Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting Ti Goat vs Kifaru Tipis

Hey all,

I'm currently making notes on heated shelters to be used on backpacking trips/hunts and was hoping for some feedback on these two company's tipis.

This shelter will be used for 2 people max, and hopefully will be light enough for me to take on solo trips. Therefore I am considering Ti Goat's Vertex5 and Kifaru Paratipi or 4-man tipi.

What are some pros and cons of these shelters regarding ease of setup, durability, weight, comfort and anything else I should be aware of.



Part 2:

What are the differences between the Ti Goat box stoves and Kifaru Stoves? I understand that cylinder stoves are lighter, but I want to be able to easily cook on the stove and a box stove will be easier for that (as far as I know).

Thanks alot,
F

My buddy has a TiGoat. He wishes he would have bought the Kifaru...there is no liner for the Ti and it get WET in there without one.

I have the TiG V5 and it is great. It will probly be a little snug for 2 and a stove. The condensation thing has been disscussed and cussed alot and for me it is a non issue. If you are going to use it where it is wet and you think it would bother you then the liner on the Kifaru might make a differance.
I think the V6.5 would be better for 2. I am looking at getting the V8 and skipping the 6.5.
As far as the stoves, I make my own. They might not be as good a quality as the ones mentioned but for the 2-3 weeks a yr I use them they work EXC. for me.
Here are a few pic's.

Good work TX!

I have a Kifaru 6 man and have used it wwith and without a liner.I can tell you that the liner alone would be enough reason for me to go with Kifaru again,plus they are great peaple to deal with.With all that said,I've never heard a bad thing about TI Goat

i have a kifaru 6 and med stove. great. lots of room. i have spent a nite in a 4 man and it would work too. i like the bigger one but if you are going to carry it solo it is a bit much. i had a liner and sold it. you should be happy with the tg too. i used to carry a mega mid and just cut a pole for it when i stopped to camp. saved a pound that way.

8 man kifaru here. It is awesome.
Between the V-5 and the para - I would go para because of the layout. 2 guys and gear and stove - it looks it like it would be easier to negotiate in. All at a cost of some weight though.
A 4 man (love my liner) would be even better. 2 doors and flexibility with liner or no and even more space. Again at the cost of some weight. Split 2 ways - the are all easily doable....you'll have to decide where to draw that line.
Good luck!

So far there's a slight lean towards Kifaru's offerings if most of my trips will be 2-man trips.

How about mainly solo trips, which shelter would suit me best in terms of durability, weight, comfort etc?

I'm fairly new to backpack hunting and we're just trying to figure out if it's easier for two people to have their own "solo" gear, or whether or not to plan as a pair.

Thanks again,
F.

Also, that's a real nice stove Tx, mind posting the rough dimensions, stats and template on how you built it? Very interested in this type of thing, there's a real satisfaction in homemade gear.

Welcome to the tip of the iceberg.
You at least need a couple of options.

The para tarp with annex and para stove for solo. At 3# 4oz with the stove would be hard to beat. You can also just bring the para in you day pack for emergency uses (at 11 oz.) and for 2 or more folks do a larger 4 man tipi or vertex 8 ....

I'd have to give the nod to Kifaru, only because it's a known entity to me.

It's run by a hunter for hunters, old school values in the man that runs it that trickle all the way through the company it seems.


am sure they both make good lt. wt. gear, spendy to be sure, but worth it? Yes imo

never regretted a dime I've spent at Kifaru, and they certainly come across as they appreciate the business. I appreciate that when I'm spending my money.

Here you go F,

http://forums.bowsite.com/tf/bgforu...threadid=347877&MESSAGES=28&FF=5

I have owned both and currently have the TiGoat 6.5
Their prices have gone up over the years but at the time it was a better tent for the money than the kifaru. Not sure how they compare in cost now. If close in price I would not hesitate to go with the TiGoat again.

Part 1)
Ease of setup: easy once you get the hang of it. Practice in the backyard. Powder snow can be problematic. It must be stomped on to get it to "set-up" to hold the snow pins. Not a good shelter for the rocky alpine environment, imo. Too hard and time consuming to set up on rock.

Durability: I have both Kifaru 8-man and Ti-Goat V 5.5 or something in DWR. The Kifaru fabric feels sturdier to me and is a heavier fabric, but I don't know for a fact that it is more tear proof. I do NOT like the cone design on Kifaru, where the tipi panels converge and get folded into the hem on a cordura cone at the peak. PM me if you want to know more. From pictures, it looks to me that the cone has been redesigned compared to my older tipi, so this point may be moot. In direct flame tests, I found the DWR to be less flammable than the sil-nylon, but in either case and in practice, all you get are pinholes from the stove. I only mention it because it always seems to get brought up but I think it's a non-issue. Note that Ti Goat quit using DWR due to lack of demand.

Weight: depends how spacious you want to go. There are carbon fiber pole options for Ti Goat that make things a bit lighter. The biggest advance in weight reduction for these systems was using shim stock for stove pipe, but it makes it a pain in the ass to set up compared to sectional pipe.

Comfort: Unbeatable. Floorless and heat. I have not used another shelter since.

Part 2) There are a few things that tip it to Ti Goat FOR ME. I like that the door zipper goes clear to the top. Look at how the door folds back to the next stake over in Trapper's photo. That is different on the Kifaru. The zipper does not go clear to the cone on my 8-man. Consequently, you cannot fold the door back to the next stake and tuck it under. You have to tie it off. This may seem inconsequential, but you do it enough times, you come to appreciate not having to tie it off every time.

Neither Patrick nor DJ like guyouts. They seem to have problems tripping over them. Consequently, Kifaru guyouts are designed to be close in to the tipi. This sacrifices their effectiveness as they really should be higher up the wall. I do not trip over guyouts and I talked DJ into more functional ones. An added benefit is that these guyouts can be more effectively used to keep the tipi walls from sagging after rain or condensation relaxes the fabric, or when clothes are hanging on the line. There is no need to reset the pole to tighten the walls. The last thing is regarding the stove systems. I prefer the damper and screen system on the Ti Goat stoves. I like the bigger size of the Kifaru stoves. I do not use the screen slots in my Kifaru system. I do not like having air carbureted into the pipe. Finally, I like the snow skirt that I asked DJ to add to my Ti Goat.

Both systems work, and work well. So does a parachute soaked in campkote.