Hi all, Thinking of getter two things in the next couple weeks, a new sleeping bag and new tent Have sort of settled on the idea of getting: Msr hubba hubba hp Mountain equipment xero 550
Would like some advice on both. The sleeping bag I've choosen because it's limit is -6c and comfort of 0c which is about right for me, it's really small and really light just under a kilo, and seems great for me. But need some advice on if it's any good, any cheaper alternatives that are about the same weight, size and ratings or better, but cheaper if possible, as the cheapest I can get the bag for is £200. Somebody did suggest the rab neutrino range, but again they're quite expensive, and a cheap option of the vango Venom but not should if it'll be any good and they don't go as low as the xero.
In regards to the tent, I'm pretty settled on the hubba hubba hp, but am also considering the standard hubba hubba non hp, is it worth the extra money for the hp? I also hate inner first pitching, and have seen that you can "fast pitch" the msr outer first, does anybody have any experience of this, and can you then attach the inner afterwards?
Hi there, i have the hubba hubba HP its a great tent, couldnt really fault it, i used mine for 24 nights ont he south west coast path this summer, both on campsites and wild camps, its worth every penny !!
Its not possible to put the fly up 1st and then put the inner in, but it does go up very quickly when you get to know it well
i was in field and trek yesterday in chester and they had a terra nova laser 600 sleeping bag, it was £160 and weighed next to nothing around 600gms they do warmer versions all still under £200
As CH points out, the inner won't really go in after the outer, at least not easily. But as someone else who doesn't at all like inner-first pitch I think it's fair to say that the qualities of the HH HP are such it's still well worthy of consideration. If you want a two person, two porch tent at under 2 Kg your alternatives are few in number... There's the Spacepacker, which has a rather hopeless inner in comparison. There's the Scarp 2, but the porches are pretty wee compared to HH or SP and you'll have to get it from the US.
You can also wait for the new Hilleberg Rogen which won't exist for buying until probably March or so, which will probably have rather more inner mesh (not good or bad in an absolute sense, but it will depend on your priorities) and will of course cost a breath-taking amount of money.
As to HH HP vs the "vanilla" HH, the HP is lighter, stronger and has less mesh in the inner. I personally think it's the better bit of kit and worth the difference, but then I'm not the one paying for yours... (we have one we bought 2nd hand on OM).
Hmm can you not do the fast pitch and laff about to get the inner in? Im still unsure about the inner first prospects, dont want to sleep in a soggy inner after a long days walking Other than the inner first pitching I really love the look of this tent, that's the only be that puts me off. I've also heard that its not good in bad weather, and seeing as dartmoor and Bodmin moor are my local stomping grounds, it can get pretty nasty up there. Hence the need for a warm enough sleeping bag a well!
Hmm can you not do the fast pitch and laff about to get the inner in? Im still unsure about the inner first prospects, dont want to sleep in a soggy inner after a long days walking
The fly-first pitch works fine for me in the non-HP Hubba Hubba. The alternative is to just not hang around putting the tent up! Pitching a solid inner in the rain is nowhere near as bad as pitching a mesh-inner in the same weather, after all. I'd say that getting the HP version is a perfectly sensible idea: there's no real reason not to, unless you're expecting to spend lots of time camping in hot weather perhaps. The non-HP version of the tent is yellow, which insects seem to like and isn't terribly stealthy if that matters.
I have a Xero 550. Its a perfectly fine bit of gear. Not the lightest or the smallest packing, but its all I could afford at the time and I've been pleased with it since. I didn't 'choose' it as such; rather I kept an eye on ebay and grabbed it cheap as a factory second after I'd verified that it wasn't a terrible model. Its an approach I'd recommend!
Unless you need the bag right now, you might perhaps be best off waiting til the spring sales when various places shift their older cold weather stock.
It's easy to pitch outer first but you need to use the footprint - you set up the pole using the footprint eyelets, stick the outer over the structure and you can then go inside and clip the inner onto the poles.
