parachute material

**stoikurt** · 07-17-2007, 15:57

Well, the original question pertained to a tarp and a tarp needs to have some level of water tightness to be effective.
I agree that you don't want a water tight hammock.

**Cannibal** · 07-17-2007, 16:01

Shows how well I pay attention. My bad.

**warbonnetguy** · 07-17-2007, 17:42

i called a parachute company awhile back. i don't think the guy knew what regular ripstop nylon was, but it sounded like the parachute material was specially treated or something. i think the treatment was to increase wind resistance though. he didn't know if it was waterproof though, and since i was really inquiring about the parachute nylon the eno is made of, i didn't persue it any farther. can't remember the mill, but its made in the U.S.

**slowhike** · 07-17-2007, 18:57

maybe crawdaddy or someone could buy one & check it out

**TeeDee** · 07-17-2007, 19:10

I thought somebody had inquired about this on another thread in the past and I thought the person had purchased a surplus parachute - maybe another forum though.

**slowhike** · 07-17-2007, 19:26

Originally Posted by TeeDee

I thought somebody had inquired about this on another thread in the past and I thought the person had purchased a surplus parachute - maybe another forum though.

yep, i believe it was being discussed on another thread here recently, but i don't remember where it went<g>.

**Shadowmoss** · 07-17-2007, 20:43

I'm thinking he found that there wasn't a single piece large enough to make a hammock out of, since the parachute is sewn together of several pieces. Could be wrong since I'm writing from memory on a subject I know little of. Never stopped me from talking about something before, though.

**Hooch** · 07-18-2007, 08:34

Speaking as a former active duty Recon Marine, with many water jumps under my belt, I can say that parachutes ARE NOT waterproof. When they get wet, depending on the kind of parachute and its manufacturer, they can become saturated, very heavy and waterlogged. Definitely not the kind of material you'd want to use for a tarp. They could be made to work in a survival situation, but for regular use, I'd avoid it. Some have a DWR coating on them, but you never know when you're going to find one. Better safe than sorry, if you ask me.

**Just Jeff** · 07-25-2007, 21:10

Hrm...can't seem to find that thread either.

We cut up parachutes in survival school to make shelters with. They're not waterproof, but if you stretch them tightly enough they're close...you get a good mist coming through in heavy rains. So we doubled up sections...the first layer misted the rain, and the mist falls on the inner layer, and as long as you don't touch it from the inside you'll stay dry. At least that's the material we used...they were unserviceable pilot parachutes.

The drag chute fabric at noahlamport.com is silnylon, though. Some other parachutes might be made from silnylon.

And with the military chutes, finding a section big enough for a hammock that doesn't have a seam in it is not possible. I had a student make a hammock anyway...he just dealt with the pressure points. Still said he was comfortable.

But when material is only $1/yd, it's not really worth using an old chute for a hammock.