Behold, the DynaFly, 2018!

[Dynamystic]

I’m really thinking about pole removal in terms of a safety fallback rather than a feature. Imagine you’re 10 miles into the middle of nowhere and then realize you forgot to pack the pole. Now what? Ideally, you still have a fully functional tarp, just as good as any other tarp, but perhaps missing a few luxury features like the vestibule.

Would it make a difference if there was a ribbon tie at the very top to pass a CRL through?

I see. I'll have to shoot a pic or vid of the DynaFly pitched without a center pole so I can really show how, functionally, I think she would still do her job. That said, I'm sure that you would still wish that you had remembered your pole because the difference is everything.

A central loop (ribbon) for a CRL could certainly be added. However, I've found that the 2 weakest points in the seams, from a waterproofing perspective, have been where the center pole clips enter the roof seam. While easily surmountable with the appropriate seam sealing, I hesitate to add anything extra to the seams unless absolutely necessary. The ridge seam is reinforced, so with a little extra tension she pulls nice and straight, especially without the central pole weight dragging it down. All this considered, I can certainly see the central loop benefiting those who prefer to use a CRL over top of the tarp. With this add-on, you wouldn't have to worry about the center pole taking any of the forces of the CRL either. Alphabennet mentioned something similar to this in a PM he sent and it is worthy of consideration.

Thank you for the feedback, leiavoia!

[MDCrab]

What an elegant design! Versatile. I can foresee these popping up at hangs everywhere.

[BigE94]

VERY NICE! All of it! Time to get this baby into mass production. I'd be interested to know what type of basting tape you are using on PU fabric. I've tried several and they just don't stick. I haven't tried the ones from Sailrite yet.

[m00ch]

With all the tandem talk that I heard about this new tarp I thought that my unsolvable (to me) problem was over. Unfortunately I still have not seen any pictures of the ends of the tarp actually closing with a spreader bar on a tandem hang. The head end looks the same as my other winter tarps....kind of closer to closed, tons of rubbing, and when one person gets out it shoves the other spreader bar end up and into the tarp. In nice weather, no problem but when the wind and rain hit is there a way to close it up and not have an issue with the movements of the spreader bar and straps?

[Dynamystic]

What an elegant design! Versatile. I can foresee these popping up at hangs everywhere.

Thank you! I look forward to when more people can see and play with one in person.

VERY NICE! All of it! Time to get this baby into mass production. I'd be interested to know what type of basting tape you are using on PU fabric. I've tried several and they just don't stick. I haven't tried the ones from Sailrite yet.

Thank you! I'd love to see this baby in production but there is obviously still some testing to be done and feedback to be had before I rush into anything.

To answer the question: I'm using the Sailrite vinyl and sail tape because it is thinner and cheaper but it doesn't bond quite as well as the more expensive, thicker acrylic canvas tape. I'm going to do some more experimenting with the canvas tape since it might improve the seam water proofing but I used the last of it a while back so I'd have to order another roll to run a test. I've also used some tape I ordered from amazon and it did the job but not as aggressively as the Sailrite tape. Regardless, as a basting tape they are really only meant to hold things in place while you sew. This is actually a good thing because screw ups while taping by hand do occur and its nice to be able to pull things apart and realign them. You don't want it too sticky.

With all the tandem talk that I heard about this new tarp I thought that my unsolvable (to me) problem was over. Unfortunately I still have not seen any pictures of the ends of the tarp actually closing with a spreader bar on a tandem hang. The head end looks the same as my other winter tarps....kind of closer to closed, tons of rubbing, and when one person gets out it shoves the other spreader bar end up and into the tarp. In nice weather, no problem but when the wind and rain hit is there a way to close it up and not have an issue with the movements of the spreader bar and straps?

