Hi All
So i've used a hennessy hex tarp for a few years now and i'm looking at purchasing a winterdream tarp from UGQ to use in cool temps and for my daughter during 3 season for a bit of privacy. My question is are panel pulls and door snaps a good trade off for the additional cost? I have never used a tarp with panel pulls or doors.
Any help will be appreciated? TIA
The Panel pulls do open the interior a bit - especially with a wide-ish setup like a bridge hammock. But you may find that you'll soon want to use external poles above the ridge line rather than guying the panels out. So budget a little for that. Doors are a great addition - not only for more privacy and warmth, but also more security in case of a change in wind direction. I have found it best to orient the tarp parallel with the wind if possible.
But I don't know about snaps in cold weather. I have one tarp that uses velcro. I haven't tried it yet, but I can imagine it makes a bit of noise pulling the doors apart. Another tarp just has loops. I make some toggles that combine with the loop for a loose closure. You can always run a line - many people use light bungee cord for this - from the door bottom to its own stake or the same stake the side guy line uses.
To be fair, the snaps might be just fine. In my case, I've found that if they get snow in them, and it freezes, then both velcro and snaps don't behave as well. Great in warmer weather though.
I had a Hennessy Hex for years and it was a great tarp. But once, because of tree orientation, I had to set up in blowing (from the wrong direction) rain, I learned to appreciate doors.
In order to see what few have seen, you must go where few have gone. And DO what few have done.
I have a Winterdream 12 and I like the door snaps. Are you looking at a Penny Pincher Winterdream, or the regular version? (They are basically the same, except the regular version has a few more options and more fabric/color choices.) The snaps are included by default on the regular and the new Fast Track Winterdream tarps, but they're a $15 add-on for the Penny Pincher. Again, I like having them, but I typically only snap them at one end, so that the other end can be my entry/exit point. I wouldn't say they're necessary either, as a lot of tarps with doors don't have snaps - they just rely on the angle you stake them out at to determine how open or closed they are.
A bigger toss-up is panel-pulls vs. internal pole mods vs. neither.
I have external panel pulls on my Warbonnet Cloudburst tarp, which I use with a Ridgerunner hammock because the panel-pulls are spaced to make clearance for the spreader bars on the bridge hammock. On my Winterdream 12, I chose not to have panel pulls installed, but I do have both the center and end internal pole mods installed. I've never used all three poles at once, but sometimes I'll choose either the end poles or the center pole. The two end poles do a great job of opening up the inside of the tarp, and if you loosen the guylines on one side, you have an instant floating porch mode without having to use trekking poles. The center pole isn't quite as impressive, but still does a nice job of opening the area under the tarp, and it takes up less space and weight if you're backpacking. It's also a decent bit less expensive, if you were only going to choose one option.
Here are a couple other threads on the Winterdream, that might be helpful in making your decision.
https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...e-Winter-Dream
https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...e-and-end-pole
I was looking at the penny pinchers. Do still have to stake the doors when using the snaps or do they just seal wind from between the two doors.
My tarp is pictured in the 1st thread shared here..... maybe the 2nd ?? (didn't look through 5 pages of posts)Originally Posted by cmc4free
Summary:
1) Door snaps are very, very nice in driving rains.
2) I'm a HUGE fan of the internal end pole mods. You can go from a wide open porch mode w/o use of sticks or trekking poles .. to a hunker down o'chit mode in seconds w/o leaving the tarp (use a Dutch Fleaz on each corner, so can adjust the length of the guy lines from w/in the tarp
3) I have a WB Thunderfly w/ the panel poles and use smaller, lighter, shorter poles for an external pole mod. It's just me, but I've always had poles for each of my tarps and therefore have not used the panel pulls w/o them... I do think, however, that if needed for the windiest conditions, they may be useful / helpful to help tie-out the tarp against the wind.. or create space if not carrying poles.
So summary... for me, both are worth it.... though w/ an internal pole mod, once could reasonably skip the panel pulls.
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If you didn't stake them, they'd flap about in the wind even when snapped shut. I always stake mine, but on the side that I keep snapped, I only use one stake for both door flaps. I just connect one short guyline to the split rings of both door flaps. On the end that I use for entry/exit, I use two separate (shock cord) guylines.
You can't see the snapped-up end, but here is an example of my entry/exit end. The two flaps are closed asymetrically (which doesn't show really well in the photo) to leave an opening, but still block some amount of wind. DISCLAIMER: Since this photo was taken, I've gotten the internal end poles, and I personally like them much more than the single center pole. The end poles do a better job of opening the tarp, and they don't create that triangle of lift at the edge of the tarp on both sides, which lets some wind in. Plus there is the advantage of the floating porch mode that Us5Camp and I have described.
I have a winter dream 13. It has both the snaps and the panel pulls. I have never actually used the panel pulls because I have always had plenty of room under it. I do love having the snaps on the door. I have never had any issue with the snaps during the winter, even down to -18 f. As for the doors when not in use, I have a short piece of line that I use to stake the doors when in use, and I just fold them up onto the outside of the tarp. You can see mine both open and closed up in the pics.
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Tree Rhino
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Love that color !! What is it?
I've never had a tarp with snap closures on the doors, I rarely see conditions in my neck of the woods that would warrant them. I will also no longer be having pullouts added to any future tarp purchases. Seems I'd always pay extra to add them, then never use them. Always in porch mode.
Edited to add: There are some fine looking tarps on this thread!
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