integral design mk 1 lite tent

[chase986]

Integral designs tent mk1 lite? anyone have any experiences with that especially relating to stability in wind and resistance in very wet conditions? anything would help, cheers

[Bigtree]

Looks like the same basic design as my Bibler i-Tent, albeit slightly narrower by 2 inches. Lengthwise its the same and at 6' 2" I find that 82" is just a little cramped for my height. Then again, since the MK1 is designed as a 1 person tent you've got ~ 94" of length diagonally. Assuming similar quality of construction as the Bibler, it should withstand pretty much whatever is thrown at it.

[genepires]

Got a bibler which is very similar to the ID mk1.

Fairly good in very wet conditions. Wouldn't want to cook inside when it is raining outside as it will condense inside and seem to leak.(much like the problems with goretex jackets) If it raining that bad, chances are you are bailing and going home anyway. If you are doing something in which bailing home is not an option, it is probably snowing anyway in which single wall tents shine.

 

stability in wind- can be flappy but nothing some earplugs wouldn't fix. Stablity is a function of how good you stake it out really. Yours probably has at least 6 guye lines which should be plenty if anchored properly. (ie buried deadman types or big ass rocks or trees, ect)

[brian_m]

I have a MK 1 XL which is basically the same tent only a bit bigger. I also have a second door, which adds a bit of weight but is very useful in the mountains. Depending on what you are planning to use the tent for... these are great tents! Although they do keep you "dry" in very wet, rainy conditions... I would not recommend them for this use as it is not really what single wall tents are intended for. If you are planning on high altitude, alpine conditions with tons of snow and wind... then the tents are perfect for this.

Integral Designs tents are slightly more breathable than comparable Bibler tents because of a "baking" process that Bibler uses on their material. This process of heating the material (which ID does not do) causes some of the pores to close which makes the Bibler tents a bit more humid on the inside.

I have owned both the Bibler I-tent and the ID MK 1 XL... overall, the MK 1 is the better performer. The overhead vents on the Bibler never seem to work well enough and the sidewall vents of the MK series prevent condensation build up much more effectively.

Bibler does have a better design for the optional vestibule though which attaches with clips instead of the ID which uses an unreliable zipper which not only binds up but freezes solid during any storms.

 

[dbconlin]

i have slept in brian's mk 1 xl in blizzard conditions and it worked excellent. we cooked in the tent too. it is a good size for two people and the second door is convenient so you don't have to crawl across the other person when 'living' in the tent. i too like the design of the ID vents much better than the Bibler design. The reason Bibler 'treats' their tents (what Brian described as 'baking' them) is for non-flammability. I have heard that this process 1. decreases breathability and 2. increases weight. My understanding was that it was a chemical treatment, but I don't really know.

 

the mk1 lite (which I have) would be adequate in size for 2 short-medium people (the info says up to 5'10"), where weight is paramount. The main disadvantage is roominess and therefore may not be the best for larger people. Having only a single door is a minor inconvenience.

[wfinley]

I've had the MK1 XL for about 5 years, have used it heavily and really like this tent. Since a couple of my climbing partners are pretty big (6'3") the extra inches are necessary. I only have one door - which in my opinion is fine (I wanted to keep it as lightweight as possible); but always carry the vestibule on mountain trips longer than 1-2 days. It is pretty small with a big partner; you can only dress one at a time - if both sit up it's too cramped - however with the vestibule it's fairly comfy.

 

As for stability etc. - I've endured a couple horrific storms (both in terms of high winds and lots of snow) in this tent as well as numerous gloppy snow/ice/rain storms that leave everything coated in ice, The tent holds up fine even when buried under alot of wind loaded snow (see pic below) and does not buckle under high winds.

 

After last season the coating that the tents are treated with wore off and we found snow was sticking to the sides (this was after 4 years of heavy usage) - but per ID's instructions we just treated it with Nikwax's tent spray and now it's as good as new.

 

[Marko]

They're fabulous tents! I'm on my 4th MK Lite in 19 years. The first one went to Alaska a couple times but then blew away on Rainier when the guy I lent it to left it up in a storm, the corners ripped out. The second tent replaced the lost one FREE OF CHARGE by Integral Designs, with redesigned corners. That went to Alaska 6 or 7 times and finally delaminated completely on Foraker in 2000 when we didn't dig in at all and got hit by an unexpected scary windstorm. I bought the third one and then replaced that a year later with the eVent model when that came out.

 

The tent's just long enough for me (5'11"), it's wide enough for 2 with gear, and sort of wide enough for 3. There's enough ventilation with the door cracked to cook in it. It's definitely cramped but I think it's just about the ideal bivy tent. Everything's a compromise, right? It's probably the lightest, most stable bivy tent there is. (Except maybe for the Stephenson tents but that's kind of different animal...)

 

Not so great in very wet conditions.

[chase986]

i could see how the tent blew away in strong winds without any weight in it. I am still trying to figure out the best way to use the easton stakes it came with because it seems that the stakes will not hold extremely well(with the tent loops as big as they are)? any suggestions on the best way to ancor the tent with the easton stakes?

[genepires]

a little bit unclear. do you mean to use the corner loops to anchor the tent down? The best (really only) place to anchor the tent is with the guye lines that are attached to loops on the middle or higher up the tent wall. Think leverage and you will see that the bottom loops are not meant to hold much of anything unless a ski is buried there or something else monstrous.

 

There are several ways of attaching the guye line to your snow anchor (tent stakes or many other alternatives). I preferred a tautline hitch attached to the tent loop (adjusting tension) and a regular overhand on a bight for the snow anchor end (girth hitch). That way you can tighten up the line without digging up the anchor.

 

You can buy little tent stakes that have a y shaped cross section for added strength. I haven't had a skinny "coat hanger" stake fail till I beat it up digging it out of the snow.

[Marko]

Maybe girth hitch the long corner loops around the stakes? I rarely use it on dirt so I'm usually using skis, ice tools, buried stuff sacks, or some such.