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Drop + Dan Durston X-Mid 1P Tent
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Drop + Dan Durston X-Mid 1P Tent
TipTap
6
Jul 29, 2019
checkVerified Buyer
Needs ground sheet
This is my first trekking pole tent. I ultimately bought this tent because of the no stretch fabric, large vestibules, fly first pitch, its simple 4 peg pitch and the designer’s exceptional communication in the discussion forums.

I will preface this with the fact I had extremely high expectations of this tent.

  1. The first time I set the tent up there were a few stray pieces of thread in the inner and I also had to trim a rather long thread that was left hanging from a stitch, something I’ve never encountered in commercial tents.
  2. Also during the first setup I noticed a couple ‘pulls’ in the mesh, as others have commented on. I fixed them, only to have more appear the next time I set it up and so on and so forth. I am careful to seal the velcro vents back up too. This is something I never experienced in my previous commercial Ultralight tent which has been stuffed into a pack 100+ times without issue. I’m not sure if it has to do with a loose weave in the mesh?!
  3. The tent is not as simple to set up at it would seem. Getting the 90 degree angles has been tough on the first go to achieve the right taughtness.
  4. While the designer claimed the tent does not really need a groundsheet, I disagree. The third night I used it I was set up on an angle and had to continually readjust my Neoair as it would slide down the end of the tent. This was enough for a tiny root to wear a hole through the bottom of the floor. I was pretty surprised this occurred so quickly based on the designers confidence. I had a footprint for my previous UL tent and never had an issue.
  5. The included shepard hook pegs suck. The designer noted this more eloquently. I swapped the 4 corner pegs out for MSR groundhog minis and kept 2 shepard hooks for the doors. These shepard hooks were easily pulled out in windy conditions from my experience with this tent.
  6. The zippers leak in moderate rain. I experienced drops forming on the inside of the zipper on several occasions of moderate rain. That said they did not drip into the vestibule but slid down the zipper.
  7. The colour of the peg bag makes it easy to lose on the ground, but I get that it’s made of left over tent material.

That said, this tent is pretty awesome

  1. The vestibules are huge! I sometimes wonder if it even needs two!
  2. If you can perfect the pitch, it goes up (and down) extremely fast! Only 4 pegs, it’s amazing. So much better than other trekking pole tents on the market. I will say having adjustable poles vs fixed length makes it a lot easier to set up and easier to accommodate uneven ground.
  3. I had concerns that it was going to feel like a coffin like other 1 person Ultralight tents (I previously opted for a Big Agnes Fly Creek 2 for this reason) however I was pleasantly surprised. The vertical walls make a big difference and there is quite a bit of head space when I sit up running running along the length of the tent. It’s not just in one area. I also had a decent amount of space at my head/feet to toss extra clothing etc. Width wise I didn’t feel to crammed either. However, it should be mentioned that I am 5’1” so milage may vary.
  4. Fly first pitch, or having the inner connected to the outer, is fantastic in rainy weather. A must have, honestly.
  5. While the inner is cut on an angle, it’s so minimal it’s hardly noticeable.
  6. I didn’t have any issues with the fly sagging overnight during rain, as promised. Set it and forget it!
  7. The design is sturdy. In moderate wind it held strong and I didn’t have to worry about setting up the extra guy wires on the peaks.
  8. When there is condensation on the inside of the fly it’s great to be able to separate the inner and keep it dry. It's a slight pain to detach and reattach, but it's pretty simple and relatively quick. Better than the alternative of a soggy inner, as I've come to the conclusion, from being lazy.

If you couple this tent with a ground sheet/piece of tyvek, I whole heartedly recommend this tent!

