View Full Version : Feasibility of cuben fiber tarp + gearskin
mudsocks
03-03-2013, 18:38
Hello all,
I've been lurking here on WB for a little while now and recently introduced myself in the hammock camping forums. Now I'm invading the gear forums looking for input. How well a cuben fiber tarp might hold up under these circumstances? Has anyone else here been crazy enough to try this setup? I've read a few positive reviews of the gearskins but that's really it. I'd like to hear both positive and negative gearskin owners opinions and observations.
Thanks-
rocketsocks
03-03-2013, 18:50
What circumstances are you speaking about?
To be clear, gearskins are a way to reuse your tarp as the pack bag?
I think it'd be a disaster. Cuben fiber isn't known to hold up well under abrasion. Cuben fiber packs last about one thru hike, and that's with burly 1.5 oz/yd cuben fiber. Trying to make cuben fiber do double duty like that is begging for disaster, and probably wouldn't save much weight either.
Now if you have the money to replace it frequently, it might save a couple ounces.
Wise Old Owl
03-03-2013, 18:58
Leftye he is talking about Moonbow's Gearskin which would protect the cuben fiber tarp... the only person I know who has done that is Sgt Rock... PM Sgt Rock or visit his gallery on Hammock Forum.
Leftye he is talking about Moonbow's Gearskin which would protect the cuben fiber tarp... the only person I know who has done that is Sgt Rock... PM Sgt Rock or visit his gallery on Hammock Forum.
The way I'm seeing it, that uses the tarp as the pack bag.
kayak karl
03-03-2013, 19:21
someone on HF made a hammock the doubled as a gearskin. i think with all the straps and sewing on the gearskin you would lose the waterproofing you would need as a tarp. if you could creat a straping system that was seperate from the tarp it might work.
,but a separate cuben pack and a cuben tarp would weight, what? 20-24 oz. together?
rocketsocks
03-03-2013, 19:33
I love learning new stuff, never heard of "gearskin"
Wise Old Owl
03-03-2013, 19:35
before I say anything... here is the assembly
http://www.moonbowgear.com/1trailgear/1Custom%20packs/Gearskins/gearskin2011-x10a.gif
Forgetting bugs for a moment, I think that a tarp (large) and your sleeping system underneath could work well.
A large enough tarp can be rigged a lot of ways, plenty of room for all of your gear...........having said that the new cuben fiber tents are so light they are hard to beat. Waterproof, bug proof, light......good gear
T.S.Kobzol
03-03-2013, 19:59
What's a gearskin?
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2
Wise Old Owl
03-03-2013, 20:00
What's a gearskin?
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2
http://www.moonbowgear.com/0allaboutmoonbow/allaboutmoonbow.html
kayak karl
03-03-2013, 20:10
and i think a cuben pack would be lighter. this design is pre-cuben
"Weighs 1 to 1.5 lb. Adjusts from 2500-6500 cu. in. Custom fit shoulder straps and waist belt."
mudsocks
03-03-2013, 20:38
To be clear, gearskins are a way to reuse your tarp as the pack bag?
I think it'd be a disaster. Cuben fiber isn't known to hold up well under abrasion. Cuben fiber packs last about one thru hike, and that's with burly 1.5 oz/yd cuben fiber. Trying to make cuben fiber do double duty like that is begging for disaster, and probably wouldn't save much weight either.
Now if you have the money to replace it frequently, it might save a couple ounces.
That's exactly the kind of information I'm looking for. Of the reading I've done on cuben fiber I understand that it has excellent rip resistent qualities. I wasn't able to find much in the way of how it stands up to punctures or how it would stand up in this usage scenario.
someone on HF made a hammock the doubled as a gearskin. i think with all the straps and sewing on the gearskin you would lose the waterproofing you would need as a tarp. if you could creat a straping system that was seperate from the tarp it might work.
As I understand it the gearskin is essentially just straps with padding. Rethinking this and it seems like a much smarter idea to use my hammock as the "pack" rather than the tarp. A punctured tarp isn't much fun. A punctured hammock would be cheaper to replace and easier to repair.
mudsocks
03-03-2013, 20:43
http://www.moonbowgear.com/0allaboutmoonbow/allaboutmoonbow.html
That's the gear. It just seems to me that if a gearskin is as comfortable (or nearly) as a pack why not cut out the expense and weight of a pack?
kayak karl
03-03-2013, 20:54
[/COLOR]As I understand it the gearskin is essentially just straps with padding. Rethinking this and it seems like a much smarter idea to use my hammock as the "pack" rather than the tarp. A punctured tarp isn't much fun. A punctured hammock would be cheaper to replace and easier to repair.
the reason i suggested a cuben pack. whatever you use with the gearskin may get wet or wet when you start out. i tried a gearskin(DIY) years ago, but the wet tarp in morn was a pain and made setup in the rain bad. you hammock idea is good if it doesn't get we during the day. i switched to a Equinox Katahdin at 24 oz. as you can see it is similar to the gearskin, sort of :)
20133
KK
That's exactly the kind of information I'm looking for. Of the reading I've done on cuben fiber I understand that it has excellent rip resistent qualities. I wasn't able to find much in the way of how it stands up to punctures or how it would stand up in this usage scenario.
