I really like doors on one end for all seasons.
If really bad weather is expected I'll take a GrizzBeak to close up the other end.
I really like doors on one end for all seasons.
If really bad weather is expected I'll take a GrizzBeak to close up the other end.
Based on the weights provided by BWDD, if I didn't cat-cut, 7 yds of material would weigh this much....
70D 2nds (64" wide) 19.5oz
30D (62" wide) 8.84oz
I'll loose a little weight after cat-cuts, but it'll gain it back after reinforcements and tie outs are installed.
Here are the cost differences including all materials, hardware, and shipping.
70D seconds tarp - $44.51
30D 1sts tarp - $85.72
Leonard Outdoors Youtube.com/drleonar
Are you a backpacker who prefers to hike, or one who base camps or car camps often?
What follows is for backpackers who like to hike:
Considering your high desert location, you could have one add-on door or a slightly long tarp for folding just one end into a door. Hangers have many more camp site choices than tenters, so use that to your advantage, picking your sites more carefully during your summer monsoon season.
If necessary, you could move an add-on door to the other end in the middle of the night. Unpleasant, but doable. With a full length ridgeline, you could slide your slightly long tarp in order to make a door on one end, hours after the tarp was up.
For three season use for hangers in wetter climates than yours, they could go with a very long, rectangular tarp so they can fold the ends into doors, but only as needed.
The year 'round backpacking of a winter tarp is wasted effort. Build what you will use the most now, then build a winter tarp next fall. Have you tried any other hobbies where your entry level gear was still used for many years after your first few years?
For base camping, whether hiking or car use, carry the big ones on that one day in.
Very little of anyone's gear is perfectly suited for every season, and neither is your tarp. During your drier months, an 8 or 9 foot square tarp, rigged diagonally (pitched with just two stakes) is a joy to use in the Southwest. You know that you will dry out the next day, even if a portion of your gear gets slightly wet once from the reduced coverage.
That could all be summarized as use your brain and build your skills to avoiding needing to carry stuff that compensates for what you haven't studied.
I dunno, I used a 5'x10' tarp for a year that weighed one pound... Going to the 19 oz Superfly was a no brainer. At the weight of sil-nylon I don't see myself ever regretting the extra 9 ounces when comparing a MamaJamba to a Superfly... But I'm not an ultra-light guy. I'm young and I could use the excercise. With the Superfly my whole hammock rig is 2 lbs 14 oz. I just don't see the need to get much below that. Maybe if I were thru-hiking.
To add; I am a backpacker who likes to hike. When I ask friends to join me on trips they say 'is this one of your death marches?'
"We're the Sultans of Swing."
I think you should go with attached doors and then you have something that will work with any weather. Finding a smaller, lighter tarp for when no rain or little rain is expected should not be very hard.
I have an OES Standard and had the BMJ with door kit. I mostly used my OES and when I brought the BMJ I brought the doors and was not too fond of fiddling with them.
heyyou - Thanks for your suggestions. I understand that most newbie gear is eventually shunned for more the enticing new stuff, but when finances come into play, I don't expect to be collecting a plethora of tarps.
My thoughts exactly.
With the proper door-tie-back setup, they should be out of the way at all times, but when I need them, they're there just waiting to serve. With the drawing I provided on the first page of this thread, we can see that the "doors" directly related to this discussion are not exactly barn doors. They're roughly 6.5 sqft each. The BWDD Winter tarp doors are ~9.5 sqft each, so each door is about 68% of the winter door.
4 door total
38sqft(winter) vs 26sqft (modified Hex.)
Leonard Outdoors Youtube.com/drleonar
"If everyone is thinking alike, then somebody isn't thinking."
George S. Patton
The 50 State Project: Thread
The 50 State Project: Table
FBG - Yeah, I'm pretty much set on using the BWDD Hex pattern with the doors left on rather than cutting them off.
Now that I've said I've made up my mind, cue the great alternative perspective that will keep the guessing game going.....
Leonard Outdoors Youtube.com/drleonar
Here is my thoughts on it... I always try and plan for the worst but hope for the best... Texas weather changes more than some people change underwear... So I figure carrying a tarp with doors all the time is good insurance... Yes its 8-10 oz of extra weight but in my world, knowing that regardless what weather comes I will be dry and protected is worth that weight...
If it is to you, is your decision...
Live, Laugh, Love, if that doesn't work. Load, Aim and Fire, repeat as necessary...
Buy, Try, Learn, Repeat
Yes, small tarps are lightweight but big tarps (esp with doors) are luxurious.
"Live like you will die tomorrow, but learn like you will live forever." Gandhi
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