chadbrackelsberg
2005-07-12 03:45:27 UTC
Black Diamond First Light Tent
Reviewer Information
Name: Chad Brackelsberg
Age: 32
Gender: Male
Height: 6'1" (185cm)
Weight: 160lbs (72.5kg)
Email address: chadbrackelsberg-/***@public.gmane.org
City, State, Country: Sandy, UT, USA
Date: July 7, 2005
Backpacking Background:
I started backpacking in 1997 while living in Minnesota. From my
first trip I was hooked. I have spent time backpacking in Minnesota,
Wisconsin, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, Wyoming, Utah, Idaho,
California, Arizona, Thailand, India, and Nepal. My trips have
ranged from short mileage overnight trips to long mileage day trips
to 30 days trips covering over 300 miles. I now reside in Utah
where there is ample opportunity for fantastic mountain and desert
backpacking as well as high mileage day trips. In Utah I spend all
of my free time between backpacking, extended day hikes, backcountry
skiing, alpine climbing, mountain biking and bike touring.
Product Information
Manufacturer: Black Diamond Equipment, LTD
Year of manufacture: 2004
URL: www.bdel.com
Listed weight:
Tent: 2lbs 11oz (1.21kg)
Ground Cloth: 9.5oz (270g) (optional)
Weight as delivered: 3 lbs 6oz (1.53kg) (tent, poles, 6 stakes, guy
line, and 2 bags)
Product description:
The Firstlight tent is Black Diamond's lightest 2 person single
wall tent. The tent is built with EPIC by Nextec® (canopy) and
SilNylong (floor) fabrics. The tent is very light, the tent packs
down to approximately 6 x 12 in (15 x 30 cm) and the poles and
stakes are about 1.5x16in. (3.8 x 40.6 cm) The tent is small at 27.3
sq ft and dimensions of 82 x 48 x 42 in (208 x 123 x 107 cm). The
tent has a bathtub floor. The tent has 2 DAC Featherlight poles and
a single door. The door zips down with a screen flap that opens for
ventilation. The tent also has a vent opposite the door for
ventilation. Inside the tent there are 2 medium sized gear pouches
(1 on each side) and loops 2/3 of the way up each corner for hanging
a light, stringing up a cloths line, or the like. Outside, the tent
has guy loops mid way up each of the 4 corners as well as stake
loops on each of the 4 corners. The Firstlight also has an
optional vestibule and ground cloth which I have not tested. The
tent ships in 2 small sacks (tent in one and 2 poles, 6 stakes, and
guy lines in the other). The tent must be seam sealed prior to
using. I also recommend at least 2 additional stakes to accommodate
the guy lines.
Field information
The Firstlight is a new tent for Black Diamond in 2004. The tent
was acquired in October 2004 and used during a 30 day bike tour
through the South Island of New Zealand in November and October.
Since that time the Firstlight has only been used on 2 overnight
trips in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah.
The Firstlight has seen a variety of weather ranging from light
snow, torrential rain, extreme wind, to bright and sunny days (which
are few and far between in November in New Zealand). The tent has
been used in temperatures ranging from 25F to 80F. The Firstlight
has been used on hard rocky ground, sandy beaches, and grassy
meadows ranging from sea level to over 9,000 feet.
The Firstlight was acquired due to its light weight and price. At
the time the price to weight ratio was one of the best on the
market. The tent has mostly been used on a bike tour through the
South Island of New Zealand. Although this is not a backpacking
trip, the weather in New Zealand in November is a gear heads dream
come true and will challenge even the best pieces of gear. The tent
had to withstand rain, snow, wind and sunshine (sometime all in the
same day). Since the cycle tour, the tent has been used on 2
overnight trips in Utah's Wasatch Mountains. The perfect weather of
the overnight trips was not much of a challenge for the Firstlight.
Pitching the Firstlight is very simple, the 2 poles setup inside the
tent by fitting into a metal snap in each corner. There are also 4
hook and loop closures to keep the poles in place (one in each
corner). My fear when pitching the tent was that with the light
EPIC fabric it seemed like the poles could easily be punched through
the tent walls if care was not taken on setup. With the light
weight of the tent, the tent must be staked and guyed as even a
light wind will send it flying.
In heavy winds, the tent (even when guyed) flattened out, but it was
still stable and sustained no damage even after several nights of
heavy winds.
In rain, the Firstlight did have some leakage around the metal snaps
in each corner. This should have been able to be prevented by more
careful seam sealing, but I have not been able to prove this theory.
On cold nights, there was some condensation that formed in the tent
when there were 2 people sleeping in it. I have not slept in the
tent alone, but with less body heat in the tent, I do not think
there would be a condensation problem. At all other times the tent
seemed to have very good ventilation and stayed cool on warm nights.
The Firstlight is a little bit short for my 6'1" frame, when lying
on my back my feet would touch one end and my head the other. I
sleep on my side so this was not a problem.
With 2 people in the tent, there is very little gear storage space
so if you want you gear inside, be prepared to pack it in around you.
Summary
The performance of the Firstlight was above average. I would highly
recommend this tent for Ultralight backpacking in dry climates or
when in any climate when weight is of essence and you are willing to
take a change with dampness. I would not recommend this tent for
extended mountain or alpine trips when rain is eminent.
