REI Hoodoo 3 Tent

[michaeln]

I love tents. I have a 1 man Kelty Cirrus, a 2 man Kelty Jetstream 2, and a 4 man Big Agnes Big House 4. I wanted something roomier than the Jetstream 2 (which is low and makes me crawl in and out on my hands and knees, not much fun for an old guy) and the very roomy but somewhat heavy and bulky Big House 4. I wanted it to be easy to set up quickly, have a tall, fairly vertical doorway and good ventilation.

I had a "20% off one item" coupon from REI and $110 dividend (being a member rocks!!), so yesterday evening I walked (2 blocks) to the SF REI store hoping to look at the REI Hoodoo 3 and Big Agnes Seedhouse 3 SL. Both of them seemed to fit my needs, with the Hoodoo 3 at $249 and the Seehouse 3 SL at $419.

Lo and behold when I got there, they had a Hoodoo 3 all set up. REI has an area for setting up tents and they have these cool velcro "tent stake" pads that stick to the carpet so you can simulate staking it down and running guylines and stuff.

I crawled inside it, and it felt really large, probably because it has such vertical sides. Lots of ventilation mesh on the top and both ends, with doors on both ends. Lots of headroom (48" max), Large vestibule with 2 doors in front and small vestibule with one door in the back. I liked it. The pole setup looks easy and there are no sleeves to thread poles through, all the setup is with clips. It's freestanding, but you can stake it down too. About 7lbs packed, and the pole sections are short so it will pack well on a motorcycle.

This is the Hoodoo 3 without the fly:


...and with the fly:




They had a Seedhouse 3 SL in stock too, so they got it for me and I set it up. First impression is that it is very light and small in packed form (4 1/2 lbs, 8x20"). Unpacked it. I told the sales guy I wanted to do it by myself because that's the way I will do it when I own it (I am quite a loner), so he let me. I laid the tent out on the ground, the frame was easy to assemble and stick into the corners of the tent so they were curved and tensioned. Like the Hoodoo, the tent clips to the frame without any sleeves. The top and sides of the Seedhouse are ALL mesh, so it was very airy feeling.



The rainfly was also easy to put on. Took about five minutes to set up and I never looked at the directions.



Climbed inside. Very dark and dingy and felt very cramped even though the floor dimensions of the two tents are almost identical. The sloping walls of the Seedhouse made it feel much smaller. The greyish-green color of everything made it feel dark, where the light colors of all the parts of the Hoodoo make it feel light. The door was much smaller and lower too, making me have to crawl in and out. In the Hoodoo I can actually kind of stand as I exit from the door, much easier.

So, I decided to buy the Hoodoo 3. The additional weight doen't matter because I'm using it for motorcycle camping, not backpacking. The lighter Seedhouse 3 SL felt flimsy (and it probably is, to keep the weight down) by comparison. I think the Hoodoo 3 is the better tent for me.

So, the 20% coupon knocked fifty bucks off, then the $110 dividend was applied. I also got the $35.00 footprint, so I was out of there for around $144 with my new tent.

I hope to go set it up in a park in SF tomorrow morning and take pics, and will update this post with them when I'm done.

[infoatnmmoto]

Nice review. I just got my dividend and was thinking along the same lines.
I'd like to see your final set-up pics and your opine re. ease of set-up.
Thanks.

[michaeln]

I set it up this morning in a park near where I live in SF. It was quite easy to set up by myself, I was very pleased. Here are the pics and some narrative.

This is the tent in its stuff sack and the footprint in its sack:






What's inside: poles in bag, stakes and extra guylines in bag, tent, fly.




Here are all the parts. The poles consist of a front & side set all shock-corded together and a rear set shock-corded together. There are also the usual cheap aluminum stakes and BLACK guylines, but I replaced the guylines with ones made from that reflective guyline cord.

[michaeln]

Here I have laid the tent out on the grass and have assembled the frame (very easy) and stuck the four legs into the grommets on the tent:





There are no sleeves to run poles through on this tent, it is all done with plastic clips. I started at the top rear.




Then did the front, then the sides:






Here is a detail shot of one of the frame hubs:





Here's a side view with all the clips hooked. It has huge screened vents along the top.





There are eight places where you have to attach these velcro loops that connect the fly to the frame. Easy to do.

[michaeln]

These are the cool little velcro covered stiffeners that hold the vents open:





Here is a front view of the tent all set up and doors closed.





... and a side view:





One vestibule door open:





Here's the front vestibule. Not all that big, but useful:





The rear door:





Inside the tent looking from the front to the left rear:





Inside again, looking at the right rear and top, showing the mesh roof:





Sorry this is out of focus. I was trying to show the cool little pocket at the top of the door. You can roll the whole front screen door up and stuff it in that pocket so it's out of the way.





Looking out the front door:






Front view with both vestibule doors open:





Detail of one of the front vents:





OK, that's all the pics I have.

