Table of Contents
Pomoly Leo 2 2P hot tent
see also:
- my short Youtube video of the Leo 2 and Winnerwell Nomad Stove inside a Mobi Garden Guantu V shelter
- I don't sell any of these nor do I receive any remuneration if you buy them, and I have not personally reviewed all of them although I have purchased this tent, they are listed here to give you perspective
Introduction
- great versatile true 4 season hike tent for a small stove
- Pomoly web site $US249
- it is a variation of the similarly designed NatureHike Hiby but with extra features of stove jack, side doors and 40D nylon instead of 20D
- NB. in 2024 Pomoly are introducing a 20D ripstop silnylon version
Specs
- 3.1m long x 1.8m/1.5m wide x 1.3m tall (~5 sqm) includes 1m long floorless vestibule for stove and wood;
- packs to 44cm long
- 40D 3000mm PU ripstop silnylon outer with ceiling vents but rated overall as 2,500mm waterhead it seems
- 2P removable tapered inner tent
- ~2m long x 1.65/1.3m wide
- almost full fabric inner tent - 40D 3000mm PU ripstop silnylon - attach to outer via toggles
- inner tent has 3 large doors - each has outer No-See-Um mesh door + inner fabric door
- bathtub floor which has buckles on each corner to attach to outer tent
- Two sleeping area outer tent doors
- each door has two pairs of YKK zippers, so they have three opening methods:
- From bottom to top: Use trekking poles or sticks; the side door can be used as a small canopy / awning.
- From top to bottom: Opening a small part can be used as a vent to reduce condensation on the tent and fully opening it can lie on ground
- Front to back: Store the entire door in the back pocket for maximum ventilation.
- Two vestibule doors
- these unzip and roll up to the stove end of the door
- 3 x 8mm 7001 aluminum alloy poles which feed through sleeves - 2 lengthwise in the common crossover manner, the 3rd is a transverse hoop at the junction of the vestibule
- two 5.07m long poles and a single 3.66m transverse pole
- longest pole segments are 44cm
- 3.8kg - could reduce weight by not taking the inner tent
pros:
- relatively light given its high degree of versatility - usual 2P hike tents only have doors and each with a small vestibule and no stove jack.
- unzipping the inner tent's fabric doors and the outer tent's doors creates a mesh tent
- zipping all doors up creates a double layer almost full fabric tent with optional vents for winter camping
- opening up the vestibule doors should allow good visibility even in rain while allowing radiant warmth from the stove
- 2 main side outer doors each with zips that allow awning style opening or roll back or roll down opening
- 2 vestibule doors to provide access to the stove
- the vestibule doors are elevated from the ground to ensure adequate ventilation and reduce risks of carbon monoxide and consumption of oxygen
- good value for money
- relatively small footprint and freestanding design gives versatility on small sites where the larger tents will not fit, especially the tipis that require long guy outs
- set up outer first so inner does not get wet in the rain
- almost full fabric inner tent for warmth (apart from ceiling and foot end mesh for ventilation, there is also a zip at foot end to allow access to the outer's vent at the foot end)
- all inner tent doors are very large dual fabric and mesh for extreme versatility in ventilation, temperature control as well as great exit options in case of emergency
- fast and free delivery - I got mine delivered to me in Australia by FedExpress / TNT within 1 week of ordering - fantastic!
- zips are all covered with rain protection
- stove is easy to stoke from your bed
- 8mm alloy poles appear to be good quality although they are not DAC poles
- after removing guys and pegs, you can turn tent on its side to dry out the floor before packing up - this is not possible with most Fast Frame touring tents
- mine seems to have good quality control - no major issues noted on delivery and seams are all tape sealed
- would make a great tent for motorbike campers thanks to the spacious vestibule and a pack length of under 45cm
cons:
- a bit heavy and bulky for hiking especially if also carrying a stove but in winter you could leave the inner tent behind
- vestibule doors fold towards the stove end so less versatile for reducing wind chill into inner tent whilst allowing vestibule ventilation and access to stove however this can be partly resolved by siting of tent for the wind and closing the windward vestibule door
- there is a substantial risk of vestibule doors hitting your stove if they come loose from toggles - consider an extra clamp
- large gap under vestibule doors will allow a lot of wind chill to get in
- in heavy rain you probably will need to close all doors to prevent ingress into inner tent - this could be resolved by using a tarp to provide additional protection when the doors are open in prolonged rain periods - I used a 3×3.6m tarp for this purpose which worked well and covered all the tent except vestibule and provided a small area of standing height cover on one side.
