Gear

has anyone used one and if so how good is it compared to a conventional tent?

saw one at the last Lakes meet, Bob had put one up to show people.

Looked roomy, but it was single skin if IIRC

Personally I would only use it at a camp site, for me it isn't a backpacking tent.

Dawn had one earlier this year at Braithwaite...very roomy, single skin but with a very good groundsheet.

Its single skin but you can purchase a seperate nest (inner)

It's single skin in the sense that you buy the inner and outer separately. The inner is net not fabric so it's for bugs and gives you a bath tub style groundsheet.

I got a BD Megamid cos it's much bigger but more expensive and I got a quote of £200 for the inner! No way it's worth that much.

A single pole means you can carry very light or use a trekking pole.

Pyramids are well stable for rough winds too. Light weight for the space too - for me pretty much defines what you want from a backpacking tent and I carry mine instead of KISU/Emergency bothy shelter as it weighs about the same but is much much more flexible in use.

Chris Townsend gave the Hex a good write up a while back, IIRC he liked it.

All parts are bought seperately: you can have:

1) Hex 3 Shelter (the top bit)
2) Hex 3 Floor (bathtub floor that clips to Hex 3 Shelter corners)
3) Hex 3 Nest (Mesh inner in the same shape as the outer which includes the bathtub floor)

So you buy either (1) or (1)+(2) or (1)+(3)

HTH

James.

You can buy it as James says above, but I would also add that in use it has certain advantages.

As a single skin shelter with no ground sheet, it can be used the walking pole extension which comes with it, to give you a very light huge shelter, which due to its shape is very aerodynamic.

As the walls are very steep any condensation issues rapidly run down the incline.

In this configuration huge for 1, quite spacious for 2. Add the nest and it becomes a more 'normal' tent, but the key issue for me, that it is only ideal then for someone under 6 foot.

My only bugbear about the design (which incidentally I would be prepared to live with on the Challenge for example as a solo single skin tent and half floor) is when the door is open heavy rain comes right into the inner floor area, and of course if you have the ground sheet or nest, this means potentially a load of crud too!

Base camp tent - great, backapcking tent - very good but with limitations you have to live with IMHO.

I'm thinking about buying a Hex 3 but would only use it with a half ground sheet in winter, spring & autum. For summer in Scotland I would need a bug proof inner that would'nt get wet/muddy in the wet- no porch is what is putting me off- will continue to use my Den 2 with a tarp as a porch (still to purchase a nice tarp from Bob C!)

That said, I am always on the lookout for other ideas- suggestions welcome!

KP

I’m more than happy with my Hex (bought from Bob). It is very easy to erect, 6 pegs (9 if you peg out all the loops) one pole and you are in. Once in, I like the room that the Hex gives me unlike other two man tents I have owned, mind you, I am only small. I can sit up with ease, and even with two people in it (most my mates being 6 foot), I still have loads of room. I haven’t had a major problem with rain coming in, just have to be quick and leave a gap at the door to stand/sit in to take off my boots. I think this is a great deal more civilised, than having to shuffle in backwards to take my boots off as I had to in my previous tents. Being single skin hasn’t caused me any problems either even when I’ve cooked inside the door. Any condensation, of which I’ve had very little, just runs down the sloping inside of the tent and drips on to the floor.

I haven’t used it in really bad weather yet but am lead to believe they stand up very well. I did buy the floor but because of it’s weight will only use it when I go with someone else. I am considering buying the full inner, again I will only use when I can share the weight. I would like to see the Hex come with a bug-net skirt so the inner wouldn’t be needed.

I quite fancy a hex with the inner nest but am a bit concerned about it being best suited to people under 6 foot tall

I just picked one up on the cheap on ebay kinda by accidednt as i wasnt expecting them to accept the "best offer"

Just got the outer, no ground sheet or inner but it will do until i can afford to get one of the others!

Great deal, moggy

I saw your other post Moggy, what a bargain.

it is til my gf kicks my arse!

Apparently its just arrived so thumbs up to raw outdoors, i shal try putting it up in a mates garden tonight as my parents garden has no grass ;o(

had a play around with it ...very impressed...not sure about the washer bit on the pole for keeping it extended as it seems like it would ping back a bit to easily.

forgot to ask....does the nest reduce the space inside a fair bit as im 6" 2' and was thinkinf of getting the inner in the future

Moggy- have used my hex now a few times- the washer works well. If anything, with the tension on it from the well pegged flysheet, it's quite diffisult to adjust.

As for the nest, apparently, Ikea do a £5 mossie net that looks like it was designed to fit the hex.... I will try and find a link to pics some guy has of it in use- will post later.

KP

Try this link- some great pics and the mossie net looks much better than the puropse built one!

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=15988&highlight=ikea

cool i shal have a look thanks