Silnylon advise needed

Silnylon is only made by maybe 4-5 manufacturers in East Asia. So, chances are, all the stuff will be the same or fairly equivalent. Some is a silicon/polyurethane blend. I know this is possible if one side is coated with PU and the other is coated with silicone. I am really not sure it is possible about blending the two, though. I know I have used silicone and mineral spirits to recoat old PU raingear and floors, though. It seems to stick OK after a few years.

For tarps, generally silnylon is superior. For solid structures (like a dome tent) generally PU is slightly better. Silpoly may not work too well. Theoretically speaking, Poly does not absorb water. So, it may not actually absorb silicone. What would happen is that the poly fibers would be embedded in a matrix of silicone. With nylon, it does absorb some water. So, silicone would stick better. Silicone actually uses water (usually from the atmosphere) to cure. I have done a lot of recoating on nylon and silnylon with no problems sticking. I am hesitant to say about poly. There are several diifferent types on the market. Most poly's are heavier for the same strength as nylon. For that reason alone, I would choose silnylon. But, old tarps made from silnylon can get weaker due to UV damage. Some stretch in silnylon is also fairly permanent. I had one tarp that started looking like a pyramid from stretching against 40mph winds.

http://www.qualitylogoproducts.com/blog/polypropylene-polyester-nylon-guide-to-materials/
http://nemoadventureanywhere.blogspot.com/2009/11/nemo-classroom-lessons-164-nylon-vs.html
http://polyamidefabric.com/the-difference-between-polyamide-nylon-and-polyester-fabric
http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12870&p=170138
Lots more…

I've used the silnylon from Ripstopbytheroll for 5-6 shelters and have found it works fine. It wont be as waterproof as the Thru-Hiker stuff, but its plenty good enough and also cheaper/lighter.

Nylon vs Polyester – Either will work fine, but each has different characteristics. Personally, I would use Silpoly because I hate dealing with sagging nylon. I'm a set it and forget it kind of guy. Plus, no added water weight with Silpoly after a rain.

Ryan

Based on my experience, there are quite a few mills that can sil or PU coat goods throughout Asia. Although a lot of them have the capability, not all of them can do it to the same degree of quality. There is a ton of variance in coating consistency and hand feel (i.e. stiff, soft, etc). On top of that, there are environmental restrictions in place in some areas that limit the amount of sil used in the coating process. Regarding sil and PU mix, you can blend the two and that's what's done on both our 20D silnylon and 20Dx50D silpoly. Using a mix allows you to get better waterproofing and it also helps with the bias stretch some. You do have to make sure you can still use 100% silicone sealants though.

Agreed that apples to apples poly is lower strength than nylon. However, in applications such as a tarp or shelter, I don't think the strength difference is enough to really matter. If we were talking about a hammock, sure. The silpoly is getting out to more DIY folks and vendors now, so we'll have some good field testing to come. I can tell you that some of the new lower denier poly I'm testing looks promising. Bias stretch comparable to some of the better 30D nylon 6.6 USA made goods but significantly lower weight.

I believe you're ripstop by the roll?

You should add that to your name or signature or something so people won't have to infer

Great products by the way, thanks…

Yes and thanks for the heads up Jerry. I'll do that.

Kyle, i was wondering if you could answer a technical question. Is there any difference between strength/durability of the silicone coating bond between applying it to nylon or polyester?

If one has innately lower surface tension, couldn't that affect long term durabilty of the coating bond somewhat?

I suppose there could be a difference in the sil coating bond between nylon/poly, although I did beat the 20D silpoly up pretty good during my own testing without issue. I also had some knowledgeable vendors test it out before we settled on the first production run.