One of the essential elements of survival is shelter. One of the essential elements of shelter is speed. If you don’t have shelter when you need it, in some scenarios, you are dead. This is where essential items like the tent or tarp come in. They don’t stand as a permanent shelter in most cases, yet are capable of sustaining you in the short term while you seek rescue or the construction of a more insulated shelter. While any tarp will suffice, buying one specialized for your needs can help you cut down on weight significantly. Between that and the reputation of Dave Canterbury, Self Reliance Outfitters was the option that stood out to me.
The Breakdown
These are the details you need to know:
- Material: 70D Waterproof Nylon
Nylon is great. It’s light, thin, and it’s durable. That being said, Nylon is essentially plastic. It’s not heat tolerant, it’s thin, and is susceptible to tearing. 70D is incredibly thin, and therefore, incredibly light.
- Size: 7′ 8″ x 7′ 8″
There’s not too much to say about this one. Well, unless you’re a giant. Then you’re probably wondering why you’re getting rained on. This is, however, a single person tarp. If you’re looking for something to help you shelter a larger group or establish a larger camp, this may not be the tarp to choose, and a 10 x 10 alternative may suit you better.
- Tie Outs: 19
Tie Outs are the versatility of the tarp. Four tie outs leaves you with limited options for shelters, eight is better, but nineteen is a ton of space to create multiple shelter designs. The stitching is solid around the tie outs, and I don’t see any reason they should fail outside of an extreme load, in which case the tarp itself would tear first.
- Metal Stakes: 4
Meh. They’re aluminum. They’re stakes. They bend if you hit them the wrong way. They don’t do well with rocks. The best I can say for any aluminum stake is that these ones have a good shape to them. A good tent stake will drive into the ground and both points on the stake will press into the ground, trapping your tie out or cordage firmly to the ground.
- Guylines: 6
Can’t say much about these, I never use them. I always set up my tarp using the 2 Minute Shelter setup by Corporals Corner. It’s fast, versatile, and saves a bunch of time.
- Packed weight: 1 lb 7 oz
Again, not much to say here. The packed weight is overall very light, much lighter than the 10′ x 10′ Chill Gorilla tarp. That’s not saying too terribly much based on the difference in material, however, the advantages of lighter weight are innumerable, and the reduced spatial signature allows for extra food, water, or other necessities.
Summary
All our operational needs are different, but I hope that by giving you my impression of the tarp helps you choose if it fits for your needs. The quality of this tarp is undeniable, and I look forward to implementing it on more trips in the future. If you guys want to check out this tarp and other amazing gear from Self Reliance Outfitters and Dave Canterbury, start with the links below:
modernsurvivalarkansas.com 