Mission Mountain is a new brand which makes lightweight camping furniture and gear. They recently sent me their camping table to try out (free gear is one of the perks of my job). Here’s what I think of it.
Quick Verdict:
The Mission Mountain S4 is a roll-top camping table with adjustable height legs. It is really well made, fairly lightweight and very packable. Because of the low height, it is best used as a camp coffee table and not for cooking or eating. It’s a very sturdy table but the tradeoff is that there are several pieces to put together.
The S4 table at the higher leg setting
Specs:
- Heights: 16.5in/20.8in
- Table Top Size: 23.6×35”
- Packed Size: 26x 9.8x 4.7″
- Total Weight: 9.5lbs
- Weight Limit: 66lbs
- Materials: Aluminum and steel
- Buy Here
Assembly
The Mission Mountain S4 table consists of 8 pieces which need to be put together. They are:
- 4 legs
- 3 frame pieces
- 1 tabletop
Putting the table together is really simple and easy. Two of the frame pieces have poles (attached with cord) which you pop in place. Those frame pieces get attached together with a bar. This creates an “H-style” frame.
S4 table before putting the roll-top on
It takes just 2-3 minutes to assemble or disassemble the Mission Mountain table. If you are used to folding camp tables which come in one piece, putting together all of these pieces might be annoying.
The leg height is easy to adjust: just push the silver buttons and slide the legs to the desired height. A very nice design feature is that there are guidelines in the legs, so it’s easy to get the button in the right spot.
Guidelines make it easy to line up the button and the holes
Sturdiness
One of the reasons why the Mission Mountain has so many pieces is because of its H-style frame. The frame shape means the legs are angled outwards, which is much more stable than vertical legs. I wasn’t able to find any other camping table with this type of frame. Most use X frames or have vertical legs which snap in place, neither of which are very stable.
Mission Mountain says that the S4 table can hold 66lbs. I had a 22lb power station on the edge of the table and it didn’t wobble or tilt over. It held the power station plus my laptop while I worked outside without a problem.
The Helinox table frame is not nearly as strong as the H frame used by Mission Mountain
Packability
Compared to most other camp tables, the Mission Mountain table is very compact. This is because of the roll-top design and the frame which disassembles. I personally find it easier to pack in my tiny car than folding tables, which fold down into a massive rectangle.
One weird thing I love about the Mission Mountain table is that it’s easy to get back in the bag. If you’ve dealt with poorly-designed camp furniture, then you know why this is such a nice feature. 🙂
The bag actually has two zipper compartments: one compartment holds the tabletop and the other holds the frame parts. This keeps the parts organized so the bag doesn’t end up all lumpy.
Weight
Mission Mountain lists the table as weighing 9.4lbs. I weighed it and it came in at 9.5lbs, so not far off. Either way, the Mission Mountain table is lightweight for a camping table. But it is definitely not ultralight. Forget about taking this backpacking. I’m not sure I’d want to take it to a walk-in campsite either. However, it’s light enough to carry for shorter distances. The compact shape also makes it easier to carry.
Important: This is a LOW Camping Table!
Let’s me be clear: the Mission Mountain table is LOW. There are two height settings but the highest is only 20.8 inches. The low setting is just 16.5 inches.
Mission Mountain advertises their table as having a “unique H-braces, allowing plenty of room for knees and legs.”
There definitely is not “plenty” of room. I’m very short and petite, so was able to get my knees underneath the table while on a chair with a low seat height. If your camp chair has a standard height, your knees won’t fit underneath. Even on a low chair, a larger person will probably bang their knees on the tabletop.
My knees barely fit under the table and the seat height of this chair is just 12.5″ *I’m working outside with a power station and solar setup 😀
Because of this low height, the Mission Mountain table is best used as a coffee table for holding your drinks while lounging next to the campfire.
However, it could also work as a dining table if you don’t mind kneeling on the ground to eat. My family usually sits on pads while holding our bowls. So kneeling in front of this table is actually a big upgrade for us 🙂
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