[A no-nonsense, self-funded review] ZANE ARTS YAR-1 Review: Double-walled and weighing just 860g! A hands-on review of a full-scale mountain tent in the Northern Alps that achieves lightweight without sacrificing livability

The author hikes from low mountains to the Alps with the motto of keeping his equipment as light as possible

UL (Ultralight) refers to equipment weighing less than 5kg, excluding food and fuel. Interest in UL has been growing recently, with various brands offering lightweight gear

Tents are one of the heaviest pieces of gear, so making them lighter will have a big impact on the total weight

Tents come in a variety of shapes, but the most common type for use in mountainous areas is the "dome tent."

Freestanding dome tents are popular as mountain tents because they are easy to set up, highly livable, and weather-resistant, and most of the tents you see in the mountains are double-walled dome tents

This time we will introduce the ZANE ARTS YAR-1, which was released in 2024

The Yarl 1 is a double-walled dome tent with features suitable for use in mountainous areas, yet it is ultra-lightweight, weighing just 860g, and such an ultra-lightweight tent can be purchased at an amazing price

In this article, I will explain the features and functions of the Yarl 1 and review my impressions after actually using it in the Northern Alps

The Yarl 1 is a tent that has all three qualities: portability, livability, and weather resistance. It's the perfect item for those looking for a three-season mountain tent that also wants to keep costs down

Main features of ZANE ARTS YAR-1

ZANE ARTS is an outdoor brand that was founded in Matsumoto City, Nagano Prefecture, the gateway to the Northern Alps, in 2018. The tents made by ZANE ARTS are gaining popularity in the camping scene, among other outdoor activities

YAR is the first mountain tent from the Zain Arts brand

The YAR-1 is a dome tent that uses a basic cross-frame structure that offers an excellent balance of ease of setup, wind resistance, livability, and portability, and the secret to its light weight is the processing of the fabric

The fly sheet is made of ultra-thin fabric (15D), while the inner tent has 7D walls and 20D bottom, and is silicone-coated to improve tear strength, resulting in high tear strength despite its thinness

This basic dome-shaped hanging tent is specially made for Japan's mountainous regions and is highly livable.It is easy to set up, but by strengthening the force that pulls the frame toward the inside, it has wind resistance that is just as good as a sleeve-type tent, and by driving in pegs at all 12 points, it provides maximum weather resistance

By ensuring a sufficient gap between the inner and fly sheet, condensation is prevented and the inner does not stick to the fly

The wide entrance on the long side not only allows for easy access into the tent, but also provides a large vestibule where you can store hiking boots and other items (opening the entrance wide allows you to enjoy the view from inside the tent)

There is a convenient pocket inside the tent for storing sunglasses and other items, and five loops at the top of the interior that are convenient for hanging lights and other items.You can also use the ropes to dry wet items inside the tent

When you purchase the jacket, the seams are taped and it comes with a footprint, pegs, and rope, so you don't need to buy anything extra and can head out into the mountains right away

Favorite points

• It is quite light and compact among dome-shaped models
• A large storage bag that can easily fit even if you pack it roughly
• Lightweight design with a double-wall construction that is highly weather-resistant and prevents condensation
• The long side has a wide entrance, and all rooms have ample space
• The long side is 210cm, which is great for tall people (rare for a Japanese brand)
• Intuitive setup and ingenious details for ease of use
• Highly weather-resistant for use in mountainous areas
• Seam taped and ready to use

Points of concern

• Pressure when sitting at a height of 95cm (height)
• Load per point due to fewer hanging hooks (durability)
• Small mesh area at entrance/exit (ventilation)

Main specifications and evaluation

Detailed Review

It is quite light and compact among dome-shaped models

Actual measured total weight

The weight of the Yarl 1 will be attractive to anyone who prioritizes lightness even a little

That's no surprise, as the minimum weight of the fly sheet, main body, and frame is just 860g, and the total weight including pegs, footprint, ropes, etc. is just 1,150g, making it one of the lightest mountain tents

Currently, there are only a handful of similar tents made in Japan that weigh less than 1 kg. When I actually weighed it, I was even more surprised to find that it was lighter than the weight announced by the manufacturer (although it is often the case that the actual weight is heavier than the manufacturer's announced weight)

Weight of main body, fly sheet, and frame (actual measurement)

By applying silicone processing, the thin fabric is made stronger, making it possible to achieve such lightweight construction without sacrificing livability or weather resistance

Another great thing is that it comes with a dedicated bag that can store the main body and frame separately. This means you can store the frame in the side pocket of your backpack and the main body inside the backpack

A large storage bag that can easily fit even if you pack it roughly

I'm generally not good at folding and storing things neatly, whether I'm hiking or at home

Not only tents, but also sleeping bags and other items often have storage bags that are designed to be as small as possible to make the storage size more compact, making it difficult to store them

The storage bag for the Yarl 1 is large, so even if you don't fold it and just cram everything in, there's still plenty of room. This is extremely helpful, and when I used it in the Northern Alps, it was raining when I was packing up, and I wanted to pack up as quickly as possible, so being able to pack everything into the special bag was very efficient

Lightweight design with a double-wall construction that is highly weather-resistant and prevents condensation

The Yarl 1 is one of the lightest tents in its class among domestic brand tents, but it is a double-wall tent with a separate inner tent and flysheet, ensuring a comfortable living space

The inner tent is 95cm high, so you do feel a slight sense of pressure when sitting inside the tent, but it's not so high that it interferes with your head, and since you actually spend most of your time inside the tent lying down, it's not something that bothers you

