Backpacking~$300Big Agnes
Big Agnes Blacktail
No citable rating — see why we hide some.
The Blacktail is what happens when Big Agnes builds the Copper Spur's floor plan out of 75D polyester instead of 15D nylon: five pounds instead of two and a half, $300 instead of $600, and a floor you can pitch on gravel without flinching. Thirty-three square feet is more than the Copper Spur UL2 gives you, the 90-inch length actually fits a six-footer plus a pillow, and the fabric is PFAS-free. It is a heavy tent for a thru-hike and an easy one for weekends, and the Blacktail 4 at 60 square feet is one of the cheapest ways to get a freestanding four-person tent that still carries.
Floor area per person
16.5 sq ft
Standard — 14 to 17 sq ft each — the normal two-pads-and-no-spare-room fit
Weight per person
40 oz
from the trail weight of 5 lb
Peak height
42 in
Approx. price
~$300
Pads: 26.0 in of floor width each — 2 × 25 in pads fit.
Length: a 90 in floor leaves room for a sleeper up to about 7ft once you allow six inches for a foot box and a pillow.
Best for
Weekend backpacking and camp-at-the-car nights where durability and price matter more than the last two pounds.
The size run
One design, 3 capacities. The numbers at the top of this page describe the Blacktail 2; every size has its own figures below.
| Size | Sleeps | Floor area | Sq ft each | Vestibule | Trail weight | Packed weight | Floor L × W | Approx. price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blacktail 2 | 2 | 33 sq ft | 16.5 | 18 sq ft | 5 lb | 5 lb 8 oz | 90 × 52 in | ~$300 |
| Blacktail 3 | 3 | 44 sq ft | 14.7 | 18 sq ft | 5 lb 10 oz | 6 lb 2 oz | 90 × 70 in | ~$350 |
| Blacktail 4 | 4 | 60 sq ft | 15.0 | 22 sq ft | 7 lb 12 oz | 8 lb 4 oz | 90 × 96 in | ~$400 |
Specifications
- Type
- Backpacking
- Rated capacity
- 2-person
- Floor area per person(estimated)
- 16.5 sq ft (standard)
- Floor area
- 33 sq ft
- Vestibule area
- 18 sq ft
- Peak height
- 42 in
- Packed weight
- 5 lb 8 oz
- Weight per person(estimated)
- 40 oz (trail weight)
- Packed size
- 21 x 7 in
- Interior floor width
- 52 in
- Pad fit(estimated)
- 2 × 25 in pads fit
- Fits sleepers up to(estimated)
- 7ft tall
- Doors
- 2
- Vestibules
- 2
- Freestanding
- freestanding
- Poles
- aluminum
- Wall type
- double wall
- Season rating
- 3-season
- Fly fabric
- Recycled 75D polyester, 1500 mm polyurethane, no intentionally added PFAS
- Floor fabric
- Recycled 75D polyester, 1500 mm polyurethane, no intentionally added PFAS
- Floor denier
- 75D
- Floor hydrostatic head
- 1,500 mm
- PFAS-free treatment
- stated PFAS-free
- Approx. price
- ~$300
Features
- Freestanding aluminum pole set with two doors and two vestibules
- Recycled 75D polyester fly and floor, 1500 mm, no intentionally added PFAS
- 90 in floor length in every size
- Fast-fly pitch with fly and footprint
- Hotel variant available with a 28 sq ft covered porch
- Sold in 2, 3 and 4 person, all on the same pole design
In its favour
- More floor than the Copper Spur UL2 for half the money
- 75D polyester shrugs off grit, dog claws and repeated packing
- PFAS-free waterproofing, which is still rare at this price
- 90 in floor length fits a tall sleeper without touching the ends
- Polyester fly sags far less than nylon when it gets wet overnight
Against it
- Five pounds for the 2-person is twice the weight of the ultralight options
- 1500 mm floor is the minimum for a tent you will pitch on damp ground
- Packs to 21 x 7 in, which eats a lot of a 50-litre pack
Written from the published specification sheet, not from owner reports.
What owners report
No owner discussion has been collected for the Big Agnes Blacktail yet. Rather than summarise sentiment nobody expressed, this section stays empty until there is something real to read — the methodology page explains where these come from and why some tents have none.