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Favorite Piece of Gear Purchased? Last 6 Mo.
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Mar 13, 2007 at 3:08 pm #1382148
By far, the Six Moon Designs Gatewood Cape!!
Mar 13, 2007 at 3:29 pm #1382151Big Agnes Seedhouse SL1. My wife thinks I'm retarded because I keep setting it up in the yard…..she just doesn't understand.
Mar 13, 2007 at 5:00 pm #13821621.1 oz silnylon (seconds) from Outdoor Wilderness Fabrics
I haven't stopped making stuff since I got it.
Mar 14, 2007 at 8:40 pm #13823541. Smartwool midweight 1/4 zip shirt–warm at last!
2. REI Kilo Flash sleeping bag 35 degree women's reg 20 oz.
3. Those neat little Photon light 3-packs from BPL!
Mar 14, 2007 at 9:38 pm #1382362I purchased a Black Diamond Oneshot earlier this week and I am excited to get out in the next couple of days to give it a "shot" in the field. I set it up in my yard to get an idea of design, space, etc. Here's a photo with the Oneshot, Big Agnes insulated Aircore wide and long pad, and Marmot Atom long bag.
My initial impression of this tent is that it will be a very attractive alternative to any of the three-season bivys on the market today. I suspect it will also appeal to those who like the full coverage of a tent in a relatively light weight package. It has far more interior space than any bivy I have used, excellent ventilation, an amazing view out the front door, reasonable weight, and a small packed size. The design is such that the covered mesh windows provide excellent airflow, even when the large front door is fully zipped. This is in addition to the Epic fabric which consistently ranks near the top of the list of waterproof/breathable fabrics. The lack of a vestibule could be a problem when cooking in the rain, etc. but there is room inside for a small pack and your shoes/boots. Again, compared to a bivy, it feels palatial. Compared to some of the other lighter solo or two-person "tarp tents" on the market today, it might feel a little cramped. I will have a better sense for that once I have spent a night or two in it.
I did notice the 85-inch length is somewhat compromised by the relatively shallow pitch to the head and foot, effectively reducing the interior height at both ends, though it is still manageable for my nearly 6ft 2-inch frame. My quick test in the yard revealed that either my head or feet would likely hit one of the walls. This was with a quick test only, and may not be accurate once I take more time to stake properly and play around a bit with the position of the mattress. My wife, at 5ft 6 inches, said after laying in the tent for a few minutes that it was "perfect” and now wants one of her own.
In short, I am very excited to get this tent in the field. I own its much larger brother, the Skylight, and have found it to be the tent I grab most often for family backcountry trips. I am confident the Oneshot will gain an equally trusted position for my solo backcountry adventures. I will post an update once I have a chance to put it to the test.
Craig
Mar 14, 2007 at 10:43 pm #1382369Craig, that is a beautiful tent, and the photo shows the tent and interior well. I am eagerly awaiting my Hilight, which is basically the two person version of the Oneshot. The vestibule for my tent might fit your model; consider giving it a try. The Oneshot is 9cm shorter, but 8cm longer, so the circumfrence of these tent doors (and thus an appropriate vestibule) would be about the same. You can buy it from REI and return it if it doesn't fit?
Im hoping my Hilight will replace two other tents, a Quarterdome and a Lightning; thus allowing me to return them both and pay for the Hilight! : )
The wide side door and large vestibule, which appears to be suitable for cooking in, were strong selling points for this tent.Mar 14, 2007 at 11:14 pm #1382372Craig wrote above, "This is in addition to the Epic fabric which consistently ranks near the top of the list of waterproof/breathable fabrics".
Caution: Epic is highly rain resistant — not rain proof! Black Diamond publicizes about 5 hours of rain resistance. My multiple rain tests showed about 9 hours of resistance — much better than advertised. But be aware that once water works its way through, it will really come dripping in! At that stage, it's NOT just a matter of a few wipes of the towel every now and then.
You can expect wonderful, problem-free camping in dry Alpine climes, or in areas of seasonal rain and/or fast-moving showers. But in a prolonged rain, or in areas of high humidity, you can also expect the walls to become wet everywhere. Now, if your tent were long and wide enough to be well away from your bag, a limited amount of condensation won't be a problem. But in your case, with a long bag that's in constant contact with one or both ends of the tent walls, your bag is at risk of getting soaked.
Another potential problem (again, when it's overly humid or rainy): the cold metal poles can act like "condensation magnets". I have had water droplets clinging to those poles — and little pools of water accumulating in the four corners. Again, given the small size of your tent, be careful about keeping your bag away from the corners as well.
Mar 15, 2007 at 12:56 am #1382375Brett, given Ben's reply about the Epic fabric on the BD tents, I'm very curious why you chose to go with the Hilight. I have been very seriously considering either a Hilight or a OneShot for my alpine walks, but the heavy torrential rains of the mountains here really makes me have a lot of second thoughts. I really don't want to be spending that kind of money and then find that I can't use the tent here (though this summer I will be doing some long walking in either SE Australia or perhaps Spain or Italy, where it's dry). Did you order the vestibule, too? Why didn't you go for something like the Espace Solo or Espace Gore-tex tents from Kamoshika Sports? If the rain performance really is as worrisome as others have pointed out, aren't you worried about getting inundated in the Alps?
Mar 15, 2007 at 1:31 am #1382378Ben is absolutely spot on ,according to my experience with the BD Lighthouse.