There is a good space between the hanging inner tent and the fly sheet, which makes it less likely for the inner tent to stick to the fly sheet, making it less likely for condensation to form on the inner tent and water to get into the tent

When I used it in the Northern Alps, it was summer, but the temperature dropped to about 10°C at night, and the difference in temperature between inside and outside the tent caused condensation on the fly sheet, but the inside of the inner tent stayed dry

The long side has a wide entrance, and all rooms have ample space

One thing I look for when choosing a tent is that it has an entrance on the long side

The long side of the tent makes it easier to get in and out. Also, the long side of the dome tent is angled more than the short side, making it harder for rain to get in and minimizing the amount of rain that gets into the tent when entering or exiting in bad weather

Be careful when opening the zipper and getting in and out, as the fabric may come into contact with the ground

Be careful not to open the zipper carelessly as it may come into contact with the ground and get your innerwear dirty

All rooms in Yarl 1 have a maximum depth of 45cm, providing ample space for storing shoes and other items

It was raining when we set up the tent, but thanks to the wide entrance and ample vestibule, we were able to quickly escape into the tent

The long side is 210cm, which is great for tall people (rare for a Japanese brand)

As someone who is over 180cm tall, I always check the length of the long side of a tent carefully when choosing one

The long side of a short tent is 200cm, and Japanese-made tents are made to fit the Japanese body type.The average length of the long side of a one-person tent is about 205cm, but the Yar 1 is 210cm

It's only a difference of 5cm, but it's surprisingly large; the 210cm difference means that the sleeping bag is less likely to interfere with the tent body, preventing the loft of the down from being crushed and reducing its heat retention, or the sleeping bag from getting wet by touching the tent body

Intuitive setup and ingenious details for ease of use

The corner parts that connect the main body and frame have a simple structure that can be easily hooked on

The corner parts that connect the pole to the main body are made of aluminum and have a simple structure that makes assembly intuitive, so even those who are not familiar with it can easily set it up

The fly sheet has two adjusters so that you can adjust the tension, allowing you to make proper adjustments after setting it up

The adjuster on the fly sheet allows for easy adjustment after setup

There was little space for air to pass through, so I was a little concerned about breathability

The inner tent has ventilation at the top and bottom to create air circulation from bottom to top, and you can reach out from the ventilation at the top of the inner tent, so you can also open and close the ventilation on the fly sheet from inside the tent

The flysheet ventilation can be opened and closed from inside the tent

There is ventilation at the top and bottom, but when I actually used it, I was a little concerned about breathability because the mesh area at the entrance and exit was small. Even inside the tent, I didn't feel any ventilation, and it felt hot and muggy during the day

The mesh part is small, probably to reduce weight. If it were a little larger, it would have better breathability and be more comfortable inside the tent, but sometimes "lightness" and "comfort" are trade-offs

Highly weather-resistant for use in mountainous areas

There are a total of 12 pegs, including 8 that can directly secure the main tent and flysheet to the ground, and 4 guy ropes. By pegging down all of these, you can maximize weather resistance. The flysheet has 4 Velcro fasteners that can be attached to the frame, preventing flapping and ensuring stability even in strong winds

If I had to point out one thing that I was concerned about, it would be durability, as the inner tent has nine suspension points, meaning that the load on each point is greater. The suspension-type tent I used previously had a total of 13 suspension points, and the corners had sleeves to distribute the load, but compared to that, there are four fewer suspension points, which makes me a bit concerned about durability

The Yarl 1 comes with four 2mm Dyneema ropes, 12 V-pegs, and a repair pipe in case the frame is damaged. It also comes with a footprint, which is sold separately, so you don't need to purchase any additional ones

When we camped at an altitude of over 2,600m, the wind got strong at dawn, but since we had pegs down in 12 places, we were able to stay safe and not be blown around by the wind

It also comes with a dedicated footprint, which is great

The seams are already taped when you buy it, so there's no need to do any seam repair yourself

Depending on the tent you purchase, the seams may not be waterproof and you may have to apply seam tape yourself to make them waterproof, but the Yarl 1 comes with pre-taped seams so you can use it as is

For experienced or familiar people, waterproofing is probably not that difficult, but for beginners who are not used to it, it is a good thing that waterproofing has been done

The Yarl 1 comes with everything you need and is waterproof, making it an ideal entry-level model for your first mountain tent

Summary: A dome tent that is both weather-resistant and lightweight. Plus, it's cost-effective

So far I have reviewed the Yarl 1, but there is one last thing to say about its cost performance

The Yarl 1 is one of the lightest double-walled mountain tents available, designed with comfortable living space and ease of use in mind, and packed with thoughtful details, and comes with everything you need

This is a high-spec tent, but it costs 37,950 yen (tax included), which means you'll have change from 40,000 yen!

With prices soaring due to recent inflation and the strong dollar, and tents from overseas brands in particular often being surprisingly expensive, this cost performance is so good that it is making users worry

The Yar 1 is one of the most expensive tents available, and it's a cost that can't be ignored when choosing gear. It's a tent that combines portability and livability

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Yosuke

A person who travels around with just one backpack, with the motto of "as light as possible" without causing inconvenience

From spring to autumn, I go fishing in mountain streams in pursuit of char deep in the mountains. I hike the mountains in search of spectacular views that cannot be seen from the ground. I camp to relax by a bonfire. I snowboard to experience the feeling of floating in the silvery white mountains

A freelance writer who enjoys the outdoors all year round, he shares his experiences and the best gear he has used

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