I was given an old tent. Ideas?

**Charleskbrown2** · 03-12-2014, 22:57

I was given an old tent that had a few burn holes and broken poles. Rather than making 100 stuff sacks out of it, what should I do with it? I need your ideas/suggestions.

**Mumbles** · 03-12-2014, 23:03

Salvage tent pole sections to make a tarp pole or poles to add more room.

Make the ground cloth or floor into a tarp. Make the top or rain fly into an over pack poncho.

**CamoDeafie82** · 03-12-2014, 23:37

how big is the fabric, and how big is the rain fly? if it is large enough, it could be a good minimal tarp or a gear tarp..... (gear tarp/dog tarp would actually be more reasonable...)
I second making the ground floor a ground cloth...as for the poles, I also agree on using some of them into a tarp pole system.....

**just-bobby** · 03-12-2014, 23:47

I also use a ground mat, it helps keep ground debris out of the hammock.

**Rolloff** · 03-13-2014, 10:10

I'll take a small ground sheet and half a dozen stuff sacks

You could probably make a few really nice gear hammocks, out of the waterproof parts, and maybe a sock or certainly an UQ protector out of the breathable sections. Those would of course provide the material for my above order

**sargevining** · 03-13-2014, 10:24

Make a HUG net out of the netting

**Junebugdawn** · 03-13-2014, 10:49

I'll take all those plastic hooks and rings! I took my knife to an old tent and cut off every piece of hardware. I've used almost all of them modding one thing or another.

**Klaussinator** · 03-13-2014, 11:31

Hey, what you do with it is up to you... Just don't let it lure you into thinking you could sleep in it! That'd be all sorts of wrong!

-Klauss

**mountain_man_mike** · 03-13-2014, 12:58

+1 to Klauss, I dig that!

You could strip all the hardware from the tent and use the floor to make a pack, mesh and zipper for a bug net and all sorts of things depending on size, type of fabric and so on. You could salvage the shock cord from the tent poles and use to suspend an UQ or tie to the ends of tarp tie outs to make self tensioning tie outs. Just get yourself in the frame of mind that says "You might be a d ring (door, etc.) now but what can you become tomorrow? I used the gear loft in an old tent as a "got to get to it now" bag that I attached to a pack I made by wrapping all my gear (except bear can) in a tarp and diamond hitching it to an aluminum pack frame. It's still one of the most comfortable packs I have hauled.

**VictoriaGuy** · 03-13-2014, 13:27

I like to re-use and recycle stuff (too much of a 'scavenger' sometimes, perhaps as my basement shelves would prove..

) so this discussion is interesting to me.
I have a '71 Sierra Designs Glacier on the shelf presenting the same dilemma.

Arguments against 'doing stuff' to an older tent:
-waterproof coatings may be ready to go bad (that dreaded PU stinky symptom)
-the fabric may be UV-damaged and if you sew a new item from it, it may fail sooner than you like.
-You'll probably only get $20 worth of large fabric pieces from a smaller tent.
....... etc.

Last year, I ended up giving away a once-decent tent (Stephenson 3R with leaking floor and top - thin fabric had 'seen its day') for somebody to use for the kids in the back yard. Seemed like a good deal all round!