Curiosity made me check the BPL website again. The feedback on cuben fiber is not just ancient; it's prehistoric.
Curiosity made me check the BPL website again. The feedback on cuben fiber is not just ancient; it's prehistoric.
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson
I must be looking at backpackinglight2.com then. Or I know how to read dates especially well.
I plan on using mine for years based on the info there and elsewhere on the internet. Sorry but Hammockforums doesn't have a monopoly on cuben fiber intel.
While not a 1-to-1 comparison, I think it is worth noting the performance of shelters from companies like Zpacks, who use 0.5osy cuben to make their tarps.
They consistently are reviewed as having life spans of at least one big thru-hike (AT, PCT, CDT). That is to say, anywhere between 100-200 nights. For most more casual users (lets say ~20 nights a season) that means 5-10 years of use. Thats a lot. There are several users who have used the same shelter for the whole triple crown, which is nearly 8,000 trail miles. That's nuts.
That said, you won't be able to just abuse it in the same way you can a more conventional material.
For some anecdotal info, I have a 0.74osy square flat tarp that use ~10 times a season. Had it for the last 3 seasons. It has been in a lot of wind, some rain, and some hail. Doesn't really show much sign of wear.
Why don't you post some of those remarkably-up-to-date BPL threads on cuben fiber? Maybe I just don't know how to Google them.Originally Posted by markr6
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson
If I ever bought a CF tarp it will be because I have the money and because I can. I will not be spending enough nights backpacking in the near future for durability to ever be a concern. There's literally a thread on here advocating at least 12 nights a year in your hammock (seriously 12 nights). I'm going to claim that most of us are working class folk who will never see the potential of their gear. We're lucky if we get 12 nights.
Well I do work 40 hours a week and find the time to get out more than 12 times a year, I can afford the tarp, I just was wandering how long other camper s was getting out of tarps the same kind.
It's a valid question and you won't get a reliable answer. Just take this phrase with a grain of salt ... "I've used x product for the last x years". Years mean nothing. It's how you use it, what condition's you use it in, and how much you use it. That was my point.
Not my job PAL. Drop it already.
I didn't expect you to provide remarkably-up-to-date BPL reviews of cuben fiber because I don't think they exist.
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson
I will get one someday. For the weight savings, they last pretty long from what I am told on the googlewebs. You need to be a little careful with them, but not super baby them.If you have the money, I say get it. Post your results.
J
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