Owner Review: Black Diamond Firstlight Tent

 

 

Reviewer Information

 

Name: Chad Brackelsberg
Age: 32
Gender: Male
Height: 6’ 1” (185 cm)
Weight: 160 lbs (72.5 kg)
Email address: chadbrackelsberg@yahoo.com
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-day 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: 2 lbs 11 oz (1.21 kg)

    Ground Cloth: 9.5 oz (270 g) (optional – not tested)

Actual Weight:

    Tent: 2 lbs 2 oz (964 g)(tent alone)

    Everything: 3 lbs 6 oz (1.53 kg) (tent, poles, 6 stakes, guy line, and 2 bags)

MSRP: $299 USD

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 SilNylon (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 1.5 x 16 in (3.8 x 40.6 cm) The tent is small at 27.3 sq ft (2.5 sq m) 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 two 3 x 11 in (7.5 x 28 cm) gear pouches (1 on each side) and loops 2/3 of the way up each corner for hanging a light, stringing up a clothesline, 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 tent also has small rain deflectors or hoods over the vent and the top of the door which allow the vent and door screen covers to remain open during rain.

 

The tent ships in 2 small sacks (tent in one and 2 poles, 6 stakes, and guy lines in the other).  A tube of  SeamGrip® Seam Sealer and a syringe are included and the tent must be seam sealed prior to using.  I found that an extra tube of seam sealer was required for adequate sealing.  I also recommend at least 2 additional stakes to accommodate the guy lines.  The Firstlight has an optional vestibule and ground cloth neither of which were tested.

 

 

Field information

 

The Firstlight was 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 25 F to 80 F (-4 C to 27 C).  The Firstlight has been used on hard rocky ground, sandy beaches, and grassy meadows ranging from sea level to over 9,000 feet (2,700 meters).

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 gearhead’s dream come true and will challenge even the best pieces of gear.  The tent had to withstand rain, snow, wind and sunshine (sometimes 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 (estimated at 35 mph, 56 kph), the tent (even when guyed) flattened out to about a 30 degrees from vertical, 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 since I have not resealed the snaps yet.

 

On cold nights (colder than 40 F, 4 C), 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 (warmer than 55 F, 13 C).

 

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.  The tent is 42” (107 cm) tall so there is room to sit up in the tent and I found room for 2 people to comfortably sit up.

 

With 2 people in the tent, there is very little gear storage space which makes storing gear in the tent a challenge.

 

 

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 I am willing to take a change with dampness.  I would not recommend this tent for extended mountain or alpine trips when rain is imminent.

 

Positives:

• Lightweight

• Ease of setup

• Small packing size

Negatives

• Small size

• All seams needed to be seam sealed