Big Agnes Copper Spur UL4

This lightweight four-person, three-season tent is great for all campers, from families to backpackers. With a durable design, spacious interior and plenty of mesh for ventilation and stargazing, this tent is a solid choice.

 


I bought this tent in November, 2012, hoping it would be my dream tent—and it has not disappointed. The Big Agnes Copper Spur UL4 is a lightweight, three-season, four-person tent that is built to last.

SETUP

The Copper Spur sets up quickly, if you know what you're doing. The majority of the tent is held up by a spidery all-in-one double-hub pole system that can get a little confusing. Several times I have assembled it 90 degrees off. Once you've practiced, though, putting it together is a cinch.

There are two awkward parts of the design: the contortion required to affix the velcro straps on the bottom of the rain fly to the poles, and the short cross pole on top of the tent. This pole sticks out above the door to create a spacious vestibule, but if you're not using the rain fly, it's really easy to stand up and hit your head on the end of this pole. I'm not a tall person, and I've done it several times.

STABILITY AND WEATHER RESISTANCE

This tent has withstood serious wind and a raging thunderstorm with no problem—even without the guy lines staked down. When taut and all flaps are closed, this thing is as tight as a ship. I have never camped with it in the snow, but it has never let me down.

VENTILATION

Probably because of all the mesh, I've never had any trouble with condensation. If it were to become an issue, the tent has two doors, creating a nice cross-breeze. The mesh and double door setup is the main reason I bought the tent; I live in Texas, so I needed a shelter that would keep me cool in the hot months. It has done just that, while also keeping me warm in the winter.

ROOM AND STORAGE

This tent can sleep four adults relatively comfortably at 96 by 86 inches. The vestibules outside each of the doors total 27 square feet and offer ample space for packs and supplies, and the height of the tent, at 50 inches, provides ample headroom. There are enough interior pockets for all four campers to have two each.

PACKABILITY

When your camping trip is over and it's time to put away the Copper Spur, you'll find that it packs down to the size you'd expect for a lightweight tent — 6.5 x 21.5 inches. It goes easily back into the stuff sack, and the packaged weight is up to 5 lbs 12 oz with a minimum trail weight of 5 lbs 5 oz.

For me, where this tent really shines is in clear weather. The all-mesh ceiling makes for amazing stargazing from the comfort of your sleep sack, and the breeze is able to penetrate enough to keep the air from feeling stale.

If you're looking for a great, durable, spacious four-person tent that is adjustable to many camping needs, I highly recommend the Big Agnes Copper Spur UL4.

I have a Copper Spur UL3 and now a UL4. I thought the 4 would be a wider 3. It has some differences.

There are a couple of differences. The vestibules there are two and they are big. The vestibules have three positions and two stake out points. Closed is position one. You can roll it back to position two one third open. Last you can open it up all the way.

Most tent doors have a zip along the bottom and then one that goes up and around. This tent has just the up and around and it goes all the way around. You can roll the door up ant the bottom and secure it. Four mesh pockets are at the corners and there are four triangle shaped pockets in the celling.

The vents are the same as the UL3. Two vents that are held open by a rigid piece held in place by Velcro.  Ventilation should be great lots of mesh. The floor is thin. I could see the grass below the tent in great detail (Purchase the footprint).

There are two poles. The big pole is a standard H pole red with a different hub than I have seen on a Big Agnes. The poles are red I like a high visibility color so you are less likely to walk away and leave it The other pole is a cross pole that holds up the vestibule it snaps into the H pole in a channel at the center of the H. Clips are the same as the UL3. The best I have seen on any tent so far.

Interior room is big big big. I am 6'1 and if you were much taller you would need to sleep length wise and that would change the capacity to a 3 man. I used my UL3 for a two man. The UL4 will be two adults and two children.

The only complaint I have with the tent is you can't zip the tent doors all the way to ground level. It leaves a lip of about three inches you have to step over to get in or out. If you stepped on that lip in the corner there may be a problem. It is reinforced at that junction.

I love my Copper Spur UL3 and the four looks like more of the same. That is why they call it the mother of comfort.

Used the tent eight times on normal backpacking trips and during this use two of the clips have broken and a large rip appeard in the tent mesh near the zipper. This was under normal use, not mishandling or severe weather.

Very disappointed in the quality. Buy from another brand!!!!!!

I purchased this item April 2014. We used the text approximately eight times over the next year. In August 2015, the two of the tent's clips for connecting the rain fly to the tent have broken during normal use. I cannot even clip the rain fly to the tent due to the broken clips thus rendering the rain fly useless!

Around this time, a large rip in the mesh near the door zipper has appeared when zipping the tent shut. The rip is approximately three inches long.

My husband and I are diligent about taking care of our gear and never misuse or manhandle the equipment. It is severely disappointing that this tent has started to come apart because overall the tent is a great design.

Does it sound reasonable that within eight uses in 15 months of purchasing such an expensive and supposedly high-quality product that it would fall apart? No!

My recommendation would be to find another company that makes better quality products that are made to withstand the use it was designed for. I am pretty disappointed because prior to this experience I had nothing but good things to say about the company.

Buy your gear from another company. This tent is not good quality.