Earlier this week we got a break in the weather in Colorado and I was able to take my new Lightheart Solo tent on it's maiden voyage. I got the tent for fair weather and when the fly is not being used the views from the tent will be great. To be honest when I first got I was pretty worried about the tents wind worthiness but after its first use I don't see that as an issue. However I'm fairly certain that it will require all 8 guy-lines when the fly is used (rather than the 4 that is suggested).

I'm really impressed with the lateral room in the tent, however the vertical room is a bit deceiving due to the slope of the ridge-line. since I'm a 5' 9" shortie it will work out well. Ventilation was terrific and there wasn't a hint of condensation.

So far I'm pretty happy with the tent, eventually I'll want something a little more weather worthy and hope to compare this to a moment or sublite sil later in the year.

Just thought I would share since there really isn't a lot of info on this tent yet.

Mike

Here is the closed portion of the fly fully staked out.



This is a Exped Synmat DLX 7 pad. My pack is on the other side of the bag and pad.



Side View.



Front with fly tied back.

Edited by mlebwill on 04/29/2010 21:38:22 MDT.

Thank you for the first detailed photos of this tent! I've been on the fence between this and the Moment, and these photos are the first to give me a real sense of the main differences. Looks like they are not quite as similar as I had earlier thought.

Michael:

Thanks for the pics and write up. Looking at the photo, the vestibule seems to be "shallow" -- maybe not enough to keep a full pack protected from rain?

The "wind cheating" shape looks really elegant. But yeah, poor headroom at the head end is the price to pay.

What is the actual weight of the tent?

The shape is similar to the Montbell Crescent that, at least on paper, had a lot of length. Practice was something else. Bummer - I would be too tall.

Oh yes - thanks for the pics.

As a Moment owner I looked closely at this tent and feel the Moment has many advantages not found in the Lightheart.

When deciding between the two look closely at overall fabric tautness (i.e. wind worthiness), interior room & headroom, vestibule useability for cooking in the rain and pack storage AT THE SAME TIME.

Also I'd bet the Moment is much faster pitching.

Edited by Danepacker on 04/30/2010 00:16:30 MDT.

Ben - the vestibule is not all that deep, however there was plenty of room for gear inside the tent, with quite a bit to spare. I actually found that there was so much room in there that I kept forgetting where I put stuff. Also - when I set it up for seam sealing I was able lay down in there and my 8 year old laid next to me, with the right pads this could be a 1.5 person tent with a kid (assuming that the gear was kept outside).

The listed weight of the tent is 26 oz - it came shipped at 25.5 oz and after seam sealing, adding zip pulls, 6 Ti Shepherd Hooks, 2 Y Stakes, and replacing the stock cord with Spectra it weighs in at 29.5 oz. I do think that I have an extra 1 oz of Spectra cord at a minimum that I will remove after a few more set-ups.

Set-up took around 2 minutes, very easy and straight forward.

I think there will be a lot of comparisons to the Moment, I want to know the difference, but I think they will be very opposite. I have had this tent perform well in 40 mph winds, there was some flapping, but it held and I would trust it. I'm holding my opinion until I have seen performance in that kind of wind with heavy rain and maybe some light snow. However in fair weather my prediction is that the Lightheart will be a more enjoyable tent than the Moment, the 360 degree views will be very welcoming after a long day on the trail.

I'm pretty happy so far, but I'll just need to use it more... and then get a Moment and use it more.

Edited by mlebwill on 04/30/2010 07:26:58 MDT.

As far as your initial view that you are afraid it wouldn't hold up in the wind,

The shape looks very wind worthy, slopped sides and not too tall. As stated, shaped similar to a Montbell Crescent 2, a very wind worthy shelter.

Tests will only tell, but I wouldn't worry about wind being an issue.

Nice Mont-Bell #2!

Perhaps Steven meant the MontBell Crescent 1...

I thought it looked more like a Montbell Crescent 2, but now that I look at it, it is sort of like either the 1 or 2.

My initial concerns regarding the wind was related to extra fabric of the fly. The extra fabric made it very difficult to get a taunt pitch without really cranking down on the guy lines which caused the ridgeline to bow to a catenary curve.

My concerns were also based on using the required 4 guy lines and not using the 4 additional tie out points. But I think that 8 guy lines will be required to get a taunt pitch which will do well in the wind.

Mike

I just bought one. It has a tag that says "made in China" in it. I e-mailed her and she confirmed that yes the tents are made in China.

She said that I could send it back and she would make me one but she said the sil-nylon wouldn't be as good as the China tent.

The gray version of the Solo and the Duo are both made in China. Judy couldn't keep up with the demand on her own so they have the tents made for them by a local company who in turn outsources the production. I had a Duo for a few days and the quality is as good as anything from a mainstream company. Judy still sews all of the colored solos at her house.

Edited by simplespirit on 06/07/2010 19:33:50 MDT.

This is totally off the subject but what pack are year wearing in your picture?

Lost my sale. I cannot imagine that there would not be qualified manufacturers stateside just dying to work given the current economic environment.

Viva La MLD, Tarptent, Alpinlite Gear, Six Moon Designs!

Edited by FamilyGuy on 06/07/2010 19:45:08 MDT.

I believe mine is one of the hand made ones from Judy. I'm really glad I got mine when I did - also, the outsourced tents are a bit heavier.

On an update - I had it out again last weekend. Got caught up in a hail storm and the tent did great. It hailed so bad that both ends were covered with about 3" of hail. Dried it out and everything was good to go the next day.

Mike

I'm also considering purchase of one of these two tents, and so appreciate this discussion.

I saw the Lightheart display at Trail Days in Damascus last month; there were no Moments (effectively no Tarptent products there) but a couple of people camping in the area had TT Moments that I was able to "kick the tires" on.

Wind performance is an issue for me too; I want to do the CDT next year, and friends who did it last year said that they get pretty high winds in the San Juans, if I recall correctly. So I appreciate hearing that the Lightheart solo is okay in 40 MPH winds.

Setup time doesn't seem like a big issue to me, and factoring in needed stakes and assuming no optional longitundinal pole carried for the Moment I think the weights are going to be very close.

What does tilt me towards the LH Solo is:
- more internal space (square footage)
- listed as having 3" higher headroom
- opens completely for airflow and views
- it's a true double-walled tent

Whereas the key benefits of the Moment are lower priority items IMO:
- less stakes needed (maybe an issue in hardpacked ground, rocky soil, snow, soft soil).
- can be made freestanding but at the cost of carrying an extra 7 oz longitudinal arch pole.
- possibly the vestibule is better for cooking "just outside" the tent.
- might be better in wind (?).
- $30 cheaper.

Unless someone does some side-by-side tests in a wind tunnel, I guess we'll have to guess and go by user accounts on the wind performance; that would be the one issue that could tilt me towards the Moment at this point.

FWIW, the two Moment owners I talked to there were both very happy with their tents; one was thru-hiking with it, the other fellow had only recently got his. The first guy didn't use the optional pole and his feeling was that the tent worked just as well in the wind without it, FWIW.

13.8oz!

http://www.lightheartgear.com/

I don't see it.

There is a photo of it and just a brief comment on the home page of my website. The 13.8 oz is before seam sealing, but includes all the standard tie out cord and stuff sack. I also have a picture of it on the LightHeart tents facebook page. This is made up in the same weight cuben as the tent I made for Ryan Jordan.

Judy/LightHeart Gear