Best 3 Person Backpacking Tent?

[luvmystang67]

My fiancee and I are looking for a lightweight 3 person backpacking tent.  A 3 season model.  We have more robust ones for heavy rain or snow, but we're looking for something a little smaller and lighter weight.  We like to have vestibule space to stash our packs overnight.  I've looked at Cabelas UL 3 tent and it seems like the Big Agnes Copper Spur UL3 is a very popular option.  What else are people fans of?  I would like to avoid using hiking poles for tent poles as we tend to leave the tent up for day hikes and take our poles with us.

Thanks, Stang

[Rider]

Big Agnes Copper Spur is an awesome tent. The UL2 is perfect for a single person plus storing my gear. It packs small and is lighter than my bag. I use a white Tyvek sheet for the ground cloth.

The only downside to the BA Copper Spur tents is the material is thin.

[92xj]

Check out Bearpawwd
I think I'm going to order his pyratent and have him add a hanging floor.
If you don't see what you want let him know and he can make anything.

[jackelope]

I have a GoLite Shangri La 5 and I like it a lot. I finally used it on a local car camping trip. It's got the full sized nest/floor. Had the 3, upgraded to the 5. The 5 has lots of room for 3 people plus gear, especially if you're not carrying hunting gear.
I'd like to have the Bearpaw guy make me a 2 person sized nest and have a stove jack installed into it one of these days.

[jackelope]

Check out Bearpawwd
I think I'm going to order his pyratent and have him add a hanging floor.
If you don't see what you want let him know and he can make anything.

You guys good going floorless?  He'll put a nest in it if you want a floor and bug screen.

[92xj]

Check out Bearpawwd
I think I'm going to order his pyratent and have him add a hanging floor.
If you don't see what you want let him know and he can make anything.

You guys good going floorless?  He'll put a nest in it if you want a floor and bug screen.

I think I would be good going floorless, but, the wife and the child would not.  So, whenever I order, I will have him sew in a hanging floor.  the hanging part would be 3-6inches of mesh sewn to the tent and then onto a floor to keep all the creepy-crawlies out but have plenty of airflow to hopefully beat the condensation with the mesh. 
Look at the pictures of the hanging floor on his AT2.  I want that floor and mesh on the Pyratent.

[JeffRaines]

Have you considered TarpTent?

I know you mentioned that you'd prefer not to use trekking poles for support - they offer a separate pole option on most if not all of their tents. Me and the wife use a Stratospire 2 and that thing is huge. It can fit us + gear inside the tent itself.

edit: you'd be looking at ~64oz for the Copper Spur and $400-$500 vs 54oz and $375 for the TarpTent.

[jackelope]

Check out Bearpawwd
I think I'm going to order his pyratent and have him add a hanging floor.
If you don't see what you want let him know and he can make anything.

You guys good going floorless?  He'll put a nest in it if you want a floor and bug screen.

I think I would be good going floorless, but, the wife and the child would not.  So, whenever I order, I will have him sew in a hanging floor.  the hanging part would be 3-6inches of mesh sewn to the tent and then onto a floor to keep all the creepy-crawlies out but have plenty of airflow to hopefully beat the condensation with the mesh. 
Look at the pictures of the hanging floor on his AT2.  I want that floor and mesh on the Pyratent.

I'm going to sound like a wuss right now, but I thought I'd be good going floorless and I hated it. I woke up with a mouse literally on my chest one night. Screw that. I went with the nest when I picked up the SL5.

[luvmystang67]

I have similar concerns about floorless.

I had looked at tarptent...I wasn't sure that I was thrilled with their designs and hadn't heard any huge proponents of their tents.  I was also wondering about the weight if their given weights don't include poles.  I'll give them another go...

For the GoLite... I always wanted one of those, but I'm not stoked about the new MyTrailCo ones they have out and you cant buy the SL5 anymore.  I'm also working on making my own Tipi so I'm not feeling a huge urge to go out and buy one of those.

I do appreciate all of the first hand knowledge.