Recommends this product? Yes
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dandurston
5116
Dan Durston
Jul 29, 2019
TipTapThanks for your feedback and sorry to hear about the hole wearing in the floor. Indeed the shepard hooks stakes are really only good for firm ground and wider stakes are appropriate in a lot of situations. We are looking at spec'ing wider stakes in the future. For the mesh pulls, I'm looking into this/mulling it over but the X-Mid mesh is from a factory that builds tents for a lot of other brands, so this exact mesh is used in many other UL tents across brands. For example, there was a big discussion on FB last week about a Marmot tent with these pulls, and MSR is getting enough user reports that they're released videos showing how to reverse it. It seems that pulls in the mesh is becoming more common as the mesh gets lighter, which has really only happened in the last couple years so UL tents from a few years ago were less likely to experience this. It can be unsightly, but it typically reversible (by scratching it to set the strands back in place) and doesn't lead to a functional loss because the holes are still very small so bugs aren't getting in. Closing the vents when packing up the tent (and having the strut poke out through the closed vent so velcro won't touch the inner) minimizes it, but they can still happen from forces during rolling/stuff it seems - particularly if it's packed vigorously. I'm open to other meshes but this seems more likely to be the result of being light, rather than a loose weave, so I don't think it's avoidable when using mesh of this weight. Since these don't let bugs through, I'm hesitant to go to heavier mesh. For the zippers leaking, there's pretty much two ways to do tent fly zippers: (1) Use a basic (non-water resistant) zipper with a flap over it or (2) use a water resistant ("Uretek") zipper. Using a basic zipper with a flap is a low cost but poor way to go because the flaps don't work very well (they can blow open in the wind) and they often snag in the zipper which is annoying when you run out to pee in the night. Water resistant zippers are much better because they don't snag and keep more water out, but they're not perfectly waterproof since there is still a seam down the center. Everyone would use these except they are expensive, so low-mid range tents use basic zips and high end tents like the X-Mid use water resistant zippers. For example, TarpTent uses regular zippers on most of their models, but uses water resistant zippers on their premium $700 "Li" series tents. Higher end brands like HMG only use water resistant zippers. The X-Mid is perhaps the most affordable tent that spec's these high end zips because we've saved money through volume production and no retail mark up, rather than by using cheap materials and construction. So the best possible way to design a zipper for a tent fly is to use the water resistant zippers, position them over the vestibules only so they don' t drip on the floor area, and have them steep enough that if water gets through it runs down instead of dripping - all of which the X-Mid does. So there really is no way to improve upon the current fly zipper situation, even if small amounts of water can still reach the vestibules in very wet conditions. Going to a truly waterproof zipper (e.g. YKK AquaGuard) is quite heavy and very expensive, which is why no one does it. Maybe one day those zippers will be available in smaller gauge/lighter sizes, but until then they just aren't practical on a lightweight tent. Glad to hear you are generally liking the tent. Thanks again for your feedback.
(Edited)
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A community member
Aug 25, 2019
dandurstonFor those that are particularly concerned about water ingress through the zip they could use a dab of Ortleib silicon zip lubricant that is designed for the waterproof zips on their bags. It works to keep stiff waterproof zips sliding freely but also repels water. I haven't worried about it on the X-Mid, I get the reason for the zip, but might be a solution for those worried about the zip thing. It may attract dust, so YMMV
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kincheng
48
Sep 16, 2019
dandurstonWhat are your thought's on the RBTR "Monolite" mesh/fabric they recently added? 1oz per a yard, 1000 CFM, largely untested though...
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dandurston
5116
Dan Durston
Sep 16, 2019
kinchengI haven't put enough thought into their "Monolite" to have a well formed opinion. It does look like neat stuff - sorta blurs the boundary between mesh and a woven fabric. In the context of tents, it could certainly be used a material for the inner instead of the mesh. The downsides are that it's a lot heavier, and would feel more confined, while the upsides are that it's more durable, would keep you a bit warmer and do a better job stopping drafts/spindriff/blowing sand. For most people I don't think it'll make sense because it's 1.0oz/yd and mesh is about 0.7oz. The X-Mid 1P has about 7 sq yds of mesh, so it would add 2oz to the tent. I suspect that's why RSBTR says it blows away their 0.9oz mesh, but don't try to sell it over a normal 0.65 - 0.7oz/yd mesh. So it adds weight as would be more confined/hot for summer use. It is more durable which is an advantage, but I think normal noseeum is preferable for warm weather camping and then this might start to make sense for more off-season/winter use. There are a lot of people that want solid inners - mostly those that use their tent in the winter or in cold or windy areas. This is an option for that rather than a normal woven but I'm not sure what the advantage is over using a nice like 7-10D woven. The woven would be lighter, more wind/snow/sand proof and still plenty durable for the application. Maybe a woven is sometimes not breathable enough, so one could build part of the inner with each, but unavoidable there is the trade off between breathing and staying warm/draft free. I suspect the best use for it is for customers that are on the fence between buying a mesh or solid inner. They like the breathing of mesh in the summer but want something a bit more solid for off-season use. In a 2P tent that is larger anyways switching to a more solid material won't feel as confined, so I can see this being a good well material for the inner of a 2P tent. But it does still have the downsides of being quite a bit heavier. If they make a 10D version of this (rather than 20D) then it would start to get quite interesting. If the weight was similar to the mesh we use now, I'd consider making part of the inner with it (e.g. roof panels, end panels) while keeping the door walls mesh, so it would still feel quite open but would gain durability and a bit of warmth.
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kincheng
48
Sep 17, 2019
dandurstonThanks for the thoughtful response and insight! I look forward to all your future projects!
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