Got my Fiber Palace yesterday and it appears my current sleeves from outdoortrailgear (mountain Goat) are really tight. I will contact her about larger sleeves, but does anyone have any suggestions for skins? I have heard some negative reviews on DCF skins about holding moisture. Also do you prefer a single skin over the split?
Last edited by Billcole; 05-19-2019 at 05:49.
Just a fyi. One of the brands has little pockets on each end for line mgmt. I can't remember
which one but I think its a two piece and I prefer one piece.
Last edited by Ohoopee; 05-19-2019 at 06:21.
Type in "snake skins" in advanced search. Mikeim posted about skins for his
Cf tarp.
In my conversations with Hammock Gear, I was told they stopped making the DCF tarp skins due to the moisture issues...
I experienced this myself on a few occasions.
Back story.. until this year, I used only silpoly tarps. Switched to the HG Standard and a Palace earlier this year. I found both here on the forums and each cam with DCF skins.. one a single and one two piece. In the past I used the Hennessy silnylon, and two piece DIY noseeum skins..
There are pros and cons to both.. But to be candid, I haven't found any pro to the DCF skins other than 'cool factor' and that they are less likely to snag if you're storing them in an outside pocket. If the tarp is stored in the DCF skin when wet, the inside of the skin will get wet as well and drying them out means turning them inside out. Doesn't sound like a big deal.. until you do it a few times. When I purchased the Palace the seller had it setup on his porch for pictures and the tarp got wet. Although he let the tarp dry he overlooked the skin and when it all arrived to me, many days later water splashed out when I opened everything up..
The Noseeum solution allows that moisture to dry even when they tarp is stored inside, so advantage to noseeum in that regard. (I am not referring to the water caught in the tarp, just the mesh.) Spiguyver Backpacking did a comparison of the fabrics and found the HG mesh skin was actually lighter than the HG DCF skin.. so advantage to noseeum again. There are cons I see with the mesh... First is that if you store the tarp in an outside pocket you might be vulnerable to snagging the skin as you brush against things on the trail. Second is that they are crazy slippery. If you like to roll up the tarp into a bundle, the mesh slides and squirts and inevitably the bundle doesn't stay a bundle.
Single versus double? It's taking me a while to choose a side.. but I prefer the single simply because of the center bulge when pulling the two piece versions on. It's a pain to get all stuff in the two pieces, they never stay connected and the tarp ends up coming out in the middle of the two skins.
I just ordered a single mesh sleeve from HG. If I have issue the slipping or with snags, I'll put the skinned tarp in a DCF stuff sack and call it day.
Yes, my pack weighs 70lbs, but it's all light weight gear....
Bob's brother-in-law
I've never really been drawn to the concept of using a tarp sleeve, but with much discussion recently, I decided to give the HG 1 piece mesh a try to use with my 11' dyneema palace. The idea of 1 piece seems to make more sense and mesh seems like the right material for the job. If I decide it's not for me I can probably resell for at least 50% or just donate.
One of the cottage gear vendors, I think it’s Simply Light Designs, makes skins in wide sizes. That being said, I have a Mountaingoat one piece 11 ft sleeve, (no pockets), for my Zpacks CF tarp with doors and it has plenty of room. Whatever you do, don’t get the Hammock Gear mesh skins. I have one for my 12 ft standard CF tarp without doors and it’s really tight. No way you’ll get a palace in there.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro
I just ordered one of SLD’s double pocket wide ones for my WP. This thread reminded me thatOriginally Posted by Rex Clifton
I wasn’t happy with my old one.
You're gonna like this much better. I meant to respond to MikekiM's other post, that this is what I did. I found the HG skin fine for their standard w/doors, but too small and tight for their Palace. So, in my last order from Jared he suggested his Large version and its a much better fit. That being said, I'm still on the fence about how to store my cuben tarps on the trail. I tried the Spiguyver method, but still not satisfied. Good Luck!
Hey Joe-Willy: I keep my tarp on a CRL, I just fold in half then keep folding at around 12 inch intervals, wrap the RL around the tarp and I’m done. Easily slips in the back mesh pocket of my Arc Blast. Here is a pic of my Zpacks tarp with doors.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
Well crap, I ordered the HG mesh skins earlier.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks