Has anyone tried this type of Tarp before?

[Aaron Sorensen]

Hello,

So I’m going to make a 1+ tarp with some Silpoly PU 4000.

12 feet in length and the full role width, pitched in an “A” frame.

Here’s the catch.  It will have a beak on each side that tapers from the center.  The beaks will come down to about 24″ and may put a zipper on one side.

I have never seen a tarp in this formation and was wondering if there is a reason it could or could not work?  Only issue I see is having to set it up with a line going across the 2 poles.

[Jerry Adams]

if you made it a bit taller, and took the sides down to the ground which would be better in wind/rain, it would be a pyramid : )

[Aaron Sorensen]

It will be taken to the ground at the corners.

Height is restricted to pole length.  I’m fine with 48″.

[IVO K]

The reason no one made this thus far is that the high beaks (2 of them!) would allow for too much precipitation spray inside.

[Franco Darioli]

“The reason no one made this thus far is that the high beaks (2 of them!) would allow for too much precipitation spray inside.”
Yes. Folk have enough trouble with one high beak resorting to using umbrellas /jackets/add on doors and the like.
I suspect for several users of those high beak shelters after a few good rainfalls and have recovered from the ticket shock they sell the shelter and get something with more protection.
Two beaks would be for fair weather only giving the sort of protection you get with an umbrella in wind driven rain.
Make them lower, then you need to crawl inside but you could make them so that you can slide them up to get in and out.

[Sam Haraldson]

If you were just doing a single beak it would look a bit like some of the Brawny Gear shelters but I can’t think of anything where there are two opposing wide-open beaks like this.

[Aaron Sorensen]

I got the idea after watching a video from John Ablea in his Zpacks Duplex tent.

It was pouring out yet he had his rain-flu completely open and with the beak that stuck out 5 inches beyond the floor, he never got a drop inside.

So I figured I could get a good 40″ of floor space out of this which is just fine me and my 3 dogs or even 2 people.

It’s also a very simple and effective way to make a light weight tarp with a lot of coverage.

[Todd Stough]

full roll width is only 58″, were you planning to make each panel a full width?

[R]

If the beak ridge is 30″ (half a 60″ roll) and it drops 24″, it will only extend 18″ from the center line, for a minimum covered width of 36″.  That’s close to your target 40″, but does feel narrow at 24″ off the ground.  Add some effective overhang and you’re running out of room.  It’s one thing to show off that feature on an open tent in a windless rain, it’s another to be stuck in a storm w/ no doors.

Out of curiosity, could you elaborate on your comment: “having to set it up with a line going across the 2 poles”?  I see a single apex which implies just one pole.

I’ve also looked briefly at the transverse a-frame pitch, and it just feels too exposed w/o good side coverage or a lot more width.

[Jordo _99]

Aaron, this is a really neat idea. I’m definitely interested in the results if you take things further.

Out of curiosity, could you elaborate on your comment: “having to set it up with a line going across the 2 poles”?  I see a single apex which implies just one pole.

Rene, as I understood it…Aaron would have a trekking pole at the head and foot of the tarp, with a line running between the handles, which connects to a guy out point in the center of the tarp. Here are some similar examples:

[Aaron Sorensen]

Poles at head and feet, no.  Poles are at the center of each side entrance.  You could not set this tarp up with just one pole.

Also the 36″ width of coverage would only apply if the tarp was just 2 beaks from a center-line.

The beak comes from the corners of the full width of fabric. It looks like the width between the top of the 2 beaks may extend about 27″ out from each side but I’m pretty sure it will still be the full 58″ width the whole way.

It’s like nobody that replied really took a good look at the tarps shape.

Makes me want to try it out even more now as I have never seen a tarp made like this.

[R]

I don’t understand which design dimensions are constrained by the roll width.  How many panels will it have, and how far will each beak extend past the width at the ends?  The photographs of your model look like a double sided MLD Cricket w/ no beak overhang.

Some diagrams with dimensions would help clarify your design.

Jordo_99 – thanks for the explanation.

 

 

[Aaron Sorensen]

Rene,

The beaks don’t overhang, they just come down from the center point.  There is no width change.

Panels, one.

Here is a diagram looking at it from the head (or foot) end.

And lengthwise.

Here’s a Cricket.

It can also be hung by a tree or any connection point from something at least 4 feet high.

 

[Franco Darioli]

I get the design (now…) but I would think that keeping the apex taut (to support all of the panels) will be a problem using that pole to pole line.

Anyway, it could be fun to try.

[R]

Thanks, Aaron.

 

That’s what I had in my head, so we were just mis-communicating.  You’ve got 2 pieces of fabric with one seam across the center ridge, right?  Elegant design.  I get 4.9 sq yd.  Could be a nice, light, fair weather shelter.

 

Let us know how it works out if you build it!

[Aaron Sorensen]

Finally finished this tarp.

I added 24 inches on the back side in order for it to come closer to the ground.  It’s much more of a tarp that will fit the needs of a me + 3 dogs.

There now plenty of room for 2 as well.

10.2 ounces and this includes the Z-pack carbon pole extensions.  I decided to make this like my other tarps where the tarp rests on top of my poles.  With the extensions, they are 7 feet apart.  So now I only have 4 stakes, (one at each corner) to set this up.  Set up takes about 30 seconds.

I’ll post some pictures soon.

 

[Aaron Sorensen]

Not a good pitch, but you get the idea.

I don’t have a patch of grass around me to set it up within 10 miles of me, so this will have to do.

[jimmyjam]

Nice work. I like it.

[Bob Moulder]

Very nice execution of your idea! I can see how it can be pitched more tautly in a natural setting.

I’m wondering about the stress on the hiking pole tips where the extensions slip over them. Something to think about when it gets very windy.

Is it also possible to pitch it with one pole?

[Aaron Sorensen]

It is possible to pitch with one pole but it would be much more finicky. Plus it would add the need for 2 more stakes.

The main reason for this design is to use the poles this way.

You have an easier set up, less finicky with less stakes and the ridge across the poles greatly increase the wind resistance making this a very stable tarp.

Taking away a pole would just ruin it’s abilities that have been built into the design.

The hiking pole tips with the extensions have no Impact on the strees of the tarp.

[Bob Moulder]

Thanks, Aaron. It’ll be very cool to see it pitched in the wild! Looking forward to your reports.

[Aaron Sorensen]

I get what you mean about stressing the pole tip now.

I actually shaved off the minuscule protrusion that the poles have. They are only 1/4″ wider around for the “basket”. After shaving it down, the extensions fit in very snug.

[Author]

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