Well, I certainly can't say that the DynaFly solves the duo hang conundrums that you speak of but it is my current favorite option for hanging side-by-side for a number of reasons, most of which have to do with the vestibule (but that's off topic here). Originally, I designed the DynaFly for 1 person because side-by-side hanging wasn't really being done at the time without using 3 trees. It wasn't until the release of Dutch's Chameleon that I gave serious thought to how the DynaFly could be used for 2 hammocks. Initially, I assumed that I would have to make a modified DynaFly with 2 ridgelines, separated at the head end by a tent pole with a filler roof piece that could be pitched for drainage with a CRL. (This is still something that I consider doing someday as a family specific setup) I wasn't on that mission at the time but how to make it work for 2 was always on my mind. A couple significant changes to the design later, suddenly the end was opening up nicely without extra material fluff, and I knew it could be done with 1 Fly. I know that I haven't solved all the problems of side-by-side hanging but I have worked to minimize as many problems as possible so let's see if I can address your concerns. You address 3 issues in particular:

1) Closing the end for heavy weather. I agree, opening up the head end of any tarp to allow for the hammock spreader makes that end vulnerable to wind driven rain. Even with a monster tarp with lots of pole mods to open things up like Boulderv7's Chimera Tarp, there still seems some risk of wind blown rain. Like you say, its hard to close up the end without spreader bar rubbing issues. To deal with this vulnerability issue I toyed around with a concept similar to this Honeymoon Suite design.

I made a couple prototypes of that looked very similar to the Honeymoon Suite end. I called it the Storm Shroud and it worked in the studio but had some real world issues. I would like to play more with this concept but once I designed the Storm Deflectors, the Storm Shroud got put on the back shelf. Here's a couple good angles taken from the video of the DynaFly Duo mode with the Storm Deflectors attached:



The Fly isn't totally closed off, obviously, but the coverage has felt more than sufficient for the light to moderate weather the family and I have been brave enough to encounter. More work needs to be done to have a heavy storm worthy solution to side-by-side hanging but I think that an answer is out there. We just gotta keep experimenting.

2) Spreader pole rubbing. This has always been a major concern of mine when hanging duo. This is why I kept the DynaFly at an 11' ridgeline and have the wings cut back further than they are with other designs like the Thunderfly. When hung low to the hammock with the tent pole opening things up, all the metal hammock hardware can fall outside of the Fly while still offering decent coverage. Also, (as you can kinda tell from the pics) with the tent pole in place the wings flare up at the end where the poles attach to the wings. All of this helps prevent fabric from resting against the hardware and also allows for movement of the hammock spreader pole, which brings us to the next concern.

3) Spreader pole movement when other person gets out. This is another valid problem, especially when a tarp extends past the spreader pole. There is a trick that i learned from James Fowler here . This neat little idea actually works really well for stabilizing hammock spreader bar movement. I'm still experimenting with it and have actually been fantasizing about going back to my Storm Shroud idea and exploring whether I can attach it directly to the spreader pole and integrate the "Fowler Stabilizers" (just made that up) into the seams of the shroud itself. That's an idea for a later time though.

Even without the "Fowler Stabilizers" the shape at the open end of the DynaFly combined with the ability to hang all the metal hardware outside of the Fly has made the spreader pole movement a mostly non-issue. When one of the two hangers stands up, the spreader pivots up and the hardware clears the Fly. The ridgeline of the hammock comes into contact with the fabric and the Fly lifts a little and everything seems to shift in such a way where the tension gets distributed and the stakes and guy lines stay put. It does have to be hung correctly for this scenario to be true so a little fiddle factor is inevitable when getting things tuned in even with some experience.

I hope this helps with the understanding of what I've done even if it doesn't ultimately solve the problems.

