MYOG Square Tarp and Net Tent
This was my first sewing project! It has a few rookie mistakes but it has turned out well and is a versatile, modular shelter system for any time of year.
Tarp
The tarp is 9' square with tie-outs on the corners, side, and top panel. It's made of Silpoly 1.1 PU 4000 from Ripstop By The Roll, and weighs approximately 16 ounces, seam-sealed.
I could have:
- Put the tie-out reinforcement patches on the bottom. Did I mention rookie mistakes?
- Used normal silpoly 1.1 instead of the PU 4000 stuff. This would have saved a bit of weight without sacrificing meaningful waterproofness.
Net Tent
The net tent is kind of "1.5 person" size. I've used it with my daughter and it's tight but works. When it's just me, I appreciate the roominess and can juuuuuuuuuust sit up at the head end. The floor is the same as the tarp material, and the mesh is 0.67 oz Noseeum mesh from RBTR. It weighs in at approximately 12 ounces.
There is essentially no bathtub floor, but the mesh does curl up an inch or so when the pitch is taut. This is on purpose and I think it works fine, particularly in Central Oregon where it tends to be dry.
The head and foot ends of the net tent are solid tarp material to provide some weather protection when pitched under an A-frame tarp.
I don't carry the net tent unless it's bug season.
When building this, I followed the instructions for the Net-tent Kit – YAMA Mountain Gear but adapted the cuts for this tent.