That is the question . Right now I have the new OES gen2 tarp . Love the tarp and coverage. Weighed in at about 12oz. Anyone with experience of the Cuben cat cut tarp would be of assistance. Value for the weight difference to me seems pricy . Cuben tarps average around 6 oz. So the silpoly tarp I have is 50% heavier than Cuben . Is it really worth the extra $ for a Cuben tarp. I feel like I would always have to baby it .i need pros and cons. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
I don't have enough experience with cuben to speak as to its durability, but to me, the cost vs. weight savings benefit is very subjective. You can get thousands of opinions on this issue, however, it's all going to come down to your own personal opinion.
Being a backpacker the weight savings, to me, was absolutely worth the high price. It was one of the last places I could shave serious ounces. I was hesitant about the durability issue at first, but after watching Shug throw his around in the northwoods for several years without any disasters I became more relaxed about it and pulled the trigger. Plus the non stretch is a huge bonus for me personally.
I hade one and sold it, to switch to sil
I was out this weekend with two other guys, we had rain, hail and sleet. I had a HH Hex, one guy had a superfly and the other CF. The hex and superfly both had ice that we tried to scrape off and couldn't completely and I barely got the hex back into its stuff sack, the CF was fine no ice no nothing, not sure if it was a fluke but I'm impressed
If you can't justify cuben fiber, don't try. I've been using cuben fiber about three years and certainly don't baby it. Cuben fiber's durability is well established, and it's the easiest tarp to repair as well (using cf tape). Cuben fiber is over 50% lighter than a comparable tarp in silnylon, but if that doesn't impress you, get silnylon or silpoly!
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson
In my experience the only "con" to cuben is price. While cuben may be slightly easier to puncture, it is less prone to tears and is far easier to repair. It also doesn't absorb water and doesn't stretch at all.
The major "pro" is obviously weight savings. A 6' tall person is going to take about 2600-2700 steps per mile. Using your 6oz difference between cuben and sil that would be 15,600-16,200 oz. a 6' person didn't have to lift in a single mile.
Personally, I'll be using cuben tarps until they either come up with something lighter & stronger or I'm doing all my trips in the everafter.
I sold my Cuben Fiber tarp. The bulk is the bane with Cuben Fiber. Space in my backpack is precious. The CF tarp I had while lighter, took twice the space in my pack and provided less coverage than my Superfly.
Questioning authority, Rocking the boat & Stirring the pot - Since 1965
My Winter Palace provides about the same coverage as the Superfly (actually more - 10'4" wide versus Superfly at 10' wide). I could care less about the bulk - it still fits in an outside pocket so nothing has changed there.Originally Posted by OCDave
And it's 8.6 ounces versus 19 ounces for the Superfly!
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson
The concern over bulkiness has me confused as well. It is definitely larger dimensions packed. However this is my Ohm 2.0 packed up for 5 days. My stove is in one side pocket and the winter palace in the other (its also a 12 footer). I have a bottle holder on my hipbelt as I hate reaching back. My raingear, water filter, stakes, and windshirt are tucked into the front expansion pocket. I'm somewhat a weight weary hiker but my base weight still runs between 11 and 12 (without food/water/extra clothes). Not trying to be difficult, we all have different views on what bulky is, this is just my perception. I've never had an issue with it. I do admit the superfly packing down to almost nothing was really really nice but oh the sweet sweet cloud like nothingness of holding a cuben fiber tarp in your hand.
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