[kentrek]

Check out the stuff from msr

For summer they have some pretty light 3 season stuff that I'm very confident in during those 4th season storms that tend to suprise a guy..but they use trecking poles....i also really like the designs of there heavy duty stuff too but you said your covered there

My thoughts on the trekking pole/tent combo is its not really a issue.....if I'm recreation camping and I leave my camp I really never have the load required to really "need" trekking poles....the next thing is I hate leaving my tent set up....esp during summer time...i have a big dry bag that I loosely stuff everything in and stash it to the side....that way people who think it's abandoned don't get tempted and bears/mice also leave it alone....not to mention if the weather goes south I feel better with my stuff in a dry sack while I'm gone then just inside a half set up tent

Food for thought, good luck 

[jackelope]

I'd give these guys a look too. Not sure about floors and such, but they've got some good looking gear and they're a sponsor of the forum.

http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,190407.msg2528880.html#msg2528880

[kentrek]

I'd give these guys a look too. Not sure about floors and such, but they've got some good looking gear and they're a sponsor of the forum.

http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,190407.msg2528880.html#msg2528880

  I can't speak for there tents but i bought a pile of there game bags to test out and am very pleased...great quality...I bet there tents are made just the same 

[Vortectoy]

Marmot limelight 3p is what I have and it's worked great. I think it's right at 5lbs

[luvmystang67]

I think I'm going to go the REI qurterdome 3... It looks a lot like the Big Agnes Copper Spur UL3 and is fairly similar spec wise, but we have a $100 off coupon for REI and the tent is $100 cheaper to begin with.  Seems like a good mix of waterproof, durability, and outside space with vestibules.  We'll see.

[Vortectoy]

I have a marmot limelight 3p and love it. Really sturdy and I picked this over the rei models when I looked at them in person.

[KDB]

I have an older 3 Man REI Quarter Dome and I like it. Spend the night @ 8,000' in 50-60 MPH winds and the tent held up to that storm.

[JeffRaines]

I have similar concerns about floorless.

I had looked at tarptent...I wasn't sure that I was thrilled with their designs and hadn't heard any huge proponents of their tents.  I was also wondering about the weight if their given weights don't include poles.  I'll give them another go...

For the GoLite... I always wanted one of those, but I'm not stoked about the new MyTrailCo ones they have out and you cant buy the SL5 anymore.  I'm also working on making my own Tipi so I'm not feeling a huge urge to go out and buy one of those.

I do appreciate all of the first hand knowledge.

What turned you off about the designs?

I can say this much - when it comes to a roomy 2p backpacking tent I thought something like the Copper Spur was it. I figured it was a trade-off - low interior space for less weight. Makes sense.

I was skeptical about ordering something that cost so much that I couldn't see in person. However, people raved about them on backpacking/hiking oriented forums. I took the chance and pulled the trigger.

The craftsmanship is great. We came from a Fly Creek UL2, and the difference in space was astounding. The only thing we put in the vestibule are boots/shoes. The packs can fit inside the tent with us with space to spare. Its roomy enough that you can crawl inside it during buggy times and not be cramped at all. I don't think it would be that bad to be hunkered down in it for a day. You can also completely remove the fly and pitch it with just the interior which is mesh with a bathtub floor and enjoy nice weather and be bug free.

[jasnt]

I'm very happy with the tee-pee I bought from @jonathan_s 

[Rob]

I think I'm going to go the REI qurterdome 3... It looks a lot like the Big Agnes Copper Spur UL3 and is fairly similar spec wise, but we have a $100 off coupon for REI and the tent is $100 cheaper to begin with.  Seems like a good mix of waterproof, durability, and outside space with vestibules.  We'll see.

I have one, it has been a great tent.  Roomy with good vestibules and the two side doors are very handy.  You will be happy with it.

[swanny]

I'm going to be biased, but I'd suggest checking out the Mira III HL from EXPED. 3 peson tent weighing at 3.4lbs. Two doors with vestibule space for storage, and adults can sit up side by side in the tent at the same time. Usable interior space IMO is one thing a lot of people don't think about when purchasing.

http://www.exped.com/usa/en/product-category/tents/mira-iii-hl

[diyhunter192]

Another vote here for Copper Spur UL3.  I've never had a tent that was so easy to put up and take down.  Lots of room, lightweight....every time I use it, I think 'I shoulda bought one of these YEARS ago.'

[luvmystang67]

I do have a good review to add for the REI tent I bought...

We were up in the enchantments for 4 nights and we got thunderstorms 3 of the days.  The tent never leaked an ounce.  We did have the footprint.  For as lightweight as the whole setup is I was really impressed.  Very roomy for 2 people and gear.  Its a little interesting to set up the first time, but once you know what you're doing its no problem.  The vestibules and size worked perfect for us. 

It did seem like it was a lot easier to keep spread out if it were staked...  Also there were not enough stakes for everything and guy lines... which seemed odd to me.