Cuben Fiber Disaster?

[Bushwhacker]

Is there anything I should be wary of before embarking on my tarp project?

[WV]

Be wary of specifics. Try to be as general as possible. Also, check your bank balance.

[Shug]

You can poke a hole in it pretty easily.........especially when pitched tightly.
Shug

[ofuros]

Make sure you have enough double sided tape.....nothing worse than running out of tape
when your project is almost finished & your all psyched up to take it out on it's first trial !

[VictoriaGuy]

Be wary of specifics. Try to be as general as possible.

[Bushwhacker]

Be wary of specifics. Try to be as general as possible.

Could you elaborate? Do you mean that you should try to avoid making it too small, where the "specific" is rain coming in from a less than 2° angle from the direction of the force of gravity?

[Rolloff]

Do not forget the hypontenuse!

[WV]

Could you elaborate? Do you mean that you should try to avoid making it too small, where the "specific" is rain coming in from a less than 2° angle from the direction of the force of gravity?

No, and my apologies. Your very general question caught me in a funny mood and mild sarcasm was the result. To make amends I stand ready to answer any questions I know the answers for. Making a cuben tarp is easier than making a silnylon tarp, but it's a different fabrication process than sewing, so you're wise to do some research. One piece of advice I can give at the outset is to find an adequate workspace with enough room to spread out your materials for measuring, cutting, and bonding. Most likely this will be a large floor. If it's indoors, that's good because breezes won't blow your cuben around when you're trying to bond it. However, some bonding methods require using chemicals that require adequate ventilation. Ventilation = breezes. I apply primer outside on the porch with weights holding down the cuben. The primer takes about 5 minutes to dry, and then I bring it inside to finish the bonds with adhesive transfer tape, but I still weight the cuben down to keep it from moving, because opening doors or wagging dog tails can generate breezes. Cuben is very light.

There are other good methods of bonding cuben as well. Let us know which one you're planning to use, and someone familiar with it may have some tips for you.

Tell us about your proposed tarp design and any other pertinent details. By the way, is that a warm summer shower falling at less than 2° from vertical or a cold nor'easter? (I predict success for your project. Anybody who takes the trouble to use a degree symbol in a post has what it takes to make a cuben tarp: attention to detail.)

I have had a couple of tarp construction catastrophes, but they involved silnylon and thread injectors. Cuben is much more forgiving.

[Bushwhacker]

I stand ready to answer any questions I know the answers for. Making a cuben tarp is easier than making a silnylon tarp, but it's a different fabrication process than sewing, so you're wise to do some research. One piece of advice I can give at the outset is to find an adequate workspace with enough room to spread out your materials for measuring, cutting, and bonding. Most likely this will be a large floor. If it's indoors, that's good because breezes won't blow your cuben around when you're trying to bond it. However, some bonding methods require using chemicals that require adequate ventilation. Ventilation = breezes. I apply primer outside on the porch with weights holding down the cuben. The primer takes about 5 minutes to dry, and then I bring it inside to finish the bonds with adhesive transfer tape, but I still weight the cuben down to keep it from moving, because opening doors or wagging dog tails can generate breezes. Cuben is very light.

There are other good methods of bonding cuben as well. Let us know which one you're planning to use, and someone familiar with it may have some tips for you.

Tell us about your proposed tarp design and any other pertinent details. By the way, is that a warm summer shower falling at less than 2° from vertical or a cold nor'easter? (I predict success for your project. Anybody who takes the trouble to use a degree symbol in a post has what it takes to make a cuben tarp: attention to detail.)

Thanks! I was planning on following SGT. Rock's guide using 3M 94 Tape Primer, painted on with either a paintbrush or Popsicle stick, and the cf double sided tape. I wasn't planning on sewing anything, except maybe the tie out points.

I have some other questions:
Is it possible to glue the tie outs on instead of sewing them?
How quickly do you need to work before the primer dries?

[fallkniven]

your not sewing anything? Will tape and glue really take all that stress? Not degrade and peel off over time?