Anyone have the L.L. Bean Microlight FS1?

Looks like your basic one person double wall coffin to me. I wouldn't be worried so much about waterproofness or ripping. The fly has both silicone and PU coatings. I assume it has taped seams but would check on that. Other than high winds and user abuse, the real fly fabric killer is UV exposure, but that isn't a problem unless you leave it up for long hours in direct sun.

Add some weight for a footprint to improve the durability. The construction of the pole hubs and poles would be my guess on a failure point, although all the similar ones I have tried just needed reasonable care when assembling. There are a lot of parts and fiddling.

These designs sleep like a bivy you can sit up in— a tall coffin. Consider spending a rainy day in one. The single person designs seem to be cloned from the two person shelters, so you end up with tall steep walls that catch wind.

Ask about the number of stakes too. One of my dislikes with many "freestanding" tents is that they need a fatvhandful of stakes to be fully functional. They will stand up enough to hold the inner walls up and spread the fly over the top, but then you need to secure the bottom and tension the fly. They should be sold with a CO2 powered nail gun :)

LL Bean does have a good warranty and customer service if it turns out to be a turkey.

The REI Quarter Dome has similar specs and costs a bit less.

You can get single wall hybrids like the Tarptent Rainbow that are well ventilated, roomier, lighter and much easier to set up.

Max-

I'm willing to mail you mine to try out, so you can see what you think. It's my spare, I use the Fly Creek UL2 as my primary because it's got room for the dog.

Dee

Thanks Dale, great info. I must be claustrophilic because I love my bivy bag that I'm using now. Just perusing the best potential use of an L.L. Bean gift card and I hadn't seen this talked about here- wondering if there was a reason for that…

Dena, really kind of you. I think just as useful would be your impressions of the tent, especially in very wet conditions.

I've seen this at LLBean outlet stores for $109, which is a pretty good deal. Is the size that much smaller than something like the Contrail? One nice thing about tents like this is use on wooden platforms. I don't have one, but my brother does and it's fine for him. Has side entry and a small vestibule.

I think largely the reason it gets little discussion here is that it's not particularly lightweight. My FS1 is a little bigger when packed and a little heavier than my Fly Creek UL2, despite the fact that the interior space of the Fly Creek UL2 is so much more. I prefer the FS1 for basic design- love the side entry and large vestibule – but I use my Fly Creek because it has more room and it's lighter and more packable and has room for my dog.

I've had the FS1 in light rain, and in high winds and it held up fine. If you want, I'll set it up in the yard and put the sprinkler on it for a few hours. I have no doubt it'll stay dry inside but testing is fun.

Dena, the conditions I'm worried about is extreme ground saturation in a thunderstorm. I can see a puddle forming under the tent, and I wake up soaked if I set up in the dark and didn't see the depression. This condition is difficult but not impossible to test.

Hmm… can you see if the fabric wets out when you just leave it overnight sitting in a baking tray with an inch or two of water in it? No need to set the whole thing up.

Thanks for your generosity. I totally get why you love the UL2 more, but I dig the price tag on the Microlight.

Max- I'll see what I can come up with for puddle testing. I'll let you know.

I have the FS2 I use as my one man tent while kayak camping. Weight/size isn't nearly as much an issue in that case since it is all carried by the boat and I just need to keep it even.

Last year, I camped on an island after it had rained and the place was a mud pit but I only had so many choices. The bottom was fine and no moisture came through at all. I'm glad I didn't need to fit 2 people in it as there is barely more room than my hexamid solo.

I would trust it but as has been said, it isn't very light. For things to use your card for, I like the ll bean hiking pants and fleece. If you have snow where you're from the stormchaser boots are great for around the yard chores in winter.