Drop + Dan Durston X-Mid 1P Tent Reviews | Drop

Jun 18, 2019

Verified Buyer

I hadn’t previously reviewed the tent because I was waiting until after I had a chance to put it to use on a backpacking trip in the mountains. This past weekend I spent hiking in Montana’s Rocky Mountain Front (just east of the Bob Marshall Wilderness). Over the course of two nights the weather was typical for this time of the year and off and on it rained, hailed, winds occasionally gusted about 20mph and the overnight lows dropped to about 45. The tent was a wonderful escape from the showers. Truly, the secret “best” things about this tent are the two huge vestibules and the silpoly fabric. I think many people are buying the tent because of its specs and Dan’s support and commitment. (Seriously, it seems like you respond to every comment on every website!). People may buy it because of the specs, but I think the non-sag fabric and the amazing vestibules are the reason everyone loves it. It proved very weather worthy and I stayed dry and sheltered from the breeze. The fact that the fly comes so low to the ground was a welcome design when the wind gusts increased but I remained comfortable in the tent. I gained confidence in the tent quickly and I enjoyed going to sleep with the sound of the rain hitting and running down the fly. As others have stated in their reviews, the attention to detail and craftsmanship are very, very good. I too had some small issues with the inner netting, but I was able to quickly fix those by rubbing with my fingernail while laying in the tent. More concerning to me was that my poles (BD Trail) produced the bump in the fly fabric that others have noted. The deflection was very slight and I was not really concerned, but I found an easy - and different solution than some others have employed. I was originally going to use the grommet that had been discussed on the forums at trek-lite. However, that seemed finicky and because the rubber grommet is so thick, the grommet itself would then create an impression in the fly (although not sharp like a carbide tip). I was also afraid the thickness of that grommet might impair a good handles up pitch. My stop gap measure (while I figured out the best long term solution) was simply that I was going to put a rubber washer over the tip of my pole before setting up the tent. So I headed to my local hardware store to buy a couple of washers that would do the trick. I hadn’t done any of my own research into grommets because of all the info that was already available on forums online. But as I was standing in the aisle of various hardwear bits, I took a chance and opened a tray filled with grommets of various sizes. I didn’t have the tent with me to check sizes but I grabbed a couple that looked about right. When I got home and got out the tent, I found that these standard, off-the-shelf grommets were perfect! Because the outer bumpers of the grommet are so thin, they do not press against the fly at all and don’t cause any issues pitching handle up. I could not be happier with how they worked out! I only made two other changes to the tent. First I swapped out 6 of the included stakes for DAC J-Stakes (corners and guylines). I also added short loops of the thinnest cord I could find for the midpoints of the fly perimeter. With those simple changes I was very pleased with the performance of the tent. I have only two tiny complaints. First, I wish it was a few inches wider inside. However, I sleep on a Nemo Tensor long and wide pad (25” x 76”) and it does still fit comfortably. I also found myself wishing there was a corner pocket next to the door. The ridge line pocket is great, but I would have loved for a second pocket close to my sleeping bag zipper for items that I might want in the night. Instead, I just set those items on the tent floor above my head (in the triangle of space created by the rhombus shape of the offset inner). I am attaching pictures of the grommet to this review for others looking to make the same improvement. Edit: I should add that I have not had any trouble fitting the tent back in the stuff sack. As a matter of fact, I was taking down the tent quickly on Sunday morning due to the rain and I accidentally left my headlamp in the ridgeline pocket. Even with the added bulk and a wet fly it rolled up fine and fit in the bag without any hassle. Edit #2: I was just back at Ace and it turns out the grommets were out of order and messed up in their bins. That caused me to take a picture of the wrong grommet sizing info. I have taken a new picture (of the grommet info) and changed the photo in this review. Sorry for any confusion my well intended efforts may have originally caused.

(Edited)

Recommends this product? Yes

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Jun 18, 2019

KyleRobertsNice find on those grommets. Thanks for sharing that info. I'll see if I can find something similar to experiment with.

