How To Repair Cuben Fiber Tarp
I'thousand thinking almost taking the plunge and buying a cuben fiber tarp. My only question is, what sort of life expectancy should I expect? It would be used several times a week for 3 seasons, and occasionally in the winter equally a roof over my hammock. Thanks.
whomeworry 171 reviewer rep | 3,814 forum posts
6:09 p.m. on February 20, 2017 (EST)
The flim-flam is avoiding abrasion. Cuben is not good at taking abrasion. Some folks posted reviews of mountaineering sacks that were well beat upwards from scraping rocks after just one circuit. They are waterproof merely that means condensation is another problem. Otherwise they are strong, UV resistant and don't stretch out. I imagine a cautious user will go whatever the life expectancy of the seam record is, regarding a tarp.
Ed
Jake W REVIEW CORPS half-dozen,697 reviewer rep | 1,118 forum posts
7:23 p.1000. on February 20, 2017 (EST)
In a word- forever.
As Ed said, the only affair Cuben Fiber is bad at is treatment is abrasion. A tarp is the perfect piece of equipment to brand out of information technology.
Even if yous should get a hole in it, it is super easy to repair. A trivial repair patch over it and its as practiced as new. The tear strength of the stuff in incredible, any pocket-size hole won't get any bigger.
Bill Due south REVIEW CORPS 4,582 reviewer rep | 6,037 forum posts
11:24 a.thou. on February 21, 2017 (EST)
Information technology is very easy to puncture cuben fiber. When I was stuffing my tent into its stuff sack with its fold-up carbon poles, I managed to push button besides hard against the bag (also cuben fiber), punching a hole in the bag. Yes, the supplied repair tape did cover the hole. I accept been a lot more careful since doing that. I have been told by friends who are super ULers that when pitched taut, if y'all somehow get a sharp edge confronting the taut cuben, it can produce a rip. Haven't tried that, don't intend to endeavor it.
TheRambler 2,820 reviewer rep | 1,638 forum posts
8:35 p.m. on March five, 2017 (EST)
Cuben fiber is pretty squeamish, but I find myself preferring silnylon still. Mainly due to the abrasion issue. Yes its easily repaired, simply I would rather not accept to patch my tarp all the fourth dimension. The other thing that drives me bat sh*t crazy is the noise, the noise a cuben fiber tarp makes practically drives me insane.
Cuben cobweb does accept a great tear strength, even so that is only in the direction of the weave. Try to push button something through the weave and its very weak. Kind of like carbon cobweb, very stiff in its intended direction just apply force in the opposite and information technology can easily break or shatter.
I had poor results with cuben tarps and fabricated the switch back to silnylon. The weight savings just wasn't worth it to me. I don't abuse my gear but I don't babe it either. I don't desire to have to worry near accidentally putting a hole in my expensive cuben tarp. I don't desire to exist bothered by the crinkly/noisy nature of the fabric. And if I manage to become a hole in silnylon I don't feel bad virtually it really, and its besides like shooting fish in a barrel to patch.
I would guestimate that at the frequency of utilise y'all country that I would non count on the tarp lasting more than three years, simply you might be near to extend that to v-7, its really a hard thing to say. I wouldn't bank on the tarp making information technology much by the seven year mark with apply 3/week. Doesn't really thing what the tarp is made of, they all have around a 5-10 twelvemonth service life with moderate use. If you maintain it and patch information technology as required it volition theoretically last forever.
Jake Westward REVIEW CORPS vi,697 reviewer rep | ane,118 forum posts
ix:03 p.m. on March 5, 2017 (EST)
Couple more thoughts-
Cuben is, at minimum, equal to, if not amend than, silnylon in puncture resistance. So annihilation yous punctured fabricated out of Cuben would take done the same to silnylon.
The other affair to continue in mind when purchasing a cuben tarp is the weight. Many manufacturers make tarps out of varying weight. You could get a (relatively) heavyweight cuben tarp for the very same weight equally a silnylon (your pockets volition also exist lighter though!).
The racket is a expert point, specially hail confronting cuben can be LOUD. I can generally sleep through anything but it can exist annoying even for me.
Cuben tarps are likewise much harder to set up, it's a steeper learning curve. Because it doesn't stretch (which can get a positive once you lot know how to set information technology up properly) a cuben tarp doesn't accept the initial give that a silnylon would.
Last point that no i has mentioned is the UV degradation. If using information technology extensively in the sun the silnylon can dry out and crevice much faster. To be honest y'all could buy three silnylon tarps that last three years each for the aforementioned price that one cuben that would last you ix years. It's all a affair of personal preference.
TheRambler 2,820 reviewer rep | 1,638 forum posts
10:52 a.m. on March 7, 2017 (EST)
I agree information technology'south all a matter of personal preference.
To me the but real advantage cuben cobweb has is the weight savings and letting calorie-free through/partially transparent.
