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  1. #1
    Senior Member Optimus's Avatar
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    Shower Curtain Tarp, or . . . My Fair Weather Friend

    A while back I was taking a shower in a motel bathroom, thinking about backpacking gear as I often do . . . and I couldn't help but notice the water beading and sliding right down the nylon shower curtain. This got me thinking, if this curtain can keep water inside a shower . . . it should be able to keep water outside of my hammock. Being new to using a hammock to sleep in while camping, I was still looking to upgrade from a blue polyethelene tarp (heavy, noisy, ugly).

    So when I got back home I very excitedly made my way down to Bed,Bath, & Beyond and purchased a nylon shower curtain liner.

    :: pause ::

    Ok, this is the first time I've ever been excited to go to B,B,& Beyond.

    Where was I ? Oh yeah, so it said "Super Nylon" on the package and it was about $20. It looks to be a semi-thick nylon, I'm guessing coated. I improvised some tie-outs. They consisted of a small wooden bead pushed into the fabric in strategic locations, wrapped with a mini zip tie, with another mini zip tie inserted in that for a little 'D' ring of sorts.

    -update- I had one of the zip ties fail, probably due to cold temps so I think I'll change to wrapping the bead directly with the tie out (larkshead) and just using a bread loaf twist tie to secure it.

    Ok, Details . . . It's about 5'6" square (give or take) and about 8'6" on the diagonal so barely workable. I attach opposing corners to my cams (upgrading to rings when I can) and then stake out the rest. Given the length of my ridgeline this works out very well for me. The weight with mason line tie-outs (equiped w/silicone tubing tensioners) and stuff sack is 15 oz. and packs down to about half the size of a 32.oz Nalgene.

    So needless to say I don't get much coverage, but it is mainly to keep leaves, pine needles and bird droppings off of me. I have used it in a light rain and a moderate hail/snow (it was kinda inbetween, like god sliced open a giant bean-bag-chair in the sky and let the styro.balls fall). More often than not it has just provided me with a false sense of shelter, and that always feels good

    So to recap, twenty bucks and crossed fingers . . . got me away from the blue poly . . . and so far so good.

    Slopes
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  2. #2
    Dutch's Avatar
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    Looks like a real good fit. And I imagine you can get any color you want, even purple.
    Peace Dutch
    GA>ME 2003

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  3. #3
    Senior Member sir_n0thing's Avatar
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    Hah, that's pretty cool actually! I dig the ingenuity!
    "I know the feeling - It is the real thing - You can't refuse the embrace!" | "Go n-éirí an bóthar leat."

  4. #4
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    I saw one of those just last week!

    Cool setup. Where's the brag about the homemade underquilt? That was pretty cool too.

  5. #5
    Senior Member Optimus's Avatar
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    sir n0thing, thanks . . . I do, what I gotta do.

    Thanks lori . . . it's-a-coming . . .

    Slopes

  6. #6
    Senior Member BEAS's Avatar
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    I believe I heard of a lady thru hikng the A.T. and used a shower curtain for her shelter. She may be the one that carried everything she had in a sack tied to a stick like a hobo.
    BEAS
    BEAS
    From the Great Southern state of
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    Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more, you should never wish to do less. General Robert E. Lee

  7. #7
    Senior Member lazyboy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by BEAS View Post
    I believe I heard of a lady thru hikng the A.T. and used a shower curtain for her shelter. She may be the one that carried everything she had in a sack tied to a stick like a hobo.
    BEAS
    That would be Grandma Gatewood, she hiked it south to north and them turned around and hiked it north to south.

  8. #8
    Senior Member TeeDee's Avatar
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    5' 6" - 2 hemmed together would give you almost an 11' ridge line.

    Say 11' x 5'6" - not bad as a tarp. A little heavy at 30 oz, but hard to beat $40. The seam would be side to side so some silicone caulk to seal the seam and it would seem to be good to go.
    Those who sacrifice freedom for safety, have neither.

    Do not dig your grave with your teeth. (Unknown)

  9. #9
    Senior Member chiefams's Avatar
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    I actually thought about picking up one of these and converting it into a poncho/tarp/undercover the other day... pretty small for the multiple uses
    Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2)

  10. #10
    Senior Member Optimus's Avatar
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    Tee Dee . . . Good point . . . and if you hemmed them bottom to bottom, you would have an array of grommits at either end from which to attatch from.

    asimmons4 . . . I was thinking about some other uses for this once I hit the lottery and can afford to upgrade to a 'big boy' tarp. I was thinking of maybe cutting it down to the size of my DIY 2/3 UQ, attatching a reminant of space blanket (I wish I had a small piece of thermadrape, hint,hint,kind souls) by way of industrial spray adhesive, and using it as a vapor barrier/conductive heat reflector between the UQ and the hammock for a cold weather 'add-on'.

    It's good to have aspirations . . .

    Slopes

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