Lightest top zip bug bivy of them all

[Monte Masterson]

4.5 oz. Made with .50 noseeum and 7D silnylon floor. It’s 28″ tall at the head so about 4″ inches taller than an MLD Bug Bivy, yet about 4″ less in length and about an inch narrower. I also included solid 7D triangles on front and rear ends to greatly help repel rain spray. Bivy is long enough for someone up to 6′ tall. The MLD BUG Bivy 2 is 3″ taller (27″) than the regular MLD Bug Bivy and is much more protective against rain, but it weighs about 7 oz.

The Borahgear Cuben Bug Bivy weighs 3.9 oz for a standard/standard chest zip and 4.2 oz for side zip, however a top zip is much better IMO and this bivy is taller and provides more head space.  Yama big bivys also have low head heights at 20″ regular and 23″ bigger.

[HkNewman]

.50 noseeum

How is working with .50 noseeum?  One UL startup company posted on their “insta” it was a bit more difficult as their .50 noseeum mesh stretched. Not sure if all supplies of this mesh do the same, but difficulty was mentioned.  Still they were able to bring the weight of a mid inner down significantly with a sil floor (~6 oz).

Of course their attached floor didn’t appear to have much of a bathtub floor, so thinking a higher floor might negate saving weight on the mesh?  What do you think working with the stuff?

(note: not going to mention the company as they’re not offering the option and do not their social media deluged by requests).

[todd]

I’m in drool mode Monte!!!!  I’ve long preferred top entry as well, and yours is amazing.  Wow.

[Monte Masterson]

.50 noseeum is hell to work with really H K. The .67 at only .17 oz per sq yd more is a lot easier to sew. I find I need to use a brand new rotary blade when cutting the .50 because a dull blade makes the edges curl and roll and that’s the worst thing, I also find that when sewing to silnylon I must keep the .50 noseeum underneath or the netting will stretch too much, even with a walking foot. Professionals with the right machines can probably sew with the netting on top however.

[Monte Masterson]

When paired with a 5.4 oz 7D cat-cut tarp I have a sub 10 oz double wall tent (without lines and stakes) which provides good rain protection. Tarp is 5.5′ X 4.8′ X 9′ so with the solid end triangles on bivy fitting perfectly with the tarp, rain spray is kept at bay in all but the worst blows. I realize tent is too small for most BPL readers but this is the SUL forum.

Foot end of tarp being tapered to only 4.8′ wide means less rain is able to make its way inside. Again, its size conforms proportionally to the 7D silnylon end piece on bivy.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I made a floorless bug net for my tarp using tulle. I have used it for over 1000 miles of the CDT. It works great and is less than 4 ounces. I’ve been pleasantly surprised how durable it has been. It won’t keep out everything but it works great so far in the mountain west.

[Monte Masterson]

Cool net Diane. With the 10D GG cat tarp you’re SUL for sure. As I’m sure you’re aware, uberlight floorless A frame bug nets can’t be bought anywhere, so you have to make them yourself. The tulle has a weight of around .40 oz per square yard which makes it even lighter than RSBTR .50. And tulle works well with mosquitos, but of course tulle’s netting holes are too large for noseeums. The coverage area of your net for its weight is the lightest that can be had. S2S Nano nets are around tulle weight, however they’re all top pull as you cleverly illustrate in your YT video (that now has 35K views) where you pair it with a Pocket Tarp. Good to see there are still a few subscribers here on backpackinglight.com who embrace SUL

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nn1Aq7EKrOI.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

Yeah, the nano doesn’t really fit very well in the Pocket tarp. It is wider than the sleeping area of the tarp.

(I think that video has a lot of views because people in Asia found it. It has also attracted a lot of anti-Zpacks comments that seemed like a coordinated campaign that I had to delete.)

Forgive the saggy pitch, but here’s my floorless tulle net. Weighs 2.3oz. I made this by first cutting out a shape similar to the Pocket tarp when it’s folded in half. Then I set the Pocket tarp up in my house and pinned netting for the front and pinned the tie-outs for the corners. Pin a little, sew a little, until it seemed to fit. Not perfect but it will work.

The floor is just polycryo that I’ve shaped into a bathtub and used the Zpacks bathtub attachment system to hold it up and also to attach the netting.

[baja bob]

Nice work Monte. I’ve been looking for a net tent that has a little more space that the standard offerings from MLD and Yama. I found two fully enclosed bug nets on Amazon that look like SeatoSummit nano net knock-offs, except the nets have a net floor and are completely enclosed. The nets have a single, vertical zip opening on the side making ingress and egress a bit of an acrobatic attempt for someone my size at 6’4″. I doubt the nets are very durable. The nets come in at 5.5 and 6.8 ounces. $17 each!

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B085DD7815?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

https://www.amazon.com/GWHOLE-Upgraded-Mosquito-Canopy-Camping/dp/B087M1L5XF/ref=d_pd_sim_sccl_2_5/141-3221027-1876134?pd_rd_w=YiDkN&content-id=amzn1.sym.eb616d98-73b6-4f12-8913-a35cc29165e9&pf_rd_p=eb616d98-73b6-4f12-8913-a35cc29165e9&pf_rd_r=A7QCTSDJ2Q0BYZF5TH1N&pd_rd_wg=ANDKN&pd_rd_r=78b269d2-bc54-4952-a25f-8861a1b9d493&pd_rd_i=B087M1L5XF&psc=1

 

 

[Monte Masterson]

Yea Bob, the first net you linked looks especially good. The vertical zip, all net floor, wieight and price are tempting, but of course like all overhead pull nets you need a very tall tarp to accommodate them. It’s 55″ high so you’d need a Mid 1 or Duomid for them to pitch properly. I mean you can do some clever things to adapt them to smaller tarps, however it takes some improvising. For example, like Diane did with her S2S Nano net and Pocket Tarp, and she admits that it’s far from perfect.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I always wondered how you get into a top-entry net tent that is under a tarp but apparently people can do it.

A little net tent like this one seems great for camping under the stars when there are flying insects.

[todd]

Diane

It’s easy to get into the top entry nets: I use a cord lock on shock cord to attach the peak to the apex of the tarp. Just loosen to lower the net flat on the ground, unzip, and get in. Then tighten the cord and zip.

[Monte Masterson]

The MLD Bug Bivy and Bug Bivy 2 are absolute masterpieces, both are top zip (shown below). I made my own bug bivy because I wanted a lighter weight, a tad more headspace and waterproof end triangles.

The 20D pro silnylon 6.6 (sil/sil) material Ron uses for the MLD bivy floors is of the highest quality (4000 mm). As I stated in the initial post, the Bug Bivy 2 is a bit taller than the regular Bug Bivy and has 10D breathable panels and end pieces to protect against wind and rain spray in cooler environments. But with your sewing skills Diane you could make your own top zip bivy. RSBTR has everything you’d need.

[Matthew / BPL]

Building on what Todd said, I think top entry bivies are easier to enter than conventional bivies with a chest/side zip.

[Author]

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