MSR  FreeLite 1 Tent

Tent is perfect for moving light. Easy set up. Love the vestibule size and the mesh that stops condensation. The cross bar makes the single pole a lot sturdier to my previous tent the BA Fly Creek UL1. But only negative is that the tent needs to be pegged out at one end and isn't truly freestanding. But I have come up for a cheap and light (60grams extra) solution as I camp on platforms in Tasmania's national parks. Look at photos.... 2 light poles connect at base of the tent, tensioning out the inner.

I own a Hubba Hubba NX for quite a while and i like it, because it simply do what it have to do. Now i also buy the Freelite 1 to get an lighter tent, for long distance hiking and bikepacking. It seems that the Freelite 1 is a nice small and lightweight tent, but my sleepingbag becomes wet every morning, so every other item who has contact to the sidewall. So now, when im hiking a long distance trail, i have the problem that i have to make a break everyday when the suns come out, looking for a place where i can put my stuff into the sun and dry it. This sucks! So im 6 foot tall. This shouldnt happen! I didnt have this issues with my Hubba Hubba at all.

This tent has been an exceptional performer for me. I bought it mid 2017. I have a petite build so I'm always on the lookout for gear that fits me so that I can cut unnecessary weight! This tent is perfect. I tend to pitch both tent and the fly but sleep with the fly door open. I've not had any condensation issues with this tent, even during a daylong rain and a coastal trip with heavy beach dew. The tent has withstood a windstorm in the Grand Canyon. Other tents were not as successful. I also purchased the mini groundhog stakes which hold better than the needle stakes in desert terrain. This season I patched a couple of tiny holes in the fly and put a fresh coat of waterproofing on the fly. I'm glad I purchased the footprint. It gives me peace of mind as I'm a desert backpacker. I appreciate well-designed things. I think that's probably true for many other MSR users.

I think this tent is great, and I'm wanting to buy one (haven't yet). But the new green colour way, doesn't look too appealing. The grey on red is great. But the dark green against the dark red, personally doesn't work... IDK I think the old light green looked a whole lot better, more inviting and lights make it seem more spacious. Green is a good stealth colour but I just think your tent could look a whole lot better, and probably sell better. :) it's only constructive criticism. Maybe your design team could work out something, as I do really want one of these tents. Thank you

I have used this tent on two multi night backpacking trips and it is really an awesome tent! I am amazed by the amount of room inside. I am a fairly large adult male and was pleasantly surprised that I was able to keep all of my gear (less hiking poles, bear bag, backpack) inside with me, yet never felt cramped. Although I spent multiple nights in high wind scenarios, I didn't feel the need to use all of the tie out points, and left some of the cordage and 2 stakes home. I did string some 1.5mm cordage in the roof loops to hang my damp clothes. I really cannot say enough about the outstanding design, durability, ease of use. I highly recommend this tent to anyone who is seeking the comfort of a full tent, yet seeks to cut weight in their backpack.

Purchased with the intent of replacing my old MSR Zoid 1.5. (4lbs.). While the Freelite1 weighs a full 1 Lb. less then my Zoid, there is a lot of trade off to lose that precious pound! A trade-off, that after setting up in my living room and then in the backyard (not freestanding at all), I’m not willing to take. Perhaps if I didn’t have such an awesome tent to compare this with (my Zoid) I’d be a little more forgiving (not knowing what a truly super-one person tent is) but fact is, I do have a super one man tent and the Freelite doesn’t come close. Other then the pound difference no comparison. The trade offs to lose that pound-are just too much. The zippers and tabs on the Freelite are tiny (I felt like I was in a child’s tent). The material is paper-thin. I’m sure made to handle the weather, doubt will handle sharp rocks, twigs or a wayward tent pole,The rip cords are all very thin (almost like string) probably adequate but not what I’d want battening down my tent in a storm. The one door entry is a bit small and awkward, and the vestibule is almost non-existence. My Zoid has two entries and two vestibules big enough for gear and two full backpacks! The Freelite, just room for a one daypack and boots. Pretty pathetic. Now let’s get to the interior. Downright claustrophobic. Very narrow. While the length is adequate for my 6’2” frame the width is very restrictive. There is no way I could sleep comfortably in these confines. Looking back to my 1.5 I have room for gear at my head, water bottle and flashlight by my side. In the Freelite I’d be lucky to be able turn on my side. Extremely uncomfortable with the tent walls towering on both sides closing in like a curtain above. Now let’s look at the “semi-freestanding” designation. Not really. Yes, once you snap the pole together (super easy) and clip on the tent body the tent will stand. Like a curtain. Yes. A vertical curtain. That’s it. Absolutely useless until you stake down all the corners and even then, it takes awhile to drape the rainfly (which surprisingly is not that easy to do). Once that’s done you must stake out the entire thing or your lying in the folds of material. Not useful in at all. This thing is like a coffin. As much as I wanted to love this tent, after only a few minutes with it, I got very grateful for my trusty old Zoid 1.5 which although I wish it was a pound less, I now see is a “real” tent. Not a tent that’s had every little element trimmed and cut down to whet the tent becomes a shell. To many sacrifices with the Freelite. Now if MSR incorporated the light materials in a Zoid 1.5 I definitely would be interested.

Used it for the first time in a camping/backpacking trip and was not disappointed! I thought it would be cramped and uncomfortable but for a 1person tent there is ample room for you to comfortable and even change in! Only thing that was a bummer was the fact that I could not fit my gear inside since it was to big and had to leave everything outside my tent but. I would highly recommend!!!!

I bought the FreeLite 1 hoping to like it, after having looked at the Freelite 2 in the store. The FreeLite 1 adopts the current convention of three-point tents (with only 3 poles touching the ground). The tent of course loses some stability to that, moreso on the one-man version, because the two poles there are already so close together due to the width of the tent. For the ounce or two, the tent would be better off with four ground/contact points, and I'm disappointed that MSR has adopted this design for their ultra-light tent. The FreeLite 1, like most one-man tents, is just a scaled down version of the two-man. In this case they removed the second door (of course) and the second vestibule. When they downgraded that vestibule space, they cut the rear fly too short, and don't provide (by default) any support for that fly at ground level. That's an ~80"" unsupported section of fly that isn't taut. You can fix it by attaching a line there, and an extra stake, but that should have been there by default, and deceptively hides some additional weight (and of course needing extra stakes and line). The tent fly connects on the (left) end of the tent to the two poles at ground level. However, on the other (right) side it doesn't (the same as the FreeLite 2), instead connecting to the two corner stakes, without being connected to the end of the pole. Again a missing line and stake that needs to be added later (more an issue for the FreeLite 2. And with no connection directly to the pole, if either of the stakes on the right side slips the entire fly will be flapping on the wind. This tent is advertised as ""semi-freestanding"", so I guess it depends on your expectations. You cannot use this tent unless all four corners of the tent are securely staked, because without the stakes there's nothing for the fly to connect to. Even with the missing guy lines on the back and right side, there are four more guy lines higher up on the tent, which implies to me a significant lack of stability in wind without them (a problem with the three-point design). Add a few ounces to your expectations for this tent, expect that it's not freestanding, and expect a LOT of guy lines.