[dejoha]

Hey folks! I’m trying out the dynafly myself and just survived two full days of typhoon rain. It was awesome! Lots of flooding here in Arizona. But the tarp held up amazingly well. No pooling on the “roof”. All dry in sector six

This is not your quick and dirty tarp. This is a serious tarp that serves serious needs. I love the multi use options, especially the look to two person side-by-side hangs. It’s got a lot of config options. It’s perfect for group hangs

[Dynamystic]

Hey folks! I’m trying out the dynafly myself and just survived two full days of typhoon rain. It was awesome! Lots of flooding here in Arizona. But the tarp held up amazingly well. No pooling on the “roof”. All dry in sector six

This is not your quick and dirty tarp. This is a serious tarp that serves serious needs. I love the multi use options, especially the look to two person side-by-side hangs. It’s got a lot of config options. It’s perfect for group hangs

What a great test! That timing couldn't have worked out better. Thank you for braving the storm and for your kind words. You just brought a very big smile to my face.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[Flash Grundelore]

Hey folks! I’m trying out the dynafly myself and just survived two full days of typhoon rain. It was awesome! Lots of flooding here in Arizona. But the tarp held up amazingly well. No pooling on the “roof”. All dry in sector six

This is not your quick and dirty tarp. This is a serious tarp that serves serious needs. I love the multi use options, especially the look to two person side-by-side hangs. It’s got a lot of config options. It’s perfect for group hangs

Good to hear.
The first note I sent back to Dynamystic about ol' #1 was "this is not a first tarp". I certainly echo that this is for serious, seasoned hangers who know what they are doing, and what their own needs/requirements are. You want to have some experience with trimming a tarp for weather situations before you realize just how marvelous the DynaFly is!

[m00ch]

Thanks for taking the time for responding to my comment. The issues and thought pattern that you have described are similar to my experience as well. To alleviate the hardware rubbing I add a dogbone to our continuous loops to clear the tarp and my doors have an aggressive catcut. But as you know this still leaves a large hole where the spreader bar is. I am in the process of sewing beaks on the inside of the tarp similar to what Ray Jardine has on his tarps (made hammock popular by Warbonnet). I will use the "hinge line" of the doors as my sewing point. We will see how that goes.
Thanks for the tip about the Fowler Stabilizers. I have never seen that but it looks like a simple/light fix.

Once again thanks for the detailed response.

[Dynamystic]

Good to hear.
The first note I sent back to Dynamystic about ol' #1 was "this is not a first tarp". I certainly echo that this is for serious, seasoned hangers who know what they are doing, and what their own needs/requirements are. You want to have some experience with trimming a tarp for weather situations before you realize just how marvelous the DynaFly is!

You may be right Flash,

I have had multiple friends ask me when the DynaFly will be in REI. I have to tell them that even if I could (or if I even wanted to) bring her to market on that scale, I'm not sure REI hammock shoppers are my target at the moment. That said, let us not take her too seriously. After all...

No real surprises in getting it up... at the end of the day, it IS just a tarp.

;-D

Thanks for taking the time for responding to my comment. The issues and thought pattern that you have described are similar to my experience as well. To alleviate the hardware rubbing I add a dogbone to our continuous loops to clear the tarp and my doors have an aggressive catcut. But as you know this still leaves a large hole where the spreader bar is. I am in the process of sewing beaks on the inside of the tarp similar to what Ray Jardine has on his tarps (made hammock popular by Warbonnet). I will use the "hinge line" of the doors as my sewing point. We will see how that goes.
Thanks for the tip about the Fowler Stabilizers. I have never seen that but it looks like a simple/light fix.

Once again thanks for the detailed response.

My pleasure Mooch,

I appreciate the comments. It gives me an opportunity to help refine how I present my project and also reminds me that there are still common issues that need solutions. Does creativity ever exhaust itself? It sure can have a way of exhausting the creators... ;-)

Having an extra barrier inside the tarp like you describe could really help with the spreader bar hole you mention. Almost like a draft collar on an UQ, it could be like a weather collar for your tarp. Its a very interesting concept and I'm curious to hear more about how these interior Jardine style beaks turn out for you. Please keep me informed.

Cheers!