What would you do

[hairbear]

Im at the no turning back part of a d i y tarp.would you go ahead on the home made sil nylon with mineral spirits and silicone,or would you use factory sil nylon?

[DivaB]

I guess that depends on what you can afford, or better put, what you're willing to pay? If you're joining pieces so that it's nice a big for winter coverage and able to fold the end in for doors, then you'll need to seal those pieces anyways and....it has the possibilities of running, or looking a bit mismatched if not done all at once.

[Roadrunnr72]

I have made a tarp using the DIY sil, and wasn't very happy with the results. If/when I make another, it will be with sil-nylon.......RR

Main reason: came out alot heavier and bulkier than I wanted. Definatley wasn't as good as the sil-nylon tarps that I now own.

[Nighthauk]

question how are you at a no turn back stage but you are choosing between homemade sil or store bought silnylon. I am confused.

[Detail Man]

What is your point of no return?

Having done it both ways, I'd suggest going with the factory silnylon.

DIY sil will most likely end up being a bit heavier. If you do your own, you'll need a good workspace to hang the tarp so it can cure. Make sure you mix the mineral spirits and silicone very well. I put some zip ties on the end of a dowel chucked up in a drill.

You can buy silnylon 2nds from DIY Gear Supply for $0.50 more per yard than 1.1 uncoated ripstop. It's not worth making you own for such a small price difference.

[streamline]

You can get silnylyon 2nds for a great price @ a number of online vendors. I don't see the benefit of making your own sil if unless you have extra silicone, mineral spirits and ripstop nylon lying around.

[Klaussinator]

What to do?!? DIY it, baby!

I wondered the same thing, but decided to give it a go with some Taslite I found at Wal-Mart for $1/yd. Worked great and is totally waterproof. I'm very pleased with how it turned out, despite the mess involved with dunking and wringing that much material.

Here's my thread detailing my process and the exact ratios of silicone-to-mineral sprits

https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...ad.php?t=65828

I figured that if I bought silnylon, I would still need to seam-seal the ridge and all other spots that I sewed thru. To me, assembling the entire tarp and then immersing it in the sealant mixture just makes better sense.

Let us know how it turns out . . .

-Klauss

[hairbear]

question how are you at a no turn back stage but you are choosing between homemade sil or store bought silnylon. I am confused.

Everthings cut, tie outs are sewn (not to the tarp just completed ,and ready) ,1.9 circles are cut,two pieces of 1.1 are all sewn except the cat cut edge. If I put a hem in it ,its a 1.1 double . If I cat cut it its a tarp. The ridge line has not been sewn.

[Nighthauk]

At this stage of the game if I understand you correctly i would go ahead and make it into a 1.1dbl hammock if you have need of another hammock. Then you can order the silnylon from a vendor either DIYgearsupply.com or thru-hiker.com to make sure that you have the most consistent weighted fabric. At least this is what I would do. HYOH

[hairbear]

Trying my hand at an all d i y kit. Im not to wild about a redo at this stage as im new to the sewing world,and there has been alot of work done so far.

A thanks goes out to digitizer 101 for the sewing lessons.