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LCHiker
3
Sep 12, 2018
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Here's a question I haven't seen yet....what do you think are any potential downfalls of this tent? Durability? Windy conditions? Condensation points? Just curious on your take based on your use of it so far. Thanks! (Can't wait to get mine, by the way!!)
dandurston
5116
Dan Durston
Sep 12, 2018
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LCHikerHi LCHiker,
Thanks for the support on the X-Mid. Obviously I think the X-Mid is a great design or I wouldn't be doing it, but certainly not everything can be perfect since trade-offs exist. I think the X-Mid is a great well-rounded design and stands out by offering a ton of space for the weight, very easy to use, and exceptional performance in wet conditions (due to easy pitch, protected innner, protected door openings, no sag fabric, large vents, generous vestibules for wet gear and high HH fabric). It's also exceptional in snowy conditions for similar reasons as it does well in the rain, plus the roof panels are sloped enough to shed snow which isn't true for most tents.
But probably the two largest valid criticisms that can be made are: 1) You can get a lighter tent if you go with something less versatile (e.g. single wall) or much more expensive (DCF tents) 2) It has a lot of vestibule area so it winds up a bit large if you're trying to fit into small sites.
I always thought single wall tents were a poor decision until I hiked the PCT. Then in SoCal I realized that while singlewalls tend to be highly problematic in the PNW, they can work in drier climates. So I recognize that hikers in dry climates could have a lighter tent by opting for a single wall (unless it was outside of bug season, in which case they could take the X-Mid fly + groundsheet). A single wall is a more specialized and less versatile choice, but it would be lighter. The other way to get a lighter tent is with DCF, which is much more expensive (typically about $600 - 900 instead of $200), but certainly someone with sufficiently deep pockets could get a nicely performing tent at a lower weight (e.g. TarpTent Notch Li).
Secondly, there is the large floor area of the tent. In order to move the poles inwards from the edges and achieve a simpler pitching and more storm resistant shape, the inner needs to be rotated about 20 degrees, which also creates vestibules. These are quite generous. The inner can't really be rotated less to have smaller vestibules because then the tent wouldn't pitch robustly with only 4 stakes. So you wind up with fairly large vestibules, which are great in sloppy conditions or winter trips, but admittedly overkill for a fair weather summer hike. I often just use one. There actually isn't much of a weight penalty for this (e.g. if you do the math, the surface area of the X-Mid isn't actually that much larger than the surface area of a similar tent with steeper sidewalls/smaller vestibules like the 2019 Sierra Designs High Route) but it does mean that you can't pitch it in tiny sites. It's not a huge tent in the sense that it's still a smaller floor area than most 2P tents, but there are much smaller 1P tents and those small footprints can be handy if tent sites are rare. So overall I like the generous vestibules because they make the tent very live-able, but for some folks they are a downside.
Other potential criticisms that I don't think are substantially valid are wind resistance and durability. Certainly the X-Mid has a fair bit of area on the long side but you should be pitching the smaller end into the wind, and even if not, there is enough stake points here plus you can deploy the peak guylines in this direction, so it ends up performing quite well in windy conditions, Or compared to a single pole mid tent (e.g. MLD DuoMid) which are highly regarded for the wind resistance, the X-Mid has a little more side area but also dual peaks to spread the load and peak guylines to further share in this task (which single pole mids don't have). So I think it's at least average and probably above average in high winds. More specifically, it's probably average if you pitch it broadside, but well above above if you position it with the peak guylines deployed into the wind. The peak guylines naturally extend out along the steepest corners of the tent, as shown below, although you can vary this angle to be perpendicular either the short or long sides of the tent. In the normal position (shown), the peak guylines add outward pull on the ridgeline and supports the steepest corner so you get a more wind stable shape (you can stake them further from the tent body than what is shown here):
Thanks for the support on the X-Mid. Obviously I think the X-Mid is a great design or I wouldn't be doing it, but certainly not everything can be perfect since trade-offs exist. I think the X-Mid is a great well-rounded design and stands out by offering a ton of space for the weight, very easy to use, and exceptional performance in wet conditions (due to easy pitch, protected innner, protected door openings, no sag fabric, large vents, generous vestibules for wet gear and high HH fabric). It's also exceptional in snowy conditions for similar reasons as it does well in the rain, plus the roof panels are sloped enough to shed snow which isn't true for most tents.