- not wide enough to sleep side on to the stove
- inner tent is shorter than most 2P hike tents at only 2m (most are 2.1-2.2m long) but should be adequate for most people although pretty tight with a stretcher bed - another 6“ would have been nice
- my 207cm long stretcher bed only just fits although it overhangs the vestibule doorway by about 7cm but fortunately you can still zip up the door and given the height of the bed, a tall person over 1.8m would not be able to sleep comfortably on the stretcher bed with the vestibule door closed given the foot end tapers in as you go higher.
- this also means the head of the stretcher bed is quite close to the stove so you need to take extra care your pillow or other bedding does not fall onto the stove!
- inner tent has a mesh ceiling and mesh foot end - given the amazing degree of versatility in ventilation adjustments via the doors, its a pity these were not fabric
- there is only one ceiling hook inside the inner tent for a light and this is near the foot end and quite low down so you really don't want anything long attached to it
- poles are passed through long sleeves and can be more fiddly to set up and take down as a result - set up flat and must PUSH all poles carefully when setting up or taking down as there is risk of damaging the sleeves if not done carefully - this requires frequent adjustments of the sleeve at the far end of the pole so a bit of walking back and forwards
- pole are only 8mm - perhaps 9.5mm would have been better as a true 4 season tent - at least you should be able to replace these yourself with 9.5mm poles
- waterhead rating only 2500mm overall despite fabric at 3000mm - not really enough for the floor although the floor rating is not specified - you might need a tarp under the floor!
- the nice large area stove jack is only ~70cm height (can't use a Winnerwell pipe oven and the triple shield chimney will be too close to stove to be as effective safety measure but should still be used)
- unlike most hot tents with velcro removable stove jacks, this stove jack is sewn into tent so take care not to damage it!
- stove and hottest part of chimney is relatively close to tent fabric (vestibule doors are about 23cm from top of stove while the fabric under the stove jack is only 18cm from rear of top of stove - but with a triple shield chimney they seem to survive
- most of chimney is outside so great care is needed if you have a very light stove - you should guy out the chimney for stability!
- has tension web straps to allow it to free-stand which could be trip hazards although only if you are walking into the vestibule
- pegs do not come with cord loops to help pull them out
- don't really like the aesthetics of black sleeves on the nice khaki brown fabric
- although there seem to be many cons, most can be addressed and for many they would be well outweighed by the price and fantastic versatility of this tent - time will tell - I will update when I get a chance to try my tent out in the rain!
- I really don't like the long pole sleeves and would have much preferred clips however, it may be that the sleeves better distribute wind forces and reduce risk of seam tears or waterproofing issues
- for really strong winds, you could buy stronger 9.5mm x 5.04m poles which should fit (no guarantees they will bend enough and they will be 3cm too short) from https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004958016812.html
setting up
- site selection
- an advantage of a relatively small tent is that there is greater choice in site selection thanks to its smaller footprint
- the freestanding design does allow you to move the tent around once set up if it is not too windy
- as your head will be at the stove end, you will be wanting the ground to be sloping a little downhill from the head end of the inner tent and from left to right as you look at the stove end
- rain falling on the tent will drain off towards the front and rear RIGHT hand sides (as you face the stove end from inside) due to the way the sleeves are constructed with their cross-over gaps
- this will also mean rain will drain towards the foot end and away from your vestibule as you don't want that pooling with water
- given the undeclared waterhead rating of the bathtub floor it would be wise to ensure it is sited so any rain will run away from the inner tent - preferably down well past the foot end
- if using a stove, ideally the wind should not be blowing smoke back over the tent as this would risk ember burns and you want the least wind chill as possible in the vestibule area so having the wind come from the foot end of the tent is ideal if this is possible given the drainage constraints
- setting up
- this is relatively easy and reasonably quick - it will take 1 person around 8-10 minutes excluding pegging and guy outs