Abrasion: In regards to puncture I agree both materials are the same. But from actual abrasion I think silnylon has the border. I had several holes develop in my cuben tarp from chafe over a yr. I was where a tarp door was rubbing on a tree, the other where my hammock pause carabiner was rubbing against it when rigged low during some bad wind/rain storms. And by hole I don't mean an actual gaping hole, I just hateful a spot in the cloth that got worn plenty to allow h2o through.
I accept never had a pigsty develop in my silnylon tarps from that kind of use, and they take had a lot more use than that ane cuben tarp. Maybe information technology's because it does stretch a little, and is a little slippier of a fabric....or peradventure its just voodoo magic. I don't really care that a pigsty developed in those ii situations because it was my own fault for having information technology touching, I was simply surprised, especially from the carabiner/suspension rubbing. Easy plenty to fix though.
Peradventure it was but besides thin of a cuben cloth, I don't actually know. It was my first cuben tarp and I wasn't overly impressed so I havn't had the bug to attempt a unlike i just yet. Lot'south of people utilise them and seem perfectly happy with them though.
George of the Jungle 500 reviewer rep | 40 forum posts
1:31 p.m. on March 22, 2017 (EDT)
Hmmm... All adept data. Durrability is the big business concern that I take. My current tarp (Kelty Noah'southward Tarp 9x9) has withstood some heavy abrasion and hits over the years, and I question how the cuben fiber would take it. Would chunks of frozen snow & water ice falling from loftier branches be enough to puncture through? Or small pieces of branches durring high wind storms?
I've besides heard that silnylon "sweats" or "leaks". Is this true, and if so, to what extent? I've been rained on through saturated/leaking rainflies before, and information technology can impale a night of sleep. Likewise, would silnylon stand to the falling ice & branches when pulled taut, or volition it always have a sort of stretch to it?
Thank you for all of the input!
George of the Jungle 500 reviewer rep | 40 forum posts
one:54 p.m. on March 22, 2017 (EDT)
Some other thought, how does either material handle creases? On existent windy nights when the tarp is constantly being pushed and pulled with a good amount of force, somewhen information technology volition loosen upward somewhere slightly, and will fold over its self on the ridgeline. It looks like little wrinkles from far away, but they're little creases. After a few uses, nearly materials habiliment thin in these places. Which would have a better resistance to this sort of matter?
whomeworry 171 reviewer rep | 3,814 forum posts
7:06 p.grand. on March 22, 2017 (EDT)
Cannot comment on the type of creases you describe happening with your current tarp, just tin say that cuben packs away smaller when it is folded, versus randomly stuffed into a storage bag. Merely as long equally you lot pitch taut, the cuben should not crease as you draw.
Equally for things getting loose on windy nights, I observe all pitched structures will lose tautness as they cool. Hence I go back and readjust the guy lines if the slackness annoys me. I find I usually only accept to do this once nightly.
If wind lone causes your rig to go slack it may exist due iii factors:
- Using shock cord that isn't sufficiently strong or is losing it's elasticity. Replace shock cords with this issue.
- Using (non-stretch) cord that has a flake of stretch in information technology (yes most cords and rope will stretch a wee scrap). A one time readjusting of the cord should address this.
- Your knots or quick adjust gizmo may be slipping. Sometimes this is due to using cords that don't concur the standard knots well, or a mismatch of cord size and gizmo utilized, or worn out gizmos. Resort to different knots, or use properly paired cord and gizmo, or supersede worn gizmos.
Ed
George of the Jungle 500 reviewer rep | 40 forum posts
10:05 a.m. on March 23, 2017 (EDT)
I use the thinnest "zing-it" i could find as a ridge line, and employ the same material for prussic knots on each end to secure the tarp. I had to loop the knot around iv times instead of the normal 3 because the rope kept sliding on its self. Possibly the 4th wrap isn't as efficient as I thought.
That being said, it has gone through some very intense winds, and simply ever loosens enough to create those "wrinkles", and never annihilation more. If I want to pull it taut again, I accept to pull the stakes to salvage tension, then ready the issue. That just isn't possible during a storm (when this happens).
I idea the material that I use is common for ridge lines, but perhaps my set upwardly needs to exist refined a piddling more than some how? The "zing-it" is fabricated of "dynema" I believe. It's very stiff, very light, has minimal stretch, holds no h2o, and sort of has a plastic or waxy feel to it.
whomeworry 171 reviewer rep | 3,814 forum posts
six:06 p.m. on March 23, 2017 (EDT)
I have some of that cordage! I've had issues at times with taut and hitch knots on the line yous draw, but that doesn't sound like your issue, when knots skid they slip significantly enough to know. That kind of cord also is slightly elastic, not due to the dynema, rather the slack the complect pattern wants to accumulate when at rest. Thus this line definitely needs an initial tensioning, and a melody upward sometime earlier bed.
