Mobi Garden , a Chinese outdoor manufacturer, at an outdoor exhibition in Nanjing, China, four years ago, and have been captivated by their honest approach to manufacturing and commitment to quality ever since. Now , they have once again delivered us a tent of astonishing quality.
This time, I would like to review Mobi Garden
table of contents
What kind of tent is the LIGHT WINGS DAC UL1? - General features
The LIGHT WINGS DAC UL1 is Mobi Garden's lightest mountaineering tent, a leader in China's outdoor tent market. It's an all-season, freestanding, double-walled solo mountain tent that combines lightness, durability, ease of erection, and comfort. It's the first to feature lightweight poles from DAC, a renowned high-quality tent pole brand. Despite its weight of approximately 1kg, it boasts a sleek design that sets up in just minutes, while providing ample livability and durability. The inner tent is available in two versions: a half-mesh type (Chinese specification) and an ultra-thin, breathable, and water-repellent nylon fabric type (Japanese specification) for Japanese mountaineering enthusiasts. It comes standard with a full set of 10 high-quality pegs, a footprint, and guy lines, all at a reasonable price, making it an attractive value-for-money tent.
Recommended points
- All-in-one design that sets up in just a few minutes
- Highly customizable, allowing you to create a shelter style with just the fly
- Very durable for a lightweight tent
- Each part is well-made, and even with everything included, including pegs and footprints, it's priced at a wallet-friendly price
Points of concern
- I want a pocket-like storage space in the inner tent
- The upper space is a bit cramped
- Ventilation breathability
- The fly's hanging hook is a little stiff
Main specifications and evaluation
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Item Name | Mobi Garden LIGHT WINGS DAC UL1 |
| Number of people sleeping | 1 person |
| Actual weight when carried |
Total weight: 1,320g (breakdown below)
|
| Inner tent main material | High density fine mesh nylon |
| Inner tent bottom material | 20D ripstop nylon with silicone coating (4000mm waterproof) |
| Fly material | 15D ripstop nylon with silicone coating (2000mm waterproof) |
| Pole material | DAC Featherlite NSL |
| Footprint Material | 20D ripstop nylon with PU coating (4000mm waterproof) |
| Room size | Width 105 (front room width 60)/65cm x length 205cm x height 105 (inner 95) cm |
| Floor area | 1.74㎡ |
| accessories |
|
| evaluation | |
| Living Comfort | ★★★☆☆ |
| Ease of setup and takedown | ★★★★★ |
| weather resistance | ★★★☆☆ |
| durability | ★★★★☆ |
| weight | ★★★★☆ |
| Portability | ★★★☆☆ |
| Versatility | ★★★★☆ |
LIGHT WINGS DAC UL1 detailed review
No extra options needed. Everything you need is included at a reasonable price
Recent lightweight tents tend to emphasize lightness, and often come with only the bare necessities, including internal accessories. While this is great for experienced tents who already own several tents, it can be confusing for first-time tent buyers, as they often ask questions like, "How many pegs do I need?" and "Do I always need a footprint?"
In this regard, the LIGHT WINGS DAC UL1 comes with a complete set that includes the main body, rain fly, poles, 10 pegs, guy lines, and a footprint, so even first-time buyers have no need to worry.
When fully packed, the size isn't particularly compact for a one-person tent, but it's not too big considering it's a complete set. The weight of the entire set is 1,320g, which isn't exactly light, but if you don't include the footprint, it's about 1.1kg, and if you trim it down even further, you can get just the fly pole set down to just over 700g
What's great is that each of these parts is not just a collection of parts, but is built up one by one using high-quality materials and construction that satisfies the user's expectations
For example, the tent poles and pegs are made by DAC. DAC supplies high-quality aluminum poles that are lightweight, durable, and just the right amount of flexible, quickly reshaping the global landscape of professional tent poles and becoming a high-end brand that even crying children can be silenced by. Furthermore, the types bearing the "GREEN" logo are manufactured using a special technique called "green anodizing," a sustainable product line that minimizes environmental impact such as the emission of toxic substances. Normally, the use of these parts alone would be enough to raise the price by more than 10,000 yen
The flysheet is made of 15D nylon ripstop, which is thin, flexible, and durable. The fabric is waterproofed with a silicone coating, which is more resistant to deterioration over time and more durable than polyurethane coating. This is a specification typically found in high-end tents
There are two types of inner tents. One is made of high-density fine mesh material, which is highly breathable during hot weather. The other is a non-mesh material, which is highly sought after for the windy and rainy Japanese mountains. It is made of 10D breathable ripstop nylon (with a double-layered mesh entrance) that is breathable and water-repellent. This material offers a certain degree of weather resistance against wind and rain while also being breathable and breathable, and is also lighter than mesh material, making it a well-designed tent for use in Japan
However, although I was prepared for this to some extent, even though the fabric is breathable and breathable, it still doesn't completely keep out humidity inside. I've never come across a tent that doesn't get condensation at all, and this tent is no exception; after sleeping in it overnight, a fair amount of condensation does form (the photo below was taken when I tested it by letting steam rise from a kettle filled with hot water for a short period of time), so don't get your hopes up too high
Setup in no time! Super fast and easy setup system
To sum up, the ease of setting up this tent is impressive. Anyone who has set it up once will be amazed at how easy it is to set up. Seeing is believing, so please take a look at the actual setting video, which shows the tent being set up almost perfectly in less than two minutes
One of the secrets that makes it possible to set up so quickly is the integrated structure that allows the inner tent, rain fly, and footprint to be connected in advance with buckles (see photo below)
The footprint, inner, and fly are integrated with buckles at the four corners
The Flight Inner Tent is connected at key points with small buckles like the ones in the photo, giving it tension
Because the main body is integrated, all you need to do to set it up is insert the tips of the extended poles into the simple aluminum connecting fittings at the four corners, and all the parts will be fixed in place. At this point, the inner tent is hidden under the fly, so there is no need to worry about the inside getting wet even when setting it up in the rain
The flexible and highly durable DAC pole is connected to two joints and splits into four sections, creating a smart structure that allows the entire pole to stand on its own
All you have to do is hook the hooks on the fly and the tent is almost completely set up. There are also plenty of pegs provided to hammer in as needed: ten for each of the four corners of the tent, each side of the fly, and for the guy lines. Isn't it amazing that you can set up a taut tent in just over two minutes?
