Primus EasyLight Lantern

As Rangers for The Dyrt, we’ve been testing out this product for the past couple of weeks. While preparing for a week-long backcountry adventure in the Shenandoah’s last week, we were running behind with our packing and used this lantern to light up our campsite as we stuffed the last few bags of food and gear.

What we like about this product:
1. Lightweight and compact.
2. Gives off a great amount of light for its small size.
3. Adjustable light control, from very bright to romantic candle light.
4. Ignition switch seems to fire up the lantern every time.
5. Built-in hanging wire is handy to have when you want to hang it from a tree or lantern stand.
6. Gas powered, so no batteries to recharge or replace.
7. Storage case is robust and keeps the glass lantern from breaking.

What could be improved:
1. It only comes with one mantle. Two would be great because they aren’t easy to find in stores.
2. The instructions are overwhelming for such a simple piece of gear. They could be trimmed down quite a bit.

This thing is awesome, just set it up at camp and it lit up our night ;) Definitely read the instruction carefully and do your research first. It is very simple if you just do as told haha.. coming from experience. I am looking forward to using it more but its getting cold and I am spending more time skiing than camping! Excited to keep using it and putting the durability to test :)

Primus produces some great products...durable, functional and simplistic. Primus produces five different lanterns, three butane fueled...two of them small and packable. The Easy Light and the Micron.

Functionally they are simliar and few differences in size and weight. The primary differences can be "seen." The Easy Light offers more lumens and a more diffused light because of the frosted globe, whereas the Micron light output is lower.

As a review ranger for theDyrt, I had opportunity to acquire the Micron Lantern - Steel Mesh for testing and evaluation.

As mentioned in other reviews, do yourself a favor and both read the included operational directions that comes with your Primus Lantern and more simply, watch their youtube video.

I prefer the Micron Lantern - Steel Mesh over the Easy Light...purely to eliminate breakable glass. This is personal preference and nothing more. To stuff (the cooled) Micron Lantern into its included stuff sack and into my backpack, requires no thought or care. However, I am fairly thoughtful about where I place it, to avoid to much banging, so as to minimize the possiblity to damage the burned mantle (as fragile as mantles look, they surprisingly endure).

At a fraction over 4 ounces, the weight is negligible and I'm already carrying a fuel cannister, so burning through batteries is a moot point. However, I wouldn't take the Primus lantern into my tent for illumination.

Over an extended backpacking trip, the Primus Micron Lantern worked flawlessly and replacing mantles was unnecessary (though I did pack two additional...also nearly weightless). The Micron was stuffed along with 60 lbs of other gear in my pack...without incident.

Lighting is also convenient with the "easy light trigger" of the integrated piezo electric ignition system.

During use, the Micron Lantern light intensity is fully adjustable...and the stainless steel mesh mantle housing does glow red hot, but cools pretty fast after shutting it down. While not abusive with my things, I'm not gentle either...and I'm impressed with the construction of the Micron Lantern - Steel Mesh.

Note: while not suggested or recommended by the manufacturer, I did use a LPG adaptor (Lindal valve to propane) to use "green tank" propane cannisters and save my butane cannister for the backcountry...and the Primus Lantern continued to work flawlessly.

Absolutely love this, this lantern is small and BRIGHT! Works perfect for camping. What I love about this primus, Only issue, its so easy to just grab. So please be mindful, it does get HOT FAST! ONly downfall, the bags are small for the lanterns, so with big fingers this maybe challenging, but so worth it.

Great gas lantern to bring along on any trip. I went with this to save weight and get the most light possible. If you are new to gas lanterns and mantles, my only knock is this doesn't come with instructions. However Primus has some great instructional videos on Youtube. It only comes with one mantle, so I'd also purchase the 3-pack mantles to go with!

This little guy sheds light! Great set up with the dimmer. Just screw it on and let there be light!

