Tarp help

[dgardner]

Hi,
I'm quite new to this so please be kind
While I have been camping for a while I am keen to try
Hammock and tarp camping and am looking for help with
getting a tarp, I have seen this one:
http://www.tarpaflex.co.uk/acatalog/army-camouflage-tarpaulins.html
The 2.4m x 3.0m which works out at about £10.00 all in
and was wondering if anyone had tried these.

 

[trekkingnut]

im a total gram granny and its pretty well known that the less you pay the heavier the tarp will be.... this one looks like it will be heavy.... depends on whether that bothers you or not i guess....

i regularly use a hennessy hammock and stock asym tarp that comes with it... what sort of hammocking system do you have?

 

[dgardner]

Hi,
Thanks for the reply,
I have one of these:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Insulated-Cam...tem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item5adaff5a08
and weight won't really be a problem as I will be using my bike

 

[PeterH]

Hi,
.... I have seen this one:
http://www.tarpaflex.co.uk/acatalog/army-camouflage-tarpaulins.html
The 2.4m x 3.0m which works out at about £10.00 all in
and was wondering if anyone had tried these.

There is nothing wrong with this if you just want to find out if it is "for you", I and others I know use similar with Scouts and to construct walls/screens etc etc as it is not such a big deal if they are damaged. However they are the camo equivalent of a blue builders tarp; noisy, quite challenging to tension and rather bulky so as a longer term investment I would spend a little more and get something else.

I have:
- both the old (heavy but robust and smoky as we use it as living area shelter) and new (lighter but needs more care) DD tarps used by my son,
- a nice light "mosquito fly" that I picked up on ebay and lives in my walking pack
- for my hennessey the asym fly it came with and a hex fly that only tends to get put on in colder (wetter) weather or when hammocking near the car
- ten 2 x 3 tarpaflexs for Scouts!

If I remember correctly you will probably have to add eyelets to the tarpaflex to have a central ridge or as we do use it asymetrically giving either a low sid or extended roof as desired.

 

[andy_e]

Good advice above, one other thing to note: I've used these in the past too and you have to pitch it with care as I've had the eyelets tear out in high winds.

If you wanted and have access to a sewing machine, you could easily modify it yourself to make it more durable - adding reinforcement patches and tape/webbing loops at the corners. I'd be tempted to do that in preference to eyelets for ridge-line.

 

[Retired Member southey]

Hi dgardener, Have you had a look at the DD hammocks kit, the price is resonable and the kit is great, I use a travel hammock, and have never had any probs with it, it's not that heavy and packs down to a good size. I use an Issue basha with it riged diagonaly it give more than enough room.

 

[Melonfish]

DD tarp, the 3X3 is simply amazing, keeps the weather off and weighs in at 650g packed. can't sniff at that!

 

[Silverhill]

DD all the way for me too. Okay, it may be a little pricey for an initial outlay, but it is versatile, light, strong and well made.
Happy hammocking!

 

[J4C3]

Another vote for DD ,as others have remarked cost often means weight,the balance of weight,durability and cost DD for the tarp and Hammock are very hard to beat.

 

[Melonfish]

to be honest tho, 29.99 including delivery is fantastic for the DD tarp. its well worth it and i can see mine lasting years.

 

[dgardner]

Hi,
Thanks agai for the replies.
I decided to buy a cheap tarp from wickes to try it out
as per the replies it was hard to get it tight enough
and the rustling was incredibly loud so will probably go for
the xl dd tarp.
Once i had the hammock and tarp up, apart from the noise,
I was very impressed especially with the hammock which
was very comfortable and warm

 

[clive.s]

Thanks for all the advice in the tarp threads, I'm upgrading from my own home made version and the sound advice seems to boil down to:

http://www.lakelandbushcraft.co.uk/acatalog/Tatonka.html
http://www.truenorthoutdoor.co.uk/littletarp.htm
http://www.decathlon.co.uk/EN/tarp-3243880/#
http://www.backpackinglight.co.uk/page112.asp
http://www.ddhammocks.com/gallery/tarp

Any other top contenders out there?

 

[drewdunnrespect]

yep

http://www.truenorthoutdoor.co.uk/bigtarp.htm

its the one i have and its amazing