But probably the two largest valid criticisms that can be made are: 1) You can get a lighter tent if you go with something less versatile (e.g. single wall) or much more expensive (DCF tents) 2) It has a lot of vestibule area so it winds up a bit large if you're trying to fit into small sites.
I always thought single wall tents were a poor decision until I hiked the PCT. Then in SoCal I realized that while singlewalls tend to be highly problematic in the PNW, they can work in drier climates. So I recognize that hikers in dry climates could have a lighter tent by opting for a single wall (unless it was outside of bug season, in which case they could take the X-Mid fly + groundsheet). A single wall is a more specialized and less versatile choice, but it would be lighter. The other way to get a lighter tent is with DCF, which is much more expensive (typically about $600 - 900 instead of $200), but certainly someone with sufficiently deep pockets could get a nicely performing tent at a lower weight (e.g. TarpTent Notch Li).
Secondly, there is the large floor area of the tent. In order to move the poles inwards from the edges and achieve a simpler pitching and more storm resistant shape, the inner needs to be rotated about 20 degrees, which also creates vestibules. These are quite generous. The inner can't really be rotated less to have smaller vestibules because then the tent wouldn't pitch robustly with only 4 stakes. So you wind up with fairly large vestibules, which are great in sloppy conditions or winter trips, but admittedly overkill for a fair weather summer hike. I often just use one. There actually isn't much of a weight penalty for this (e.g. if you do the math, the surface area of the X-Mid isn't actually that much larger than the surface area of a similar tent with steeper sidewalls/smaller vestibules like the 2019 Sierra Designs High Route) but it does mean that you can't pitch it in tiny sites. It's not a huge tent in the sense that it's still a smaller floor area than most 2P tents, but there are much smaller 1P tents and those small footprints can be handy if tent sites are rare. So overall I like the generous vestibules because they make the tent very live-able, but for some folks they are a downside.
Other potential criticisms that I don't think are substantially valid are wind resistance and durability. Certainly the X-Mid has a fair bit of area on the long side but you should be pitching the smaller end into the wind, and even if not, there is enough stake points here plus you can deploy the peak guylines in this direction, so it ends up performing quite well in windy conditions, Or compared to a single pole mid tent (e.g. MLD DuoMid) which are highly regarded for the wind resistance, the X-Mid has a little more side area but also dual peaks to spread the load and peak guylines to further share in this task (which single pole mids don't have). So I think it's at least average and probably above average in high winds. More specifically, it's probably average if you pitch it broadside, but well above above if you position it with the peak guylines deployed into the wind. The peak guylines naturally extend out along the steepest corners of the tent, as shown below, although you can vary this angle to be perpendicular either the short or long sides of the tent. In the normal position (shown), the peak guylines add outward pull on the ridgeline and supports the steepest corner so you get a more wind stable shape (you can stake them further from the tent body than what is shown here):
LCHiker
3
Sep 12, 2018
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dandurstonThank you for the thorough response! I am planning to use this in desert areas for the most part, and am hoping that the way the fly comes all the way down to the ground will be sufficient to keep desert winds from blowing sand into the inner area. It sounds like if I pitch it with the small side into the wind that I could potentially avoid this problem.
Like you said, there's always trade-offs especially with UL equipment but I feel confident your X-Mid tackles a lot of these quite nicely based on what you've shown us so far. Really looking forward to getting mine next year and trying it out! Thanks again!
Like you said, there's always trade-offs especially with UL equipment but I feel confident your X-Mid tackles a lot of these quite nicely based on what you've shown us so far. Really looking forward to getting mine next year and trying it out! Thanks again!
dandurston
5116
Dan Durston
Sep 12, 2018
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LCHikerYes the fly comes all the way to the ground on all sides. There are adjustable cords at each corner. If you extend these then the tent lifts up a few inches for more airflow, whereas if you shorten them all the way then the tent pulls right down to the ground. So it should work well to stop blowing sand.
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