Jun 18, 2019

Jun 18, 2019

dandurstonI found these at Ace Hardware. It took some finessing (and cussing) to get them in place, but once installed they fit perfect. I was a little worried that pressure from the pole tips might push the rubber grommet back out, but after two set-ups in my yard and two nights on trail, they are still solid. (And because of weather, I really cinched the tent down tight the second night!)

(Edited)

Jun 18, 2019

neilpquinn

Jun 20, 2019

KyleRobertsGoing to try this out! If you could buy exact sized grommets, would you go with any measurement slightly smaller or larger than the ones you bought?

Jun 20, 2019

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Jun 20, 2019

neilpquinnI wouldn’t go smaller or larger. These were a perfect fit. That is the reason I took the picture of the label at Ace- so that other people could find these (or use the measurements shown on this label to find matching grommets from other retailers).

Jun 20, 2019

ukgelo

Aug 25, 2019

dandurston@dandurston, it would be nice to have similat grommets be included as a standard option for future versions. i got a small tear of the outer shell material at one of fhe peaks after a rainy and windy night at PNT while the internal black reinforcing patch remained intact. started to use duck tape after that so pole's tip won't reach any tent parts. it did not leak, but still need to figure out how to patch the hole. any suggestions? BTW, besides that tent hold great and was very easy to setup on any surface and under any conditions.

Aug 25, 2019

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Aug 26, 2019

ukgeloSorry to hear about the damage to your tent. Seemingly this is a case of pole tips that are longer than what the peak grommets are designed to accomodate, since it is clearly protruding quite far in that photo and not being properly stopped by the grommet. There have been a handful of similar incidents as a result of a small percentage of poles that have much longer/slimmer tips than average, and based upon your photo that looks to be the case. The image below shows poles with a variety of tips, where the top left ones work great. The top right ones a slightly long but won't cause problems, but the bottom left ones are an odd shape that is much too long to work properly and can result in the sort of damage you experienced.

There is a thread on this topic at the link below that explains it in more detail and has information on warranty and repair. https://drop.com/buy/massdrop-x-dan-durston-x-mid-1p-tent/talk/2482613 But in short, I suggest getting in touch with Massdrop regarding warranty, but if you wish to repair you would first ideally eliminate the pressure point by (1) pitching handles up, or (2) using different poles, or (3) adding rubber grommets into the metal grommet to reduce the pole penetration (see link above for info). With the pressure reduced/eliminated, then you can repair with sage colored tenacious tape that matches really well but this only sticks to the inside (PU coated) of the fly. I have made a small incision nearby to the damage point and then slid in a tenacious tape patch large enough to cover all of that area. On the outside you can use clear silicone caulk (any hardware store) and either apply that directly or use it as glue to stick on a reinforcement patch (e.g. pirated from the stake sack). The above link has a lot more detail on all of this.

(Edited)

Aug 26, 2019

funkdrummer

Sep 25, 2019

KyleRobertsThanks for the detailed review and feedback. I have the same Nemo pad, at 3'' thick and 25x76, and am happy to hear it fits inside the inner. How tall are you? I ask because I'm 6'4'' and am interested to know how I might fit head to toe in the inner.

Sep 25, 2019

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Sep 27, 2019

funkdrummerI am 6’.

Sep 27, 2019

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Sep 27, 2019

funkdrummerSome 6'4" people are happy with the X-Mid while others find it small. Mostly it depends on how you sleep and what your expectations are. Side sleepers tend to sleep shorter than back/stomach sleepers. If you're 6'4" and sleeping on your back or stomach then you probably will push on the mesh at the ends a bit. Some people don't find this to be a big deal at all because the mesh is far away from the potentially wet fly (about a 6-8" gap) but others consider this too small and would like a bigger tent. I usually say the tent works well to about 6'2" and then it can work to about 6'4" if someone has the appropriate expectations.

Sep 27, 2019

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Calyd0n

Nov 16, 2019

dandurstonHi @dandurston if I refer to the picture you posted above my tip seems higher than in the image at the top right, I'm concerned it'll damage the fly... Do you think it's safe? I've got Fizan Compact 3 poles. Thank you!

Nov 16, 2019

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