Positives
Light weight
Ease of setup
Small packing size
Negatives
Small size
All seams needed to be seam sealed
To read our reviews, please visit http://www.backpackgeartest.org/
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BackpackGearTest/
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
BackpackGearTest-unsubscribe-***@public.gmane.org
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Reviewer Information
Name: Chad Brackelsberg
Age: 32
Gender: Male
Height: 6'1" (185cm)
Weight: 160lbs (72.5kg)
Email address: chadbrackelsberg-/***@public.gmane.org
City, State, Country: Sandy, UT, USA
Date: July 7, 2005
Backpacking Background:
I started backpacking in 1997 while living in Minnesota. From my
first trip I was hooked. I have spent time backpacking in Minnesota,
Wisconsin, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, Wyoming, Utah, Idaho,
California, Arizona, Thailand, India, and Nepal. My trips have
ranged from short mileage overnight trips to long mileage day trips
to 30 days trips covering over 300 miles. I now reside in Utah
where there is ample opportunity for fantastic mountain and desert
backpacking as well as high mileage day trips. In Utah I spend all
of my free time between backpacking, extended day hikes, backcountry
skiing, alpine climbing, mountain biking and bike touring.
Product Information
Manufacturer: Black Diamond Equipment, LTD
Year of manufacture: 2004
URL: www.bdel.com
Listed weight:
Tent: 2lbs 11oz (1.21kg)
Ground Cloth: 9.5oz (270g) (optional)
Weight as delivered: 3 lbs 6oz (1.53kg) (tent, poles, 6 stakes, guy
line, and 2 bags)
Product description:
The Firstlight tent is Black Diamond's lightest 2 person single
wall tent. The tent is built with EPIC by Nextec® (canopy) and
SilNylong (floor) fabrics. The tent is very light, the tent packs
down to approximately 6 x 12 in (15 x 30 cm) and the poles and
stakes are about 1.5x16in. (3.8 x 40.6 cm) The tent is small at 27.3
sq ft and dimensions of 82 x 48 x 42 in (208 x 123 x 107 cm). The
tent has a bathtub floor. The tent has 2 DAC Featherlight poles and
a single door. The door zips down with a screen flap that opens for
ventilation. The tent also has a vent opposite the door for
ventilation. Inside the tent there are 2 medium sized gear pouches
(1 on each side) and loops 2/3 of the way up each corner for hanging
a light, stringing up a cloths line, or the like. Outside, the tent
has guy loops mid way up each of the 4 corners as well as stake
loops on each of the 4 corners. The Firstlight also has an
optional vestibule and ground cloth which I have not tested. The
tent ships in 2 small sacks (tent in one and 2 poles, 6 stakes, and
guy lines in the other). The tent must be seam sealed prior to
using. I also recommend at least 2 additional stakes to accommodate
the guy lines.
Field information
The Firstlight is a new tent for Black Diamond in 2004. The tent
was acquired in October 2004 and used during a 30 day bike tour
through the South Island of New Zealand in November and October.
Since that time the Firstlight has only been used on 2 overnight
trips in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah.
The Firstlight has seen a variety of weather ranging from light
snow, torrential rain, extreme wind, to bright and sunny days (which
are few and far between in November in New Zealand). The tent has
been used in temperatures ranging from 25F to 80F. The Firstlight
has been used on hard rocky ground, sandy beaches, and grassy
meadows ranging from sea level to over 9,000 feet.
The Firstlight was acquired due to its light weight and price. At
the time the price to weight ratio was one of the best on the
market. The tent has mostly been used on a bike tour through the
South Island of New Zealand. Although this is not a backpacking
trip, the weather in New Zealand in November is a gear heads dream
come true and will challenge even the best pieces of gear. The tent
had to withstand rain, snow, wind and sunshine (sometime all in the
same day). Since the cycle tour, the tent has been used on 2
overnight trips in Utah's Wasatch Mountains. The perfect weather of
the overnight trips was not much of a challenge for the Firstlight.
Pitching the Firstlight is very simple, the 2 poles setup inside the
tent by fitting into a metal snap in each corner. There are also 4
hook and loop closures to keep the poles in place (one in each
corner). My fear when pitching the tent was that with the light
EPIC fabric it seemed like the poles could easily be punched through
the tent walls if care was not taken on setup. With the light
weight of the tent, the tent must be staked and guyed as even a
light wind will send it flying.
In heavy winds, the tent (even when guyed) flattened out, but it was
still stable and sustained no damage even after several nights of
heavy winds.
In rain, the Firstlight did have some leakage around the metal snaps
in each corner. This should have been able to be prevented by more
careful seam sealing, but I have not been able to prove this theory.
On cold nights, there was some condensation that formed in the tent
when there were 2 people sleeping in it. I have not slept in the
tent alone, but with less body heat in the tent, I do not think
there would be a condensation problem. At all other times the tent
seemed to have very good ventilation and stayed cool on warm nights.
The Firstlight is a little bit short for my 6'1" frame, when lying
on my back my feet would touch one end and my head the other. I
sleep on my side so this was not a problem.
With 2 people in the tent, there is very little gear storage space
so if you want you gear inside, be prepared to pack it in around you.
Summary
The performance of the Firstlight was above average. I would highly
recommend this tent for Ultralight backpacking in dry climates or
when in any climate when weight is of essence and you are willing to
take a change with dampness. I would not recommend this tent for
extended mountain or alpine trips when rain is eminent.
Positives
Light weight
Ease of setup
Small packing size
Negatives
Small size
All seams needed to be seam sealed
To read our reviews, please visit http://www.backpackgeartest.org/
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BackpackGearTest/
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
BackpackGearTest-unsubscribe-***@public.gmane.org
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/