Joined: 04 Oct 2013Posts: 226Location: Shelbyville
Howdy,
Thinking about possibly purchasing one of these. Does anyone have a Rainbow and also a Double Rainbow that I would be able to play around with in my backyard for a day?
If you do own one, or have owned one, what are your thoughts? Is the liner necessary for keeping down condensation? Packability?
derrickito
Posted: Fri May 20, 2016 9:26 pm
now with 50 percent more EVILJoined: 22 Jul 2005Posts: 10566
i don't own a rainbow, but i do own a single man tarptent contrail and a 2 person squall. both are fantastic tents. i've been using the squall for about ten years.
it's hard to find a tent that's lighter than tarptents. and dammit if they don't pack down small. love everything about them.
two thumbs up for tarptents.
joeball
Posted: Sat May 21, 2016 9:06 am
Joined: 24 Jul 2005Posts: 6037Location: Ether
Sold my double cloudburst to Andre.
I'd look again at getting a single.
donavanm
Posted: Sat May 21, 2016 9:10 am
Joined: 14 Jun 2012Posts: 1342
Old style Contrail and a Stratospire 2 here. One thing to keep in mind is that that tarptents run large. My "1 man" Contrail is merely snug with two mats/people, and the Stratospire 2 still has tons of room for gear or a third person. I assume youre after the Rainbow series because it's self supported?
PS: Everyone else should definitely get in here and tell gary about their awesome tarptent that isnt a Rainbow.
MyNameIsJeff
Posted: Sat May 21, 2016 9:43 am
BOOSH!Joined: 17 Jul 2007Posts: 2042Location: Nearest bar.
Well I sure have some tent tech to Google...
_________________ See you in Hell.
garywashere
Posted: Sat May 21, 2016 10:03 am
Joined: 04 Oct 2013Posts: 226Location: Shelbyville
I prefer side-entry doors, so the Rainbow was preferred over the Contrail which they don't seem to offer anymore
Tarptent Moment DW:
Dual wall which I like in a tent for better condensation control, or at least preventing it from dripping on my head
https://www.tarptent.com/momentdw.html
Andrew_Squirrel
Posted: Mon May 23, 2016 9:41 am
Joined: 01 Mar 2010Posts: 2098Location: Greenwood
I have the Contrail predecessor, the Protrail.
It seems to have a less finicky setup than the Contrails i've seen IRL.
It is not a freestanding tent (two add-on poles for bike camping or hiking poles for backpacking) and does not have side entry but it packs down ridiculously small and checks all the boxes. I really love having it all as one piece which makes packing up really easy. Setup isn't always as easy, non-freestanding tents can be like wrestling a raccoon when you have low blood sugar and just want it to stop falling over. Other times it magically pops up without much effort.
My favorite feature is the structure having integrated rainfly attached to the bathtub floor via bug netting ring around the perimeter.
While the idea of pitching a tent without a rainfly so you can gaze at the stars as you drift off to sleep sounds romantic, in reality its completely unnecessary.
I'm still only one summer into this tent and I think its only seen rain 1-2 times so my opinion may eventually change.
Alex
Posted: Mon May 23, 2016 10:02 am
Joined: 18 May 2006Posts: 3128Location: Roosevelt
I've used my Rainshadow 2 (a 3 person single-wall TarpTent) fairly extensively for the last 9 or 10 years, including many nights in heavy rain. My first trip with it was Ben Country 2.
I've never had 3 people in there, only 2. I've never had condensation problems with it, the tent is very well ventilated compared to any other tent that I've owned (including other single wall tents, prior to this one I was using an Eureka Zeus 3). I did have problems with rain getting into the floor and learned the hard way that you need to stake out the sides, not only the corners, to keep heavy rain from pushing the wall in far enough to get the bathtub floor wet.
I like the side entry doors on the newer models, although most or all of them are bulkier and heavier than my Rain Shadow 2.
For solo camping I greatly prefer using a hammock.
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Joined: 04 Oct 2013
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Location: Shelbyville
now with 50 percent more EVIL
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Joined: 24 Jul 2005
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Location: Ether
Joined: 14 Jun 2012
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BOOSH!
Joined: 17 Jul 2007
Posts: 2042
Location: Nearest bar.
Joined: 01 Mar 2010
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Location: Greenwood
Joined: 18 May 2006
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