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Is high quality homemade bivy worth it?


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  • #1229384
    Pete Zseleczky
    Member

    @petez11

    Hi all, I've been thinking of making a nice bivy for some time but always come back to the question: Is it worth the time and money? I went through the SMD plans for their Meteor bivy and added up the Thru-Hiker costs.

    Link to plans:
    http://www.sixmoondesigns.com/ultralight/Projects/Pattern_Meteor.pdf

    Here are the prices:
    2 2/3 yd 1.1 Silnylon $11.50/yd—$34.50
    1 1/3 yd 0.9 Momentum $13.59/yd—$27.18
    1 2/3 yd Nanoseeum $6.13/yd—$12.26
    6 ft #3YKK Coil Zipper $0.35/ft—$02.10
    2 #3 Double Pull Zipper $0.35


    $00.70
    Total


    $76.74

    This number seemed pretty high to me. The TiGoat Ptarmigan bivy with mesh is $110 and the Oware Drawcord bivy DWR/Silnylon is $90.24 ($118.74 for Quantum/Silynylon). For those of you who have made a bivy, have you paid this much for materials and is it worth it?

    #1436815
    Tim Marshall
    BPL Member

    @marshlaw303

    Locale: Minnesota

    if you make it from owfinc.com 2nd you can do it for under $5yd for both sil and uncoated 1.1oz. The noseeum is around $3yd. It will be a tad heavier, i think it should seriously be a tad, but much cheaper and if you don't like it it wasn't such a cash hog.

    also Silnylong from Noah Lamport could be under $3yd for 2nds.

    I always use 2nds and have never found anything wrong with them at all.

    also, can't order partial yds at thru-hiker (i don't think)

    #1436822
    Adam Rothermich
    BPL Member

    @aroth87

    Locale: Missouri Ozarks

    Definitely nothing wrong with the seconds silnylon. I used it for a poncho and have had no problems with it. It appears thru-hiker doesn't have it in stock right now, but OWF has it for $4.90 a yard.

    And like Tim said, I don't think you car order partial yards from thru-hiker. I've never ordered from OWF, so I can't comment on them.(Edit: just noticed they only sell by the yard as well)

    As for being worth it, I take a lot of pride in my homemade quilt and jackets (poncho-tarp not so much). The cost savings is nice if you have plenty of time, patience, and space. During the school year, I'm rather short on all three, so I don't make as much gear as I would like. Those are the times I don't mind paying a little more for something of higher quality than I could produce to receive it in much less time.

    If you haven't sewn before, definitely have some one to teach you. I learned a lot watching my mom do the harder stuff while I did the shorter seams. And practice with the scraps a lot too.

    Have fun!

    Adam

    #1436835
    mark henley
    Member

    @flash582

    I used 2nds on mine … here's what I bought:

    3 yards 2nd sil at $5 a yard — $15.00
    1 yard Momentum — $13.59
    The rest was the same …. about 15 bucks.

    That takes it to around $50 with shipping.

    Then I cut the Bivy down from 8 ft to 7 ft long. The Sil comes up a bit at the foot, but that's not a bad thing.

    Another one I built I used 3 yards of 2nd's sil and then just extended the Nanoseeum down by using whatever I needed of the 2 yards of nanoseeum netting. This one was about $35.

    You can also use cheaper DWR coated nylon in place of the momentum ….

    There are less expensive options if you'd like.

    Of course … just ordering the TI Goat bivy is a no brainer …. order it and you're done.

    #1436836
    Michael Barber
    Spectator

    @barber5

    Locale: Southeast US

    I did the same price analysis. Why go that route when the Equinox Bivy is like $60 and 6.5 oz? Hard to beat. Also I happened upon some tyvek for cheap and have been messing around with that. It works. Plus a good practice material.

    #1454390
    Robert Bruce
    Member

    @jvlmstr27

    Just a heads-up. OWFINC will let you order partial yards. I've ordered all my material from them. They are fast and friendly and have been happy to answer questions and make suggestions/reccomendations when I've asked.

    #1454790
    David Wills
    Member

    @willspower3

    I am in the process of making a Meteor Bivy ala Six Moon designs. I got my stuff from owf inc as I always do and it was very cheap. 2nds sil, 1.1 dwr, and no seeum. I expect about a 7 oz finish weight. rerun your numbers with their prices and see the difference. Construction is going very smoothly and is one of the easier large projects I have done. I am very busy with other things, but I will probably end up with under 3 hours work on it. The reason I am doing this instead of getting the equinox is due to the extra breathability compared to standard bivies, but more rain protection than a bug net like the MLD one.

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