flirted with lightweight hiking, I feel that I am more of a mid
-weight hiker now. My philosophy is one of comfort, while carrying the lightest load
possible.
Manufacturer:
Six Moon Designs (www.sixmoondesigns.com)
Manufacturer Measurements:
Weight: 33 oz (936 g)
Length: 90 in (2.29 m)
Front Width: 60 in (1.52 m)
Rear Width: 54 in (1.37 m)
Front Height: 41 in (1.04 m)
Rear Height: 24 in (61 cm) |
Tester
Measurements: (all measures are approximate)
Tent Body Weight:25.5 oz (723 g)
Stuff Sack Weight: 0.5 oz (14 g)
Hoop Pole Weight: 3.9 oz (111 g)
Length: 90 in (2.29 m)
Front Width: 60 in (1.52 m)
Rear Width: 52 in (1.32 m)
Front Height: 45 in (1.14 m)
Rear Height: 24 in (61 cm)
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Arrival:
When I arrived home to nurse my sick wife back to health, I noticed the package on the
table. She finally gave me the nod of approval and I ripped the darned thing open.
Inside was a blue silnylon stuff sack. Okay, where the heck is rest of the stuff? I pulled
the contents of the stuff sack out on the floor and discovered that the instructions,
tent, and rear pole were all in side the stuff sack. The light blue color of the tent
was not the eyesore I had feared. My predictions on gear colors are quickly becoming more
and more off target since gear makers are getting much better at using fewer
"loud" colors. My wife also informed me that I would never get all that
back into the small stuff sack that it came in. I like a challenge !
The Six Moon Designs Europa II was then taken into the backyard for a quick set up and a
good eyeballing. This first go with the tent and the instructions was a success.
The instructions were very accurate for setting the tent up. No guess work, and
amazingly enough, the set up process went just the way it should have, not the way some
technical writer thinks it should. I also discovered that you can set the Six Moon
Designs Europa II with only one good hand. That may not seem like a big deal, but
having tried to set up several of my existing tents while suffering through a broken
wrist, I know just how impossible it can be. The key to this easy set up was the
fact that the rear pole did not require a huge amount of pressure/tension to be properly
inserted into the tent. It bent into shape easily and provided the right amount of
support. My Leki Super Makalu CorTec PA hiking pole was also used in this initial
set up. I also enjoyed the fact that it was easy to move stakes and guy-lines once
the tent was "up" to achieve the perfect pitching.
At this point I can say that I am impressed with the ease of set up, the quality of the
construction, and amount of room available in the tent. I was hesitant about the
construction quality going into this, but at this point I feel that the construction
quality matches that of any big name tent I have used. I was also happy that the
Europa II called for six stakes and only needed these six stakes for pitching. Too many
tents seem to call for a few stakes, but actually require many more than that to be
stable.
Concerns:
My main concerns at this point in the test is how rigid I can get the "spine" of
the tent when I pitch it. My test run allowed me to adjust the hiking pole and
stakes, but I never seemed to achieve a rigid/taught line along the spine of the tent.
This only worries me in the rain, but I have plans to thoroughly test the ability of the
Europa II to stand up to the best that Southeast Texas has to offer.
Follow-up:
I have re-pitched the Europa II to measure it and made an important discovery. The
taughtness of the "spine" of the tent is directly related to the length of the
hiking pole and the angle at which it is pitched. I shortened my Leki Super Makalu
CorTec PA pole to about 115 cm and angled it away from the tent and achieved what I
considered a vast improvement on the taughtness of the tent. This will be an
ongoing part of my test series.
Further Testing:
How well does the Europa II handle 90% humidity? Is condensation a problem?
How cool is it in 90 degree F+ (32 degree C+) weather?
I can already answer this question. In 91 degrees F (33 degrees C)
weather, 54 percent humidity, and full sun, at 2:00 p.m. in the afternoon, the
Europa II is a sauna. This includes a 2 mph (3 kph) breeze to help with the
cooling. At this point I realize that this is not a really fair test of the tent.
Any shelter would be pretty miserable under these conditions.
How warm is the Europa II in 50-70 degree F (28-39 degrees C) weather?
How easy is it to set up without a hiking pole?
How well does the Europa II keep these Texas bug swarms out?
As of the initial report, I can say that it keeps the huge swarms of love bugs out very
well.
Will it keep me dry in the rain?
Is it roomy enough for two adults to share?
These questions will form the basis of my testing in the rather flat, humid forests of
Southeast Texas. My plan will be carried out during the winter months here and mostly on
weekend trips. I am sure that I will move beyond my initial test questions once new
ideas or concerns arise.
Read more reviews of Six Moon Designs gear
Read more gear reviews by Thomas Vickers
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