User Review: Black Diamond Firstlight

Black Diamond Firstlight
Above: The current Firstlight, which may differ slightly from the version reviewed.

Reviewed March 24, 2006 by aardvark

Rating:

This tent is weightless, packs small, and sets up instantly (my wife timed me at 87 seconds the first time I set it up in the field). While the footprint is small, I really appreciate the headroom.

The tent, however, has some major compromises. Condensation is awful, even for a single wall tent. If it's raining outside, it will be raining inside. It only has vents at the top, which means there is no real air circulation in the tent. Condensation builds up quickly, especially when the outside of the tent wets out. We keep a small rag inside to wipe down the walls a couple of times each night, but our bags still get wet.

To make it worse, water trips in badly when you open the door. Because your sleeping bags will consume every square inch of the floor, this drippage goes right on the bags.

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