- pass the two long poles through the sleeves and then the cross pole at the vestibule junction through its sleeve - these are time consuming and fiddly and MUST be done with CARE to avoid damage to the sleeves, you will need to go to the far end a few times to adjust the sleeve to ensure the pole will pass without damage
- attach the ends of each pole into their eyelets at the FOOT END ONLY first
- then attach the transverse pole into its eyelets which will lift up the other poles (if you do this step last, the tent may invert and you will have to start over)
- THEN attach the stove end of the two long poles into their eyelets
- adjust position of tent as desired then peg down ensuring the tension straps are tight
- optionally guy out the tent if there will be wind - there are 6 guy out points which will not only stabilise the tent, reduce damage but should reduce wind noise
- if you have not already installed the inner tent from last camp, then buckle the bathtub floor to the outer tent and then attach the ceiling toggles
- optionally guy out the side doors as awning by using hiking poles, branches, or a tent pole (not supplied)
- NB. during rain, there is a risk water will collect on these awnings and compromise them - either take them down or ensure water will not collect (you could always add a tarp cover for extra amenity)
- if using a wood stove
- you will need to make a cruciate cut in the stove jack to suit your chimney pipe - preferably as central as possible
- don't place the chimney too high in the stove jack otherwise the zip guard will need to be clamped out of the way to avoid it melting
- for extra safety, if using a Winnerwell stove, you should use a triple shielded chimney pipe section combined with a half length chimney pipe between it and the stove
- given the low height of the stove jack it would be wise to guy out the chimney, especially if wind is forecast
- you could also clamp reflective house insulation foil onto the inner of the tent above and behind the stove to provide added protection to tent fabric whilst reflecting warmth back towards you - but make sure this foil does not touch the stove or chimney.
- if using a wood stove:
- strongly recommend using a triple shield chimney section to reduce heat on the fabric near stove jack and the vestibule doors
- the stove jack cloth is fireproof, but the stitched thread has no fire proof function
- although I believe the fabric is fire retardant, it will presumably burn if it touches the stove or chimney and the close proximity of fabric does create some anxiety!
- take great care with the vestibule doors as they will easily hit the stove if they come loose from their toggle!
- consider using clamps as extra precaution
- be sure the stove jack zip guards cannot get too close to the chimney - you may need to camp them out of the way
- be sure to fully guy out the tent to avoid excessive movement in the wind
- if using a stretcher bed, make sure your pillow does not fall onto the stove
packing up
- this is essentially the reverse of set up
- excluding peg removal and guy ropes, if you leave the inner tent attached it takes one person around 8-9 minutes to pack up
- as with set up, pushing the poles through the sleeves is somewhat fiddly and time consuming
- in a cramped area where the poles cannot be pushed out fully extended but must be folded as the come out, you really need two people to make this time efficient - one to fold the poles as they are pushed through and the other to carefully push them through
comparison with other tents
- standard 2P hiking tent
- the Leo2 is far more versatile for all seasons, adds a very useful single vestibule with stove jack
- However, the Leo 2 is substantially heavier, more bulky, has a larger site area and takes longer to set up and take down due to the fiddly long pole sleeves
- you would struggle to find a 4 season 2P hike tent of this quality for a lower price - the Leo 2 is great value for money!
- 4-5m tipi stove tent
- a tipi stove tent offers faster set up and take down and most importantly some standing height and a higher stove jack which allows use of a pipe oven and is not much heavier or bulky - although you do need an inner mesh tent to give similar capability
- the Leo 2 provides much more versatility with all its doors and the dual mesh/fabric inner tent door design, is free standing and occupies a smaller camp site area
- a large tunnel tent with a 2P hike tent
- this combination gives the greatest versatility and amenity (plenty of space to walk around in, have a stove oven, even a shower near the stove) but it is much heavier, more bulky, much more expensive and will take considerably longer to set up, will be less stable in the wind and requires a much larger camp site area
- eg. Mobi Garden Guan Tu V (On The Road V) hot tent / gazebo plus a freestanding 2P hike tent without a fly
Online video reviews
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWcFW5cWQRg set up with mini stove
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FLUrvasTV0 set up in the snow