Miguel is provably aware that here in Australia we are having a prolonged draught, however in the last three multi day hikes I have had prolonged rain. The last one in the Grampians National Park we had four hours of very solid torrential downpour. (first real rainfall in weeks) That night we were staying at a camping ground and the owner came around in his ute (utility vehicles) to see if we were OK. I can tell you that after a couple of hours of THAT rain my Lighthouse would have been a wet house.
Franco
BTW consider the weight of the vestibule if you like to use one.The Rainbow, of course
Sorry, I did not read the "last six month" bit
The Rainbow is my favorite ever… (next year I will change my mind)The Down To Earth from Jacks R Better, or more precisely for the moment the No Sniveler part.
Mar 15, 2007 at 3:11 am #1382380Miguel, Ben,
I bought my Hilight and vestibule from REI; in case I have a problem with lack of water resistance I can return it. Ben's experience was key in my decision to buy it there. This tent scores highest in all my other requirement categories. If you care for details, please read on..
For this purchase my goal was to replace two tents, a Quarterdome, and a Lightning. Both tents had an Achilles Heel I could not tolerate. (Weight/packed volume for the Quarterdome, and non-vented fly for the Lightning.) So the new tent would have to meet all the requirements I had for both old tents, and then some. I wanted the tent with the highest 'total score' in the following constraints: weight, cost, and returnability… It also must have the following capabilities: shelter for two, freestanding, water resistant, gas permeable, top-vented, bug meshed, snow shedding, vestibule option, gear loft option, footprint/fly option if double walled, and one last minor issue, preference to a larger door.
The Firstlight floated to the top of my short list, and I bought it. Shortly afterwards I discovered the 'new' Hilight, so returned the first and bought the Hilight and vestibule from REI.
The Hilight is not the most water resistant tent I considered, but it is one of the lightest at 1180 grams, cheap with my 20%'PERK4U' coupon, and returnable no questions asked (so really 'free' for me to use as long as I want). And it meets all my capabilities mentioned above, including a huge full-side door.
I have decided to keep my Quarterdome as a backup in case the Hilight is a sieve, but Ben's 9 hour test, and Black Diamond's experience and reputation are sufficient for me to give it a try. I always carry an absorbent camp towel, might have to use it?!
By the way, the Hilight is 16 oz lighter than my Quarterdome, 20 ounces lighter than my Lightning, and packs down to the size of a grapefruit with pole bag. That's awful appealing when trying to reduce pack volume and weight.
Ben, Miguel has unintentionally identified the green tents I saw at the gear store, in that link he sent out! Take a look.. Some cool tents there; but the trump card for my decision was buying worry free from REI.
Of course I will report back here on the performance of the Hilight. For every bad review of the BD epic tents, I read one good one; here are many:
http://www.backpacking.net/contributions/showflat.php?Number=520Mar 15, 2007 at 5:08 am #1382383TNF Hightail – quality of construction and materials cannot be bettered and unlike all other ultralight bags this one has room for my shoulders!
Mar 15, 2007 at 5:26 am #1382385Ben,
Thanks for the clarification on the Epic fabric. You are exactly right, it is billed as water resistant and not waterproof. A late-night slip of the keyboard on my part. I apolgize for any confusion. It has been my experience with the skylight that the fabric really is quite remarkable in repelling rain for much longer than the stated 5 hours. For example, last September I took my BD skylight on an overnighter in the High Uintas Wilderness. It was raining hard when we left the car and was still going when we made it back to the trailhead the following day. I pitched the skylight in a small valley near a high mountain lake at 4:00 in the afternoon and left it up until 10:00 the next morning. I awoke several times during the night to the sound of pounding rain, fully expecting to feel water dropping from the ceiling. It never did. I was especially concerned because I had neglected to seal the seams before the trip. I did notice one or two drops of water starting to push through at the stitching but it never amounted to any water on the floor of the tent. I took this photo the next morning after more than 12 hours of almost constant rain.
I am not suggesting the fabric wouldn't have eventually failed, but I was impressed with its weather resistance given the amount of rain. It sounds like my experience is fairly consistent with yours
With three young children at home, most of my backcountry trips are getting increasingly short, with most averaging one to two nights. For those conditions, I wouldn't hesitate to bring the oneshot or skylight, even if I expected some rain. If I were going longer than that and/or expected lots of rain, I might opt for something better suited for sustained wet conditions.
Thanks again for the clarification.
Craig
Mar 15, 2007 at 7:16 am #1382393That is very reassuring since I just bought an epic tent. I will go ahead and seal the seams which was Ben's strong suggestion to me.
Mar 15, 2007 at 10:54 am #1382417Craig:
Good to know! My tests were done after I had sealed all the seams. But then, that was a bit more than two years ago — and who knows, the fabric itself may have improved.
Anyway, best of luck to Brett's latest purchase!
Mar 15, 2007 at 5:18 pm #1382465How can I pick just 1 item? Yea I know, I spent way too much. Just ask my wife.
1. WM Alpinlite
2. WM Vapor Jacket x 2, one for my son & one for me
3. JRB Nest quilt
4. Goss-Gear G5
5. Goss-Gear Mariposa, for my son
6. Heineken keg – made a pot
7. Mont-Bell SSUL #2, for my son
8. Hennessy UL-BP A-Sym, no more hard ground
9. MacCat Tarp, great protection for my tarp or setting up a modified A-frame shelter
10. 2-L & 5-L Platy
11. Aquamira, not gear but it substitutes for a heavy filter
12. Leki treking poles
13. Trail runners, ditched the heavy boots & not looking back
14. Smartwool shirts & socks
15. OR gloves & Balaclava
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