No need for shock cord - doesn't improve anything in my opinion. However, some like shock cord with cuben fiber (Shug comes to mind). I've had a cuben fiber tarp about six years and have no problems getting a taut pitch every time.
No need for shock cord - doesn't improve anything in my opinion. However, some like shock cord with cuben fiber (Shug comes to mind). I've had a cuben fiber tarp about six years and have no problems getting a taut pitch every time.
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson
For what it's worth I just made the transition from a 11' Silmembrane tarp with doors on one end to the HG 11' standard with doors. I just can't like the Cuben tarp. I just returned from a section hike of the AT where it rained pretty much everyday and I just couldn't get used to the short sides on the Cuben tarp. No matter how I pitched low,wide what ever the sides were so short they allowed a lot of splash up on my underquilt. I did save 7 ounces in weight by switching to the Cuben tarp but lost a lot of rain protection compared to my silmembrane.
My first cuben fiber tarp was an HG standard with doors. I got it because HG wouldn't make me a Winter Palace (they claimed it was too much work). The standard was simply inadequate for blowing precipitation. A few months later, HG started selling the Winter Palace, and I immediately traded my standard for a Winter Palace. I haven't gotten even one drop of precipitation since, and I've had the Winter Palace for six years. I am not a fan of skimpy tarps - I'd rather have the full coverage of a Winter Palace, and not even think about blowing precipitation.Originally Posted by Mshanger
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson
I'm with you. I've been lucky for years using a no-door tarp, seeing either no rain or light/no blowing rain. That luck ran out. On my last two trips, one was too cool/windy and the other got stuff wet. Not a big deal, but a good wakeup call to start bringing a larger tarp more often.
I was campiing with a group and some had cuben tarps. Even though I wasn't sleeping under one, I could hear the noise in the rain from the others even though they were 20-50+ feet away I found it annoying
Six years ago, I used to be one of the few people who had a cuben fiber tarp. Now, they're very popular. But in the rain, you can hear all those cuben fiber tarps from a quarter of a mile!
But seriously, I can't hear much of a difference between rain on a cuben fiber tarp and rain on any other tarp. A hard rain on any tarp is loud. Even if cuben fiber were louder, I doubt it would bother me much. When I was growing up, we had a tin roof on our house for a couple of years and I slept like a baby!
Besides, until I see it scientifically quantified, I'm not going to listen to "cuben fiber is louder" arguments. At least give me a decibel meter and side-by-side tarps in the same rain storm!
The best you can get is the occasional humorous YouTube video:
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson
well said, Surfer...If you are outdoors, all is good with a good tarp.
I could tell the rain was louder on my new Cuben tarp compared to my sil membrane but not enough to matter or stop me from sleeping. I honestly loved everything about the tarp except for the shortness of the sides. I would probably be keeping it longer if the first times I used it wasn't in the rain but I'm trying to get rid of that sucker now. The only reason I carry a tarp is for the rain and a wet muddy underquilt isn't any fun.
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