talk me out of buying a cuben tarp

[Greensoldier]

Thanks everyone for your advise. My biggest issue with cuben had always been the color...and it seems that hammockgear has fixed that with their new camo pattern that is much more of a darker brown.
As far as the price - paying for quality gear can be painful in the beginning but the value lasts much longer. Getting Adam on the phone the other day and having him answer all of my questions really made me feel at ease. Same thing when I spoke to Brandon at warbonnet. These guys are busy because they make quality gear that is made right here in the USA and most importantly stand behind there products.
So my order is in and the wait begins -

[Thunder Adventure Co]

Agreed. I'm saving up for the Hammock Gear Standard Cuben with doors. It's a lot of dough indeed. But I like the weight, no water and no stretch. Enjoy your cuben!

[VERDUG0]

It's super visible, and noisy. I don't like that at all.
Camo is a no-go in parts of the world (say SA). It'd be great if it just were OD

It kinda looks like a trash bag/ shelter, that can be a pro or a con, depending on context.

I don't own a cuben tarp, and probably won't for now.

[Johnco]

I love my winter palace! Can't go wrong

[LightHiker]

I bought a cuben tarp to go along with an extra lightweight hammock I sometimes carry. As they together weigh only ounces, it is worth it to me to have a backup. I set silnylon tarps in a variety of configurations based on weather, like most everyone. I have found that in colder or stormier wether, it is really nice to have the cuben as a second (inner) layer tarp. With heavy rains shielded by the large primary tarp in a storm mode, the cuben works for residual wind and to retain more heat. I am fully aware that this is not necessary, but since I have been camping out MOST of the time (even at home) for the past three years, I find it educational to try new things.

Because of the price, I also feel better protecting the cuben fabric from excessive UV and other potential hazards. I can't believe how expensive that gossamer-light stuff is! Having had widow makers blow at me out of nowhere in a storm, been surprised by super cells (with very nearby tornadoes), hail, surprise snowstorms, minus 5 degrees in my hammock setup, and also awakened to a foot of water below me, I swear by my undersling, my two tarp system, and an insulated car shade sleeping pad liner and my down comforter, which has kept me toasty in the nastiest weather.

[josh hikes]

Don't get it. I have a HG camo cuben tarp with doors and am often distracted by how loiight my bag is and how good my coverage is. If you do decide to suffer to low weight of cuben, go with the door tie backs from HG. Cheap add on and it allows you to pitch with less stakes most of the time and bring down the doors when you want to mess with them.

[Faussett]

I Went back and forth about a cuben tarp for months. I finally was convinced that I didn't NEED one. After reading this thread I'm back at it again.

[Midge]

So my order is in and the wait begins -

So you finally caved gave in to all this push back? How did it turn out? I am specifically curious about the coverage since I am thinking about moving to a WBBB and doored HG camo tarp.

[Greensoldier]

So you finally caved gave in to all this push back? How did it turn out? I am specifically curious about the coverage since, I am thinking about moving to a WBBB and doored HG camo tarp.

I got back from completing a 4 day backpacking trip that included the "hardest mile" of the AT....Mahoosuc(k) Notch.

Some things I noticed:

Weather can change very quick in the mountains of NH. On our last day we were expecting very heavy rain storms. This is one of the reason to go with the most amount of coverage and pay the $$$ for light weight Cuben. It took me 3 minutes to set up the tarp and wait some lighting storms out/

On this trip I was not solo...and was pitched close to others in the group. The Cuben is somewhat transparent and if you want full privacy you will need to pitch it low and maybe close doors. I personally did not worry and gave fellow members a heads up on some brief nudity.

The Camo is really nice and you do blend well at dusk/low light. If the sun hits the Cuben a certain direction it does shine brightly. This is my biggest issue with the Cuben tarp...but its not a deal breaker. I read somewhere that the Cuben "shine" will go away over time...I hope.

Finally---I am still having a hard time pitching it tight. I don't want to pull on it since Cuben does not stretch like Sil so this is just an experience thing. On this trip there was little time to play with gear - we were up by 5 and sleeping by 9. Didn't even take pictures of the set up.

I will review it sometime later in the year after some more trips and more experiences - I do baby this tarp and am overly cautious where I hang as to not puncture it with a low branch.

[CamoEvo]

While I was waiting for my HG camo cuben hex, I went hiking and my winter silnylon got rained on. I could feel the extra weight in water it had absorbed the next day when I put on my pack. Sooooo glad to get my c.f. tarp, and really glad I spent the extra $ on camo, that pattern is like looking at trees, not a solid roof of color.
DSC00437 by U.P. Evo8, on FlickrDSC00432 by U.P. Evo8, on FlickrDSC00441 by U.P. Evo8, on Flickr