Big Agnes Lynx Pass 2 Tent

[coolness]

I'm considering buying a Big Agnes Lynx Pass 2 tent. Anyone on WB have this tent? Thanks!!

18475

[Hosaphone]

It's listed at 5 pounds. Way too heavy.

For the same price, you can get a silnylon tarp + bug netting, or a tarptent if you want an enclosed shelter. Either option would be around or under 2 pounds.

[fiveonomo]

I just picked up the BA Copper Spur UL2 and although I have not used it yet I think it is going to be a great tent. It is lighter than the lynx, somewhere around 3 or 4 pounds. I got a great deal on that tent here on the site, used but in great shape with no problems. Saved $300 to. Good luck.

[HooKooDooKu]

Yes the Lynx 2 is NOT an ultra-light tent... but it's a larger than average tent.
It's a true rectangle at 90"x58" with a pkg weight of 5.5lbs @ $140

Yes that is much heavier than say the ultra light Big Agnes Fly Creek UL2:
It's a trapezoid at 86"x(52"-42") with a pkg weight of 2.6lbs @ $310

But compared to typical $200ish two man tents, it's actually pretty light for its size:
Mountain Hardware LightWedge2: 88"x(56"-50"), 5.3lbs @ $220
Sierra Designs Lighting HT2: 83"x50", 4.44lbs @ $220 (also on sale)

I recently bought the Lynx Pass 2 as a replacement for my old Kelty Vortex2 (which Kelty replaced with the Gunnison2.1 92"x58", 5.6lbs @ $170). My total weight for the Lynx Pass is right at 6.0lbs (tent, MSR mini-hog stakes, extra guy-ling, and matching ground cloth), but that's a full pound lighter than the same setup for the old 7.0lbs Vortex2.

The deciding factor for me is the fact that with some extra guy wire, stakes, and some sticks or hiking poles, you can stake the fly open to give you a safe place to cook in the rain. That saves me about a pound from by pack allowing me to leave my cook-tarp at home.

Compared to the simple crossed poles of the Kelty, the poles on the Lynx are a little odd because they include some extra poles that allows the wall to be just about vertical at the door.

The only negatives I've experienced (or read in other reviews) were:
1. Claims that it can be hot in warm weather (ventilation mesh is ONLY at the top)
2. Can be a little awkward to roll up at times - the corners of the rain fly have ventilation caps held open with some 6" 'sticks'. They get in the way of rolling up the fly if they get turned so that they are parallel to the direction you're trying to roll the fly rather than perpendicular.
3. While technically a free-standing tent, vertical wall at the door and the single sided vestibule combine to make the tent a little off-balance. This almost requires that the back side of the tent get staked down.
4. Claims that it can have problems with condensation. Can't confirm or deny the condensation problem, at least compared to other tents. I've only used the tent once and I did have condensation problem. But I was camping in the humid Great Smoky Mountains on an evening where temperatures dropped to mid-thirties, no wind (not even an air movement) with morning dew EVERYWHERE (except UNDER my ground cloth).

So far, my only second thoughts on buying the Lynx Pass 2 was not taking more time to consider the larger sizes:
Lynx Pass 3: 90"x72", 6.2lbs @ $170 (on sale) - adds less than a pound but adds enough room to get a third person in.
Lynx Pass 4: 96"x85", 7.8lba @ $250 (on sale)

Final Note: Prices on the Lynx Pass have now dropped for a 2nd time. I bought my Lynx Pass for $160, today Campmor has it for $140.

[HooKooDooKu]

Check out http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?88585-More-Tent-Advice&p=1347377&viewfull=1#post1347377 where I posted a picture of the Lynx Pass shown with the rain fly openned with hiking poles.

[coolness]

Thanks HooKoo!!