Best place to buy cuben tarps(for general use, not shelter per se)
Looking to buy a tarp as extra rain protection for vestibule, shower curtain, cooking shelter etc. Cuben because you guy have convinced me grams countthinking around 5x8
If grams count save your $$....no need for a tarp if not using as shelter...just my $.02....if you must pretty much all cottage mfg sell cuben tarps...
Yama, MLD, Zpacks, HMG etc...
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From Cuba, of Course. :-D
Salty, its primary use will be when accompanied by the wife. I know from living with her and my own tiny experience on the trail that a shower is nearly priceless at the end of a warm day of hiking. In my week on the trail I took three MSR Dromedary showers and once I warmed the very cold stream water they were heavenly and powerfully rejuvinating. My idea of how to save weight is to not carry what I dont use and to use good lightweight gear, that said I like my comfort and conveniences and by dint of doing my first AT hike with as much as a 30% load I know that a relatively heavy pack is ok with me. I'm not about speed and think a 30lb pack skin out is just fine. So I can afford a few "extras".
I'm asking here because I've found no amount of searching guarantees the best of the big three: price, weight, performance. This is probably a golden age for hiking/camping and WB is often one of the best ways to find what searching misses given the shear number of suppliers etc. I find new ones every day, my bookmarks number in the hundreds.
You could make that yourself
Thing is, the actual cost of Cuben (DCF) material itself is quite high so you're not going to find them cheaply, and the lowest prices will be within a few dollars of each other. While the sheer number of camping goods suppliers (even cottage, these days) might be high, there is only one DCF supplier.
For example, an 11ft ridgeline, 7.5ft base hex hammock tarp costs $249 at ZP and $235 at HG. I'm familiar with this because the last couple of days I've been looking as well because I am putting together a hammock setup and have checked with "all the usual suspects".
So you are right: Price, Weight, Performance — pick any two!
The Five Basic Principles of Going Lighter ~ Cam "Swami" Honan of OZ
Another thing is that .51 and even .74 DCF are quite translucent and might not be the best choice for a shower curtain.
The Five Basic Principles of Going Lighter ~ Cam "Swami" Honan of OZ
A wet cloth with a lil dr. B goes a long way....especially peppermint...
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how about camo ?Originally Posted by cmoulder
Thom
Camo is pretty dark, though a bit heavier and more expensive. I have friends who have a camo Duplex.
The Five Basic Principles of Going Lighter ~ Cam "Swami" Honan of OZ
Check here for Hammock Gear Tarps.
Blackheart
Probably wont do me a bit of good but I might as well check in with the local sail lofts, I know the owner of one and some employees at others so who knows, maybe I can do better than retail...but with no sewing machine yet I'll have to factor in being unfinished. Meanwhile time to check the normal sources so I at least know what a finished one costs.
As to color and the lack there of, I'm thinking a little research might reveal a water born paint that wont hurt the PE, of course the major issue is adhesion. I've painted radically thin mylar so I have a way to apply it if I can find the right paint/thinner.
Silnylon often comes comes in widths of 56" to 60". So, a 5'x8' piece at 1.3 oz/square yard weighs under 6 oz. Uncoated (not water proof) nylon can be 1.1 oz/square yard, or under 5 oz. Sew a couple of ribbon loops at corners and size and you're still under 5 or 6 oz. It is MUCH cheaper than cuben, and probably easier to handle and sew. http://www.seattlefabrics.com/60-13-Ounce-SiliconeUrethane-Impregnated-Ripstop-1295-linear-yard-_p_32.html
https://ripstopbytheroll.com/collect...-oz-silpoly-xl
ripstopbythe roll sells silnylon in 6' width for cheap, also 58" width: https://ripstopbytheroll.com/collect...-oz-silpoly-xl
You can get cuben fabric (now called "Dyneema Composite Fabrics" ) at Zpacks in 54" width: http://www.zpacks.com/materials/waterproof-fabric.shtml Look at the pictures on that page to see how transparent it is. Zpacks would probably sew loops onto a length of the fabric for you.
A cheaper route that can be light but not durable is to make up a tarp from plastic sheet, painter's cloth and duct tape. It's transparent but heat shrink window insulation is cheap and surprisingly strong: https://www.amazon.com/Duck-281506-1...insulation+kit
Zpacks sells it by the yard if you want to make something yourself.
Unless I find DCF at $20/yd at a sail loft, I'm thinking Polycro(polycryo) is the way to go.I've got some laying around if I can find it. Over at Backpackinglight there is a 250 post thread on the subject of using it as a camping tarp and includes mention of dying it. I'm also liking the low cost as one issue with it as a shower curtain is having something to to stand on to prevent muddy feet and I can tell you from experience its not always easy to find a tree(to hang the water bag) with big rocks near to stand onpicnic tables are excellent however(before you gross out, I did that at a shelter that had like 8 of them and I left the dirtiest of them far cleaner than when I found it)
Unless I find DCF at $20/yd at a sail loft, I'm thinking Polycro(polycryo) is the way to go.I've got some laying around if I can find it. Over at Backpackinglight there is a 250 post thread on the subject of using it as a camping tarp and includes mention of dying it. I'm also liking the low cost as one issue with it as a shower curtain is having something to to stand on to prevent muddy feet and I can tell you from experience its not always easy to find a tree(to hang the water bag) with big rocks near to stand on
Well good luck with that ! Window shrink film is fine for a ground cloth . I’ll stick with a more durable material for a tarp. For cheep I would use silpoly. Light doesn’t absorb water, not as strong as silnylon.
Thom
I would use a lightweight silnylon. Polycro is NOT a construction material. You could also do cuben and it is super easy to tape together a simple rectangular tarp. But I know both of my cuben mida are a bit translucent especially the .51mil.Unless I find DCF at $20/yd at a sail loft, I'm thinking Polycro(polycryo) is the way to go.I've got some laying around if I can find it. Over at Backpackinglight there is a 250 post thread on the subject of using it as a camping tarp and includes mention of dying it. I'm also liking the low cost as one issue with it as a shower curtain is having something to to stand on to prevent muddy feet and I can tell you from experience its not always easy to find a tree(to hang the water bag) with big rocks near to stand on
enemy of unnecessary but innovative trail invention gadgetry
Please dont take this the wrong way, I only know what I read. The thread I read at Backpackinglight has convinced me that Polycro IS a viable construction material. It can stand 6 months continuous outdoor exposure, handle wind and snow loads and lends it self to DIY without sewing. People are using it as a primary shelter and while I wouldnt shelter in dangerous weather, my use would be ones where I would only lose a convenience. Key to making it viable: use only exterior rated 1.2-1.5mil and the various tapes and techniques found in that thread.
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