Tarp choices help – cuben and silnylon

I have all 3 of the tarps that you have mentioned and if I had to pick one it would be the Zpacks. It is so much lighter and packs down so much smaller that there is no comparison with the other two. It's worth the wait.

If I were to have to chose between the BMJ or the SF, I would pick the BMJ because of the versatility of being able to leave the doors home if not needed. However, if weight isn't a consideration the SF is a better buy.

James – a few questions.

ZPacks size is a hair smaller than the BMJ.

1) Given your experience with it, would it limit the size inner tent I could put under it?

2) I think Joe uses the lighter grade of cuben fiber. How is the durability of the material?

I am a believer in the Zpacks products as I have a Blast 26.

I'll contact Joe, but if he still has the two-month lag period I may just go with the BMJ. How has it served you? At 13.5 oz it's till a very light tarp.

OutdoorEquipmentSupplier.com also has a 4-season tarp with a similar design. It costs a lot less than ZPacks' since it's not made of Cuben, but obviously it's quite a bit heavier, since it's silnylon rather than Cuben.

I have only used these tarps with my hammocks. However, I have played around with the Zpacks tarp in storm mode and I think you could use a bug netting under it. The tarp I have is a little bigger than the one he has on his site. The ridge line is 11'x 8.5' wide. However, the base is 13' instead of 12.2'. This is a big tarp that I use mainly during the winter and early spring. I use an OES Micro or a WB Edge during the rest of the year for hammocking.

As far as durability, I can't really say at this point because I have only had mine for a few months. I have used it about 14 days and it is holding up well. I think it will last a long time if cared for properly.

The BMJ is a great tarp. You can't go wrong with any of these. It's just that the weight and space savings with the Cuben tarp are substantial in a tarp this size. Another thing to consider with silnylon tarp this size is stretch. There can be a lot of it.