Where to Find Polyester Ripstop

[BurningCedar]

Has anyone had any recent luck locating lightweight polyester ripstop? Where did you find it?

I've been intrigued by the idea of a polyester hammock ever since I read this thread; but Rockywoods has been out of stock ever since the thread was posted.

I know that Rockywoods lists other polyesters in this category, but only the black item # 6824-3 (which is out of stock) is a ripstop material.

I'd LOVE to build me a polyester HH clone before Labor Day!

[headchange4u]

http://www.rockywoods.com/

More info here.

[Preacha Man]

BurningCedar,

I may have some, I will have to do the burn test to make for sure, but if I do I will send you some. That is if you don't mind gray.

Dwight

[Mrprez]

Ed Speer has some, but only in a dark gray or black. Good price though.

http://www.speerhammocks.com/Products/Supplies.htm

AYCE has a better selection of colors at a slightly higher price.

http://www.thru-hiker.com/materials/breathable.php

I have bought stuff from both and they are each top notch to deal with.

John

[BurningCedar]

Thanks all for the quick replies!

HC4U: Unfortunately Rockywoods has been out of it for a long time. That's where I've been trying to get it for a couple of months (ever since that thread was originally posted) and they have no idea when it might come back into stock.

Preach Man: Sounds cool if its polyester and a ripstop!!! Gray's no problem -- let me know how much you have and what you want to part with it.
p.s. Now that its cooling down (especially cool for August) I'm starting to dream of the Butterfield Trail again!

Mrprez: Thanks for the links, but it appears that these are all nylon.

[Mrprez]

Whoops, didn't read closely enough. Try the kite makers.

http://ecom.citystar.com/hang-em-hig...how&cat=FABRIC

Also try googling for Icarex.

John

[tight-wad]

I have found on multiple occassions a fabric that I call polyester ripstop in the $1 bin at Wally's World. And, every time its been the dark grey/ blue grey / not quite black. I did the burn test and came to the conclusion that it is poly and not nylon. My #1 and #2 (bridge) hammocks are made of this. Feels good!! I did not do the math to calculate oz/yd, but its more than 1.1 nylon and close to 1.9 nylon.

[BurningCedar]

Mrprez: Have you used Icarex for a hammock before? I found several sources for it (thanks very much for that) but at 0.9 oz/sqyd I'm concerned whether or not it would be strong enough. The descriptions also seem to indicate that it has a "hard" coating so I'm unsure about stickiness in hot weather or breathability. If it will work -- what a crazy light hammock that would make

All: I spoke with the best known supplier of poly, Rockywoods, over the past couple of days. They were kind enough to check with their supplying mills but came up empty. Sounds like we can't expect them to have it in stock for quite a long time. I will say that their customer service is awesome.

[Mrprez]

Nope, I haven't tried it yet, but as you know kites can endure quite a bit of stress from the wind, although I am not an engineer in any stretch of the imagination, but I think that this fabric might not make a good hammock material due to the "low air permeability" factor. It may be strong enough but probably wouldn't feel too good next to the skin.

John

[BurningCedar]

Nope, I haven't tried it yet, but as you know kites can endure quite a bit of stress from the wind, although I am not an engineer in any stretch of the imagination, but I think that this fabric might not make a good hammock material due to the "low air permeability" factor. It may be strong enough but probably wouldn't feel too good next to the skin.

I was thinking along the same lines. I tried to find a local DIY kite store so I could "feel" the fabric for myself with no luck. At that weight/sqyd, even a double-layer hammock should be incredibly strong without weighing too much. However, I'm too cheap to invest in buying it mail order without knowing about the breathability and feel first.