Big Agnes Seedhouse SL2 Tent - First Look
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Price:
£215
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Weight: 1500 grammes (two-person
version)
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Features:
Lightweight two-person tent featuring inner with mesh walls,
bathtub design floor with PU and silicone coating, taped
seams, D-shaped door, single hub/pole systems with DAC
aluminiuim hub, above door mesh pocket, tent body clips to
pole frame, 30D Nylon ripstop fly with PU and silicone
coating. Optional footprint - £36 - allows the tent to
be used without the inner or provides protection for the
groundsheet when the full tent is used. Also available as
one-person SL1 version for £165.
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Good stability and
strength, respectably light, condensation free and packs
small.
Thin groundsheet
may be vulnerable to stone damage.
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What's It For? The Seedhouse SL2 is an ultra-lightweight
three-season tent from Steamboat Springs in the US and is intended for use when weight and pack size really matter, but still intended to offer decent protection.
There's also a one-person version weighing 200 grammes less and
retailing for £165.
The Techy Bits The new DAC Featherlite NSL Pole system in one
continuous pole, lightweight but strong. Plastic clips attach the
tent body to the single hub pole for easy pitching.
The superlight 20D nylon rip-stop fly has a silicone treatment and
a 1200mm polyurethane coating to cope with full 3 season use.
The most obvious innovation is that ventilation issues are dealt
with by using a 20D nylon mesh inner, allowing free air flow.
The groundsheet is 30D silicone treated nylon with 1200 mm
polyurethane coating. X-peg stakes are ultralight but strong for use
in stony ground.
How It Performed Light weight is all very well, but when you
see a full-blown Atlantic storm coming in on the south west coast of
Ireland you do tend to wonder if you made the right choice. We tested
this tent on a lightweight assault on MacGillcuddy's Reeks in Kerry
in August, and we couldn't have picked a better testing ground.
The first impression was just how light 1.5kg really is when
compared to our trusted Akto, and just as importantly, how small it
packs down. At 6.5 x 15 inches it fits neatly in the bottom of a 50
litre sack - sideways! You can also pop it neatly into some packs' side pockets.
That's great, but maybe not your first consideration when the wind
starts blowing and the rain is visibly moving towards you. Just to
provide an accurate review we timed the pitching process, with 98
seconds from taking the bag out to a fully erected tent -
impressive by any standards, but especially when it's only the second
time you've put it up.
By the time the storm hit we were safely installed inside the
tent, with everything closed and tied down. Wind speeds were gusting
to 50 mph according to our trusty Silva measurer and the rain was
coming down in buckets, but to our surprise and relief the Big Agnes
coped with everything the weather threw at it. The sleek
weather-cheating profile coped well even in high winds.
OK it moved around a bit, but which tent wouldn't? The important
thing is the X-stakes stayed put, and the fly kept all the rain out.
Two hours later, with the storm blown over, we ventured outside again
to check what effect it had had. Everything was as it should be, with
guylines and pegs all as they were before the weather hit.
Next morning, after a comfortable night's sleep, the sun came out
and again the SL2 showed the benefits of its lightweight material
with the whole tent dry in a little over half an hour and ready to
pack.
So, despite the initial scepticism the SL2 performed admirably. Of
course it does have limitations, but with ultralight tents you have
to compromise to some extent.
The mesh inner is all very well for August, but in winter it could
feel more than a little cold. The upside is that condensation was
never an issue inside the tent, despite humid conditions and the
necessity of having everything closed. The only place condensation
did appear was on the underside of the groundsheet, but this soon
dried out in the morning sun when waiting to pack.
The other issue with the groundsheet relates to its weight - being
ultralight it gives the impression that it may be more than a little
susceptible to accidental puncture on anything but flat clear ground.
Of course the optional footprint - £36 - or a cheap tarp can be
used to combat this though that does negate the weight saving to some
extent and we'd stress that we haven't actually damaged the
groundsheet so far.
The Big Agnes was in for a hard test, with the weather doing
everything it could to make life difficult. Pack size and weight were
impressive and space was adequate for two, without
being luxurious.
Pitching was quick and simple, and despite being
made from lightweight materials performance was anything but
lightweight. Overall the SL2 outperformed our expectations, and if
you're looking to save valuable grams we've yet to see
anything at this level to match it.
Availalable in the UK from Hike-Lite
Know more or want to?
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product check out our user review system and post your opinions to
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us direct, ask
Richard Gear or try a posting to our
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forum.
Chris Hopper