This lantern is pretty great in my opinion on all the trips I've been on. I recently used it camping in the Sierras in mid spring. It kept my tent up into the 60s when it was a brisk 31f outside. My sleeping pad and sleeping bag did the rest and I only needed one opening at the top of the tent for ventilation. I suffered no ill effects in the morning. The warm glow was instantly inviting compared to everybody's LED flashlights and headlamps. Finding the right place for it was easy because of the hook and wire.



If it's not running at full power, it gives off a nice dim glow as a night light in the tent and the lantern will last multiple nights on a 220g tank this way.



One nit-pick I have is that the ignitor can be difficult to use sometimes. The electrode for the Piezo Starter can sometimes be bent too far so the spark doesn't happen on the tip but instead on the ceramic portion at the base of the lantern. The electrode seems to be tempered steel so it's a little difficult to bend, make sure you have two sets of pliers and bend it within 1/2 a cm or less from the gas outlet being very careful not to crack the ceramic cover.



Lastly keep in mind, Primus is the only brand that states that their mantles are Thorium Free.

This was a tough decision. I love the brightness of this little lantern but backpacking with a 2.5 and 5.5 year old little boys safety is a great concern. Being without light is also a great concern as nothing is quite like having two little ones wanting light when out camping. Personally I'm a proponent of no light needed except for reading a bit before going to sleep. One really can see better and more once your eyes are acclimated except for the nights with very limited ambient light. I have tried to explain this concept to my wife and children but to no avail. It is very hard to hike far enough away from civilization with someone that is less than 3 years old and I really would be embarrassed to have child protective services show up at our tent because of the screaming that I'm sure would ensue. I highly recommend this lantern for its brightness, ease of use, and it really is tough. I now carry a battery lantern for times when a light is needed that can't be placed out of reach of "Sticky",(my 2.5 year old boy). Again, highly recommended for the childless but even with children or big dogs with enthusiastic tails it is still a great thing to have, just hang it high. Ken ps packing up to go out for awhile and out of all my gear this light is one of the coolest pieces of gear. It just works so well.

I just used this lantern for the first time along the beautiful, but wet, Washington coast. We had two large tarps set up in the camp and the lantern performed flawlessly. Each night it ran through an entire can of fuel without a problem or a sputter. It gave enough light off for the entire camp site and saved us using our headlamps. This lantern is well worth the price and is very reliable. Many thanks Backcountry for another excellent piece of equipment.

I toted this lantern around while backpacking part of the AT last spring. It was more than enough light to play cards or cook under. Also, it helped warm the tent when snow started falling. The case is nice so you can toss it in your bag and not worry about it. IF you were wondering it runs great on the cheaper coleman butane/propane canisters.

works well, and burns very little fuel. easy to use. i used this lantern this past weekend in Big Basin and it's a great way to throw a little light around your camp area while cooking/eating etc.. the lantern is very small, and burns very quietly, but it wasn't quite as bright as i thought it would be, so it's best for 1-2 people in a small camp area.
i do like the fact that you can walk around with it like a flashlight if you hold it by the fuel cannister. it shares fuel with my pocket rocket, so that's convenient, but of course you need two cannisters if you want to cook while using the lantern.

The Primus EasyLight Lantern is a little heavier than the Snow Peak but much brighter. In fact for the additional 2.5 ounces, you get a back country 80 watt light bulb. Greatly appreciated when setting up camp @ 11:00 pm. Uses all standard Lindal Valve cartridges. The "self igniter" version is the best piezo on the market. This one actually works @ higher elevations. Durable plastic case that keeps everything in place. Here's more information:

http://www.primuscamping.com/product.php?id=16

I took one of these down into the Grand Canyon during Christmas Break. What a nice item to have when you can't have a camp fire! The light intensity is very controllable and it burned little fuel. Comes with a simple, but nice, case. I bought the model with the igniter on it and wasn't disappointed; it lite the first click almost every time! It also doubled as a nice way to warm cold hands... I'd highly recommend this lantern!