[michaeln]

By the way, before some inmate says it... no, those aren't dog turds all over the grass. They had apparently gone over it with one of those spiking machines that aerates the turf.

[michaeln]

I also just noticed something that I hadn't noticed either in the store or when I had it set up this morning.... there are no solid doors for the front or rear, just the mesh doors and the outer vestibule doors. I think this may not be the best choice for a cold weather tent.

[DiscoDino]

looks great - I have the Big Agnes SL3 that I bought for 280 last year on sale...great for backpacking and moto camping...not flimsey, lighter material, only...

[michaeln]

Originally Posted by DiscoDino

looks great - I have the Big Agnes SL3 that I bought for 280 last year on sale...great for backpacking and moto camping...not flimsey, lighter material, only...

Sorry, I didn't mean it the way it sounded. What I was trying to say is that when you get rid of that much weight, the end product is *probably* not quite as durable in the long run as one made without weight reduction as a top consideration.

[AKDuc]

Cool. Nice write-up.

Man, that's a roomy looking design.

Vestibule looks pretty good too.

Have fun, Mark H.

[DiscoDino]

Originally Posted by michaeln

Sorry, I didn't mean it the way it sounded. What I was trying to say is that when you get rid of that much weight, the end product is *probably* not quite as durable in the long run as one made without weight reduction as a top consideration.

Oh...I agree...and the REI tents are roomy and well made...one of the choices I was going for...but I got a great deal on Big Agnes stuff after trying a sleeping bag/pad combo out and fell in love with their designs/work/material...

My understanding after speaking to a designer at BA is that the weight savings mainly come from the extensive Mesh used in teh main tent...which helps in condensation as well...

every extra 1 lbs on a 3 day trek is what pisses me off

[michaeln]

Originally Posted by DiscoDino

Oh...I agree...and the REI tents are roomy and well made...one of the choices I was going for...but I got a great deal on Big Agnes stuff after trying a sleeping bag/pad combo out and fell in love with their designs/work/material...

Me too. I have BA Summit Park down bag, Double Insulated mattress, and a BigHouse4 tent. I like their stuff a lot. I liked the Seedhouse SL3 too, but for me doing only motorcycle camping, the Hoodoo 3 seemed like a better choice right now.

If I was a backpacker I'd have definitely chosen the Seedhouse.

[michaeln]

BTW, there is a short video on the REI site explaining some of the setup and features of this tent:

http://www.rei.com/product/761889

[AngryScot]

Originally Posted by michaeln

I also just noticed something that I hadn't noticed either in the store or when I had it set up this morning.... there are no solid doors for the front or rear, just the mesh doors and the outer vestibule doors. I think this may not be the best choice for a cold weather tent.

As long as your sleeping bag is good, I think the mesh doors are great for cold camping. The condensation that can come from cold and lack of ventilation will dampen your sleeping bag etc. Nice review and pics. The through ventilation that should offer in low wind cold nights will keep ya drier inside.
Just got back from 2 nights camping on the coast up to mendicino. The first night with vents all open my bag got damp from condensation as there was no wind.
Too may poles for me though, I am stupid and like the half dome 2 in 1 thing, can't mess it up.
oh but here is the thing for packing it, pack the poles seperate and get a 15l or so stuff sack or dry bag, will make packing it much easier!

[michaeln]

Originally Posted by AngryScot

As long as your sleeping bag is good, I think the mesh doors are great for cold camping. The condensation that can come from cold and lack of ventilation will dampen your sleeping bag etc. Nice review and pics. The through ventilation that should offer in low wind cold nights will keep ya drier inside.

Good points, I hadn't thought of that. I have a good bag (Big Agnes Summit Park 15 degree down) and I just ordered an Exped Downmat 7DLX pad, so that stuff is pretty warm for any condition I would do motorcycle camping in.

The first time I use this tent in anger will probably be at the Sheetiron 300. I'm planning on taking the four man Big Agnes Bighouse 4 to the Mayday Melee, since I will be spending Friday & Saturday nights in it. A tent you can stand up in to pee is a luxury I can't pass up!

Too many poles for me though, I am stupid and like the half dome 2 in 1 thing, can't mess it up.

Although it looks complex, there are really only 2 pole assemblies. The front & sides are combined and shock-corded into one, and the second assembly is the rear roof peak and uprights, again shock-corded together. Setting up the frame is foolproof, you just let the shock-cord put everything in place and connect the front sides to the rear. I never even looked at the directions.

oh but here is the thing for packing it, pack the poles seperate and get a 15l or so stuff sack or dry bag, will make packing it much easier!

That's what I do. It's better for the tent fabric if you stuff it too, so it doesn't repeatedly get folded in the same places. Yeah, it's all wrinkled when you take it out of the stuff sack, but heck, I'm getting pretty wrinkled myself!