Need source for silnylon

**Barry** · 10-04-2009, 17:15

My mother took some of my silnyln that was scheduled to be used for a tarp and I need to replace it now. I purchased it from Fabric Place when they were going out of business, so I am faced with finding another source for a waterproof material for my tarps and other uses.
The walmart in this area doesn't carry fabric anymore, so I'm looking for suggestions on less expensive sources.
Thanks
-b

**Mustardman** · 10-04-2009, 17:49

Barry, we just picked up some silnylon for CHEAP (~$3 a yard) from Noah Lamport - they don't have an online order form, or even listings of what they have in stock on their website, so you will have to call and ask. MrsMustardman (her actual hammockforums name), literally JUST finished a 12x10 tarp from the material today, so we haven't gotten to try it out yet. It's out in the front yard waiting for the seam sealer to dry as we speak.

**tight-wad** · 10-04-2009, 17:54

Your only choices now are Ed Speer, Outdoor Wilderness Fabrics, Rockywood, etc.

I shop very hard for "inexpensive" materials. I almost cried when Wally closed down the $1 bin.

Actually it was the $1.5 bin shortly before they shut it down.

Joann and Hancock sometimes have sil, but it is usually the heavier version, and it ain't cheap.

Sometimes you can find a fabric dept in rural Walmarts. Even then it is hit or miss as far as finding lightweight ripstop. Even before they shut it down, finding any sil (light or heavy) in a Walmart was a very rare event, and you just had to take the color they had.

**Ramblinrev** · 10-04-2009, 18:54

Regarding fabric depts at Wally World... It won't do most of you any good, but I was told by the fabric ladies at my local store that they may get a reprieve because of the level of Amish trade they do. How true that is I don't know but here's hoping.

**stevebo** · 10-04-2009, 19:03

Speer hammocks---------great products, prices and customer service! Your life is pretty much depending on it so dont go cheap!

**Arson** · 10-17-2009, 18:37

What about buying a cheap tent? I see big walk in tents with mesh vestibules sold out of the box stores. Are their fabrics that poor of quality? Can't I just cut up one of those?

**Ramblinrev** · 10-17-2009, 19:13

Originally Posted by Arson

What about buying a cheap tent? I see big walk in tents with mesh vestibules sold out of the box stores. Are their fabrics that poor of quality? Can't I just cut up one of those?

You can cut up anything you want. There are several issues at work here. One is the amount of usable fabric you actually get. You want to crunch some nmbers and make sure you have some usable pieces after allowing for zippers, seams and mesh windows. What might appear to be a good sized piece of fabric may become an unusable shape or size.

Secondly what is the weight of the fabric. I have not seen silnylon cabin tents. Admittedly I have never really been in the arket for a cabin tent but sil is not a common fabric used in those products. The largest tent I've had (a four person Eureka dome tent) was not made of sil. It had a PU coated fly and untreated interior walls. I'd bet the single wall cabin tents from the big box stores are PU coated nylon of a fairly substantial weight.

Then there is the cost effectiveness issue. With the previous questions resolved, what is the cost effectiveness of spending the money for a tent you are going cut up to get the amount of usable fabric you are going to get. If you have the tent already and it is taking up space in your gear closet and you want to cut itup then it doesn't cost you anything. I've recycled several tents for parts and pieces. But I would not have gotten anything near an effective cost comparison if I had gone out and bought the stuff to start with for the purpose of cutting it up.

**sclittlefield** · 10-17-2009, 19:24

Cheapest silnylon is 2nds at Noah Lamport at $3/yd (gotta call them, as previously mentioned). Also, Westmark Corp. does have some dark blue in the clearance section, but you've got to buy a hundred yards of it (also 3.00/yd) - it's finished as 1sts, but sold as 2nds because the color bleeds a little when wet.

**Arson** · 10-23-2009, 20:12

Originally Posted by Ramblinrev

You can cut up anything you want. There are several issues at work here. One is the amount of usable fabric you actually get. You want to crunch some nmbers and make sure you have some usable pieces after allowing for zippers, seams and mesh windows. What might appear to be a good sized piece of fabric may become an unusable shape or size.

Secondly what is the weight of the fabric. I have not seen silnylon cabin tents. Admittedly I have never really been in the arket for a cabin tent but sil is not a common fabric used in those products. The largest tent I've had (a four person Eureka dome tent) was not made of sil. It had a PU coated fly and untreated interior walls. I'd bet the single wall cabin tents from the big box stores are PU coated nylon of a fairly substantial weight.

Then there is the cost effectiveness issue. With the previous questions resolved, what is the cost effectiveness of spending the money for a tent you are going cut up to get the amount of usable fabric you are going to get. If you have the tent already and it is taking up space in your gear closet and you want to cut itup then it doesn't cost you anything. I've recycled several tents for parts and pieces. But I would not have gotten anything near an effective cost comparison if I had gone out and bought the stuff to start with for the purpose of cutting it up.

Good points on buying a tent to trash out. Probably not a lot of workable fabric once you cut it all up.

**Hammockrookie** · 10-24-2009, 14:35

I don't know much about any of this yet but I see on the Noah Lamport site that the nylon is urethane coated. Is that silnylon or something else? Just as good if not the same?