Ed
Twig TOP x REVIEWER REVIEW CORPS 8,408 reviewer rep | 194 forum posts
8:10 p.one thousand. on March 28, 2017 (EDT)
A flying stick or something punched a pigsty in my cuben fiber tarp the very first time I used it. I was a bit peeved but put some patches over it, problem solved. I felt improve later learning that a tornado alarm had been issued for the expanse, and and so it had survived a pretty severe thunderstorm by and large intact. Since then, I haven't had any other mishaps. What I like most almost cuben is that it doesn't absorb any water and the condensation that does collect on the surface can exist wiped away or dries very fast. It also doesn't stretch much, if at all.
Joseph Renow @jrenow REVIEW CORPS 1,772 reviewer rep | 744 forum posts
12:x p.1000. on Apr seven, 2017 (EDT)
I second Lah's comment about Cuben not arresting every bit much wet as sil-nylon as Cuben'south most impacting feature (almost no stretch and dry out in your bag...so proficient!) The weight savings are silly given the deviation in price...if you say you bought Cuben for weight savings everyone secretly laughs at yous a little as you likely could have saved weight in several pieces of gear if you used the money elsewhere. Cuben does make dissonance when things are falling on information technology...the sound information technology makes is non so much the irritation as the volume...just I don't heed information technology as Sil makes quite a scrap of noise in the same situations. For myself personally I have a big Cuben tarp that I bring when I expect rain or snow and several Sil tarps of unlike shapes that I apply in drier and windy conditions.
JRinGeorgia Height 25 REVIEWER ii,432 reviewer rep | 460 forum posts
ane:55 p.thousand. on April 7, 2017 (EDT)
Cuben was designed originally to make sails for competitive yacht racing, so it does non absorb water, does not stretch/sag, is super-lightweight and has great tear strength/resistance.
Chafe isn't much of a factor for yacht racing so true that cuben is not the virtually abrasion resistant, but it isn't delicate either. How long it can last depends on the particular version of cuben y'all are using (some is thicker and has more dyneema threads than others) and what you subject information technology to.
Typically shelters and packs made from cuben are expected to concluding at least the distance of one long thru hike (and then minimum ~2500 miles). Information technology'south subjective if that represents wearing out as well quickly, simply for many the trade-off in lighter weight to comport for that many miles is worth the expense of having to replace information technology more than quickly. For many that represents many years of using the gear and enjoying the weight savings.
I respectfully disagree that people will laugh at you for buying cuben for weight savings -- y'all can save a pound in your shelter, half a pound in your pack, one-half a pound in pelting gear, that adds up to serious weight. Certainly look to culling things from your kit to save weight as well, merely those who purchase cuben backpacking gear do and then mainly for the weight savings.
Joseph Renow @jrenow REVIEW CORPS one,772 reviewer rep | 744 forum posts
nine:53 p.thousand. on April 7, 2017 (EDT)
I respectfully disagree (partially) with your respectful disagreement :-) If you have the money to purchase a Cuben shelter/pack/rain gear you lot should likewise take a 900 fill sleeping bag + a Ti pot and esbit "kitchen" + the leanest "small items" sack + Neo-Air X-lite (or something lighter like a Gossamer pad) + etc...or I am secretly laughing at you because you didn't use your budget well in terms of overall weight savings. I might also secretly chuckle (or worry) a little bit if you are using Cuben for rain gear if the weather condition is not warm...because Cuben doesn't breath very well (if at all?) which makes its utilize in libation weather poor if non suspect.
I would also respectfully disagree with your math...an 8x10 sil tarp weighs in the neighborhood of 14 oz https://world wide web.rei.com/production/721102/equinox-ul-tarp-10-x-8 which means to save a pound an as sized Cuben tarp would have to intermission the rules of reality and weigh -2oz!?! A quick check over at Zpacks website reveals an viii.5x10 tarp weighs 7.5oz. http://www.zpacks.com/shelter/tarps.shtml
I recollect the weight savings of Cuben get even more dubious in regards to packs where abrasion makes the utilize of Cuben limited...and coupled with the fact that the amount of fabric used to construct a pack is relatively small and a tiny fraction of the total weight of a pack at that place isn't a lot of weight savings to be had with choosing Cuben (though in wet conditions it could save a lot of weight due to depression assimilation). To put it simply...if given the selection between a Cuben pack and a Robic pack I would choose the Cuben pack only where I expected really wet conditions as the weight savings are minimal until my pack is soaked...and I certainly think fit and comfort are far more important considerations when choosing a pack than the marginal weight savings of Cuben.
To your point about most people choosing Cuben for the weight savings that might be truthful (though I would similar to come across the data)...simply the fact that people choose Cuben for weight savings does not hateful that weight savings is the best reason to cull it (people practise things for a lot of terrible reasons). If you lot accept no other way to salvage weight then by all ways purchase Cuben as long as it is well suited for the task ahead...merely I would contend that people should start to think of Cuben not so much for its weight savings as they should a technology that works Astonishing in wet weather condition.
February 14, 2022
Quick Reply
Source: https://www.trailspace.com/forums/gear-repair/topics/183066.html
Posted by: smithplefted.blogspot.com
0 Response to "How To Repair Cuben Fiber Tarp"
Post a Comment