Zpacks Tent (Solplex) Cuban Fiber Weight

.74.  It’s dang light and for the cost I wanted longevity.

I bought a Duplex when I hiked the JMT two summers ago and then sold it after I got back. It was .51 in the olive color. I didn’t have it long enough to have a sense of it’s  long term durability. That said, it weathered extremely harsh conditions in high winds with lots of rain quite well. I trust the design and materials of the tent in a storm

I’m currently thinking about picking up a Solplex as well. I understand the temptation of the .74 for additional durability but I think the more likely failure modes are either a puncture or abrasion from folding/packing it the same way each time. As I understand it the .74 has more Dyneema fiber in it and I don’t think that would protect the tent much from punctures or abrasions. My $.02 is don’t worry about the punctures much (you can tape them easily in the field with a little Cuben repair tape) and don’t bundle it up super tightly to avoid really hard creases.

My motivation for considering a Solplex right now has a lot to do with the weight. I hate to spend so much money and get the heavier version…

I’m doubting whether to do cuben at all after this video. Watch from 13:44 to 16:05. I have used cuben tape and understand that it will repair cuben very well, but this just rubs me the wrong way.

“I’ve never seen weather like this before”…A bold statement from someone with as much experience as Red Beard.

That looks like the storm of a lifetime to me. Without other tents constructed of different material pitched alongside for comparison, what UL tent/material do you suppose would have fared any better?

Given the size, amount and intensity of that hail storm, I’d say he (and the duplex) came out pretty darn well. I’m just glad it was not me!

This was cut and paste from the MLD website:

.75oz/26gms is used in our Lightest Pro Level Tarps and Shelters, LW Bivy Floors, Chaps, Stuff Sacks. This weight and style of cuben fiber is also known as CT2k.08 , CT2E.08 and CF8. We also offer some of your smaller Mids and tarps in a lighter .5oz sq/yd cuben. It will have a shorter service life and is is good for 3+ season use.

We got hit by pea-sized hail at Guitar Lake which didn’t cause any damage but Red Beard’s hail looked more like Whopper sized hail.

I would just go with ZPacks standard 0.51oz. I have experienced severe hail in Hexamid Plus (covering of 3″ on the ground after the storm cell moved on) with no apparent damage.

Thanks for all of your replies.  I’ll figure this out by Monday :)

“That looks like the storm of a lifetime to me. Without other tents constructed of different material pitched alongside for comparison, what UL tent/material do you suppose would have fared any better?”

I imagine most any woven fabric such as nylon or polyester would have came out completely unscathed. Just the nature of the beast. .
Although I’m a bit surprised that Duplex had so many punctures. IMO, the conditions in the video weren’t that terrible.

I had a wind storm of massive proportions (at least it felt that way) in southern California.    I had a very wind-worthy shelter otherwise I would have had to cower behind a boulder or tree for an uncomfortable night with no sleep.    As it was I got to cower in my nylon tent with no sleep – hoping it didn’t come apart.

Bottom line is there is no shelter that is 100% protection against what you can possibly face.   A hail storm worse than that is possible and winds that will shred those flimsy cuben tents.   A flat tarp is better for extreme conditions because you can always pitch it low and tie it down with immovable objects.    That assumes you knew the conditions when you pitched it.

Take comfort in knowing that most nights you will think your Cuben shelter is bullet-proof and most nights it will be more than sufficient.    In off chance you get hit by a bad storm…. be prepared to cower behind something mother nature provided and have clothing that will make it possible to survive and tell lies about it later.

Thanks again for all of your help.  I ended up going with the .51 oz/sqyrd.  If it can stand up to thru hikes, it should be able to function for my more limited use for a long time.

That looks like the storm of a lifetime to me. Without other tents constructed of different material pitched alongside for comparison, what UL tent/material do you suppose would have fared any better?

His friend’s tent pitched right next to his appears to be (~17:00 in the vid) an identical Duplex that apparently sustained no damage. There’s also another tent you can see behind his friend’s.

In off chance you get hit by a bad storm … be prepared to cower behind something mother nature provided

And in the off-chance mother nature does not provide?

Cheers

That purple pack should work fine

I’d use the Caffin tunnel tent.  Oh wait. That isn’t on the market yet.

There are quite a few good tunnels on the market. Not from America, but from Europe, New Zealand and even Australia.

Cheers