Anyone use a Mountain Hardwear Shifter 4?

[Kiriesh]

Hey guys, thanks to a deal through work I get access to the Mountain Hardwear/Columbia employee store which is usually 35-60% off depending on the item. My coleman tent has served me well for the past 2 years but the lower quality is really starting to show and its not handling being broken down and set up daily for multiple weeks in a row. Because of this I thought it may be time to upgrade, which is where I found the Shifter 4. The only problem is I cannot find for the life me a good length review on it. Does anyone by chance use this tent? Here's a link for the curious:

http://www.mountainhardwear.com/shifter-4-1585671.html

 

[thefishhawk]

I was trying to remember what the name of mine was and I found a pretty long youtube from backcountry edge on the shifter 3 if that helps.

I have the Drifter 4, which I think the Shifter may have replaced. I really like the value of MH tents, when the footprint and loft is already included it's a great deal. I use the Drifter for rafting, things that are important to me are ease of setup/takedown, stability in wind, ventilation, and overall ease of use since we are moving everyday. These tents go up and down in a flash, two poles that are connected, X them out, clip it up, done. Fit and finish is really good, good materials.

It appears the couple items that annoy me about the Drifter they've remedied in the Shifter. The Drifter has a goofy plastic foot where the poles, ground cloth, and fly all snap into. It works fine and I've never had one break but it's annoying to use and get things clipped right onto. (a lot of time we sleep with the fly ready to go on one side just in case and therefore have to jump out in the dark of night occasionally with the rain falling and clip it up) The Shifter appears to have the old standard grommets in the corners, easier to setup and takedown. The Drifter didn't come with enough guy lines to really set it up correctly for a prolonged storm, so I had to add a few. Overall though it's plenty sturdy for a short squall on it's own. We do a lot of desert camping so short, intense wind and rainstorms are the norm.

Really it's just old school simplicity that just works. X frame, easy to use, gets the job done. No weirdly shaped pole designs that end up bending out after a few years. Perfect size for two people with extra space around. Overall I think you'll be happy if you are just looking for the basics at a good quality with low hassle.

 

[Kiriesh]

I was trying to remember what the name of mine was and I found a pretty long youtube from backcountry edge on the shifter 3 if that helps.

I have the Drifter 4, which I think the Shifter may have replaced. I really like the value of MH tents, when the footprint and loft is already included it's a great deal. I use the Drifter for rafting, things that are important to me are ease of setup/takedown, stability in wind, ventilation, and overall ease of use since we are moving everyday. These tents go up and down in a flash, two poles that are connected, X them out, clip it up, done. Fit and finish is really good, good materials.

It appears the couple items that annoy me about the Drifter they've remedied in the Shifter. The Drifter has a goofy plastic foot where the poles, ground cloth, and fly all snap into. It works fine and I've never had one break but it's annoying to use and get things clipped right onto. (a lot of time we sleep with the fly ready to go on one side just in case and therefore have to jump out in the dark of night occasionally with the rain falling and clip it up) The Shifter appears to have the old standard grommets in the corners, easier to setup and takedown. The Drifter didn't come with enough guy lines to really set it up correctly for a prolonged storm, so I had to add a few. Overall though it's plenty sturdy for a short squall on it's own. We do a lot of desert camping so short, intense wind and rainstorms are the norm.

Really it's just old school simplicity that just works. X frame, easy to use, gets the job done. No weirdly shaped pole designs that end up bending out after a few years. Perfect size for two people with extra space around. Overall I think you'll be happy if you are just looking for the basics at a good quality with low hassle.

Thanks, this is exactly what I was hoping to hear. I don't need anything fancy or ultralite, just an improvement over my current beat up coleman tent. Prior to discovering MH sells tents I was planning on getting an REI Half Dome, which seems to be about on-par in terms of quality. Unless someone chimes in before I'm able to make it to the store, I think this is going to be my next tent.

 

[ttengineer]

MH is a quality company. If anything ever happens to the tent, they will replace it or give you a credit for the full MSRP of the tent towards anything they make for life.

Of the countless items I have from them, I've only ever had to send in a tent and a day pack. I really can't recommend them enough. Easily my favorite outdoor brand, even more than Arc'teryx.


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[Webfoot]

To give you another option right now you can get a Marmot Argent 4P tent including footprint for $150 shipped from Sierra Trading Post with the use of a coupon code. I use a different Marmot tent and I am pleased with it.