There is one entrance on the long side
Highly customizable, allowing you to create a shelter style with just the fly
The tent poles are located on the outside of the fly and the inner tent is removable, allowing for interesting uses depending on your preferences and the situation
For example, you can set up just the fly (and footprint) without attaching the inner tent from the start. If you bring this set with you in the hot summer months or when you want to lighten your load, you can go hiking with lighter equipment. Of course, it's also easy to attach the inner tent from this state
Adequate living space and attention to detail to prevent inconvenience
The entrance is made of thin nylon material and has a double zipper that opens in a large U-shape, making it easy to open and close (see photo below)
The version we tested had a single layer of water-repellent fabric, but the version currently on sale has a double layer of water-repellent fabric and mesh, which makes it convenient to adjust ventilation according to the temperature
The interior is spacious enough for solo use. The vestibule between the fly and the entrance is not particularly spacious, but it is spacious enough to store a backpack and shoes
Even with a regular-sized mattress, there is still plenty of width around the pillow, and there is also enough space to place some luggage
The vertical length is just over 2m, slightly shorter than Western tents, which on the other hand, felt just right for me as a Japanese person. The tent's shape narrows from the entrance towards the feet, but the upper body area is tall and wide enough that it's not too noticeable. That said, the clearance around the face isn't particularly wide, and I have to say it's relatively low compared to today's cutting-edge models, which is a bit disappointing
The thick waterproof fabric is secured high up around the feet and bottom, giving the impression of careful construction
The hook that keeps the entrance open is designed to be securely fastened (see photo below)
There is a small carabiner at the top of the ceiling that can be used to hang a light or something, which is a nice touch (see photo below). However, I am still disappointed that there are no pockets inside the room
The ventilation for indoor ventilation is located at the top of the short side (see photo below). When opening, the core material is raised and fastened with Velcro, a popular method these days. Thanks to the core material, there is no inconvenience of accidentally closing it, and it is located near the ceiling where heat tends to escape, making it a well-thought-out and smart design. However, the size is not particularly good for ventilation, so you will need to open the entrance at the same time to ventilate widely
Three guy lines (with mini carabiners) are included as standard to reinforce the gear and prevent it from being blown away by the wind. While you can hook them onto poles as shown in the photo below, the Japanese distributor has modified them so that they can be attached to dedicated guy points to increase durability, considering use in Japan. This one detail clearly shows how much the manufacturer cares about providing mountain gear in Japan
Comparison with that tent you're interested in
Finally, I'll briefly compare the LIGHT WINGS DAC UL1 with other tents that many people will likely compare it to. I've used and enjoyed these tents myself, so I know that each has its good and bad points. Rather than deciding which is better or worse, knowing these points and then choosing the model that best suits you will ensure you make a purchase you won't regret
BigAgnes Fly Creek HV UL1 EX
The Big Agnes Fly Creek HV UL1 has been a pioneer of ultra-lightweight double-wall tents for nearly 10 years now . This long-selling model, which achieved amazing lightness and comfort through a number of innovative mechanisms at the time, is sure to be the benchmark for the LIGHT WINGS DAC UL1
In fact, compared to this model, the LIGHT WINGS is superior in many respects, including ease of setup, high livability with spacious interior space and ventilation, and overall cost performance with the included footprint, so it's clear that times have changed. However, in terms of overall weight, the Fly Creek wins slightly, so it's up to you to decide.
NEMO Hornet Storm 1P
The recently released NEMO Hornet Storm 1P the Fly Creek model latest technology and new ideas throughout, making it one of the most highly refined lightweight tents available today ( please refer to our previous article ).
When comparing this latest tent with the LIGHT WINGS the Hornet wins in terms of weight and livability. In terms of the Hornet , not only in terms of the larger base area but also in terms of upper clearance and various interior pockets . However, when it comes to pitching, the separate inner fly means it's not quick to set up, and as it's a semi-freestanding tent, simply setting up the poles doesn't make it comfortable, so the LIGHT WINGS is superior. Furthermore, because the base is made of thin fabric, a footprint is likely required, but this is sold separately, so the LIGHT WINGS is also far superior in terms of cost performance.
Summary: Recommended for these people
In addition to offering ample performance and high quality, the Mobi Garden LIGHT WINGS DAC UL1 is also reasonably priced, making it an excellent choice for hobbyists who enjoy mountaineering, spending a few days to a dozen days overnight throughout the year, and offering a great balance that meets their needs. While it may not be a flagship model in terms of functionality and comfort, the overall quality is high-end, and above all, it's lightweight yet made with sturdy materials and construction for mountaineering, and its specifications and price, designed with Japanese users in mind, remain reliable. Those seeking the very best may find it lacking, but unless you're a heavy user, it should perform well enough without any major complaints
Please note that the currently available model will be discontinued once the current stock is sold out, and will be replaced with new specifications and prices, so if you are interested in purchasing one, you should do so quickly
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