Cuben fiber has great puncture resistance too. I don't doubt that it would work well for holding gear, but eventually the mylar layers will wear thin. Hybrid cuben fiber would help with that, but that adds a lot of weight. A tarp made with 1.5 oz/yd cuben fiber would be a little heavier than a silnylon tarp, and hybrid cuben fiber weighs twice as much.
70D silnylon or PU coated fabric might work. It's 1.9 and 3.0 oz/yd, respectively. Some math, maybe calculus, may be required to see if it's the lightest solution.
For starters, we can use a 6'x9' tarp, and ignore the weight for seams, reinforcements and webbing. It'd weigh 11.4 oz or 18 oz with the 70D fabrics.
kk mentioned how things would get packed. I think one of the most attractive things about a hammock is that gear can be deployed and packed under the tarp. With a gearskins setup, the tarp would get muddy and everything inside will get rained on while packing and unpacking.
T.S.Kobzol
03-03-2013, 22:16
No $ hit!
This is how I hiked when I was a kid. I made my own. The backpack was modeled after USArmy design. I would spread a camo tarp first, then sleeping bag (we didn't use pads. My first sleeping pad I bought was when I was 22) then extra clothing layers on top of the sleeping bag. Wrapped it all into the camo tarp like a burrito and rolled it tightbefore I strapped it into the pack. Separate 'messenger bag'style carrier contained food and cooking, was slung over the pack and brought forward on the chest.
So...now to your question. If I again wanted to travel this way I would use two cuben tarps. One over me and one under me. It could be used in nice variations with the most basic setup to spread first tarp as a blanket and shove the all gear under it for a pillow and to protect from rain. Then sleeping bag on top and the second tarp over me as a blanket and rain protection.
before I say anything... here is the assembly
http://www.moonbowgear.com/1trailgear/1Custom%20packs/Gearskins/gearskin2011-x10a.gif
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2
T.S.Kobzol
03-03-2013, 23:03
this is what mine used to look like although mine was a piece of crap as I made it my self :-) But it lasted me about 4 years.
http://www.paprika.euweb.cz/obrazky/x862.jpg
This photo is very similar to how I carried mine:
http://img3.rajce.idnes.cz/d6/3/3966/3966112_a1c702c4fd2b545d921d1f8be203ff47/images/IMG_5168.JPG
Wise Old Owl
03-03-2013, 23:06
T.S.Kobzol The product is sound, I would use a tent footprint or plastic underneath... I would wait for others who use the current product to weigh in... I don't have one, I watched all the you tubes several years ago.
T.S.Kobzol
03-03-2013, 23:12
It's cool to see this design again. I didn't think I would ever see this design resurface again. Yeah. the good old days.
T.S.Kobzol
03-03-2013, 23:15
Making camp used to be so easy. I just undid the buckles and rolled out the tarp. Slept under the stars like a baby. In the morning just roll it back in and keep going.
bear bag hanger
03-04-2013, 10:43
Hello all,
I've been lurking here on WB for a little while now and recently introduced myself in the hammock camping forums. Now I'm invading the gear forums looking for input. How well a cuben fiber tarp might hold up under these circumstances? Has anyone else here been crazy enough to try this setup? I've read a few positive reviews of the gearskins but that's really it. I'd like to hear both positive and negative gearskin owners opinions and observations.
Thanks-
I've used a gearskin in the past and, well, didn't like it all that much. The idea was great, just didn't seem to work for me. The primary problem is it took so long to get all the side straps buckled together, plus all my gear was exposed to hanging branches, etc. The other problem I had was getting enough support for the pack from my sleeping pad, just never seemed enough. Was actually happy when one of the buckles broke so I could get a regular pack at my next town stop. I wouldn't want my tarp or hammock to be that exposed, especially a cuben fiber tarp. At the start of the hike my pack weight, with the gearskin was 42 lbs. I may have been asking a bit too much from it.
I must either be using a very unique gear/food combination or missing something. My pad/tarp/bivy and quilt doesn't take up near the volume of say 3 days worth of food. This system looks great only if your gear is a substantial portion of your total carry volume.