The X-Mid is built at the same high end factory as respected brands like MSR and Mountain Hardware. Our price is only lower because we sell direct to you rather than having a large retail markup (retailers typically double the price). By eliminating that markup, we can pass most of the savings onto you, while also investing a portion into building even better gear. For example, the X-Mid is the highest quality as we insist that literally everything is double sewn, and we use premium components such as waterproof YKK AquaGuard zippers that are rare even on the most expensive tents (e.g. Big Agnes doesn’t even use them on their $1000 tents), and yet our price is lower than anything comparable simply because of the slim markup.

There are a few other tent companies that also sell direct yet are still priced similar to tents at retail. That’s simply because they’re enjoying generous profit margins while hoping you wrongly assume their higher prices means higher quality. Take a close look and you’ll see those tents often aren’t even seam taped nor fully double stitched yet cost 50% more. Even at a higher price, you can’t find higher quality than the X-Mid.

There are tents with traditional pole sets that are lighter than the X-Mid, such as the Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2 (35 oz). Since pole sets are heavy (often about 10oz) to get the tent that light, something has to give. Commonly that’s space and durability, where a traditional tent as light as the X-Mid is almost certainly far smaller, less durable, and lower performance (e.g. lacking vents). In the case of the Tiger Wall UL2, that accomplished through giving up a lot of durability (e.g., 10D fabrics, #3 zippers), cutting useful features like vents, using less waterproof fabrics, and making it smaller (e.g., tapering the floor to 42″ at one end). By using trekking poles and a more efficient geometry the X-Mid 2P can offer more interior volume, higher performance/water capability, and more durable fabrics, zippers, and coatings at a similar weight. Instead of a small tent for docile conditions, the X-Mid 2P is a nicely sized 2P tent with legitimate foul-weather capability.

Yes. The inner easily disconnects via buckles at the peaks and clips at the four corners to leave just the fly. If you want to pitch just the inner, you can remove the fly peaks’ guylines and tie them to the inner peaks while adding knots for the pole tips, but the Stargazer Kit on Durston Gear makes inner-only pitching much easier as it has separate guylines that clip right on plus grommets for your pole tips and tensioners for quick adjustment.

If you don’t use trekking poles, you can use folding poles instead. We don’t currently offer them, but many companies do. The X-Mid 2P pitches with the poles in the range of 47 – 48″, so if you buy a fixed-length pole, you should opt for 48″ and use that slightly angled as needed. The best option is a custom, 4 piece, adjustable carbon fiber pole from Ruta Locura, but there are also cheaper options, such as the $16 poles from TarpTent. Also worth checking out are the carbon poles from SMD which are light, and pack short but non-adjustable, and at 49″, you should trim them shorter, which is why just building your own might make sense.

The main reason is that nylon absorbs water in wet conditions. That results in 3 big problems: First, it expands (or “sags”) about 4% which makes for a saggy tent in wet conditions. This is a common problem in nearly all lightweight tents, but low weight polyester fabrics are finally available which solve this. Second, nylon’s water absorption makes the tent slow to dry and heavy with up to a pound of water in the fabric, and third, nylon weakens by about 10% when wet. Polyester doesn’t absorb water, so it doesn’t have any of these issues plus it’s far more UV resistant so it lasts longer.

We are working on it. Check out the upcoming X-Mid Pro on Durston Gear and sign up for notice if you want get in on the upcoming pre-sale.

The reason we use polyester for the regular tents is because it’s a more well-rounded fabric. It lasts a long time, has great performance, no-sag, and is UV resistant. DCF is even stronger but doesn’t last longer because it eventually gets pinholes or delaminates over time. A DCF tent might last for 200-300 nights while a polyester tent can last almost indefinitely. DCF is also extremely expensive.

The main advantage of DCF over polyester – and it is a significant advantage – is that it is much lighter at typically 0.5oz/sq yd rather than 1.2oz/sq yd typically. So polyester is a better choice for a well-rounded tent due to its higher durability and lower cost, while DCF is the best choice for the weight geeks that don’t mind spending a lot more to save a nice bit of weight.

For the most weather resistant pitch, you should pitch it low to the ground (shorten the cord at the corners as much as possible), use the optional stake out points around the base to spread the load, and deploy the peak guylines. Orient the guylines towards the long sides of the tent to support those larger walls. For extreme conditions, you can add a second peak guyline by tying cord inside the peaks and running it out the vents. This way, you can guyout each peak from two directions, which makes it extremely strong.

The X-Mid geometry is the most volumetrically efficient shape possible. Thus, it is impossible to design a lighter tent unless you use lighter materials, fewer features, or make it smaller. If you find a more lightweight tent, it likely is a single wall design that isn’t nearly as good in sloppy conditions, or it uses DCF fabric and thus costs at least 2.5x as much.

Any tent that uses similar materials and is also a double-wall usually is quite a bit heavier. Of the few tents that are not, these are always smaller, less featured, or both. We could make the X-Mid smaller or less featured too, but its current design is carefully considered so that it is among the lightest tents in its class while still offering a comfortable amount of space and a useful feature set. Basically, the weight is similar to the lightest woven double-wall tents out there while providing more space and features. To save another two ounces would require large compromises in function or durability, such as hard to use door clips instead of zippers, smaller or omitted vents, and delicate hardware. Tents that make these compromises are much less well rounded.

The 20D floor is designed to be durable enough to use without a groundsheet, whereas many other UL tents use more fragile 10-15D floors. However, it still requires care not to pitch on sharp sticks and rocks, and the floor could be damaged on harsh surfaces like gravel. For harsh surfaces or a cleaner floor, Durston Gear offers a groundsheet.