I have now purchased two DD 3m by 3m, one 2.8m by 1.5m (small) and one 4m by 4m DD tarps. The quality of all the tarps cannot be faulted. I've used and ABUSED one of the tarps for several years now, treating it in a way which would have destroyed my old military tarp, the DD just keeps on going. I have noticed a small tear in it about 1cm long but have not repaired it yet. Maybe the next time I use it I'll repair it and I'll post pictures.
In my opinion the DD tarps are the only ones on the market worth buying, they may not be the lightest, but I prefer build-quality, reliability and strength to saving a few grams.
I've only just bought the 4by4, I'll write about it when I've used it. I bought it so that I could pitch the tarp to the ground when in the hammock and create 'doors' (photos when I've pitched it).
In my opinion the DD tarps are the only ones on the market worth buying, they may not be the lightest, but I prefer build-quality, reliability and strength to saving a few grams.
I've only just bought the 4by4, I'll write about it when I've used it. I bought it so that I could pitch the tarp to the ground when in the hammock and create 'doors' (photos when I've pitched it).
DD 3metre by 3metre tarp
When we bought the Hennessy Hammocks, part of the decision for buying it was the fact that it came with a tarp which attached to the hammock suspension and effectively "pitched as one". In hindsight, this should not have affected our decision as the tarp is quite small to say the least. It is perfectly usable as a summer tarp in good weather and can also be used in rain but with NO wind. It packs down to a ball only slightly larger than my fist so we don't mind carrying it during the summer as well as the DD 3 metre by 3 metre which we have bought separately.
We recently got the chance to try out the DD tarp in bad weather. Luckily the rain held off until we had completely set up camp, then it rained continuously until we broke camp 14 hours later. During the night the wind picked up and although we do not know the actual wind speed, it was quite strong. The video does not show how strong the wind actually was.
The tarp performed perfectly:
It did not rip (which at several points I thought it would).
It did not leak. There were absolutely no damp patches on the inside of the tarp, even at the seams.
On a recent (28th July 2012) trip I used the Hennessy tarp as Strider was borrowing my DD tarp. We had two short showers and my underquilt got soaked as the tarp did not completely cover the extra width of the quilt around the hammock, the rain dripped off the tarp onto the quilt. Strider was perfectly dry!
The following photo shows the size comparison of the two tarps. The red outline shows the edge of the Hennessy Tarp (obviously the large tarp is square being 3 metres by 3 metres).
We recently got the chance to try out the DD tarp in bad weather. Luckily the rain held off until we had completely set up camp, then it rained continuously until we broke camp 14 hours later. During the night the wind picked up and although we do not know the actual wind speed, it was quite strong. The video does not show how strong the wind actually was.
The tarp performed perfectly:
It did not rip (which at several points I thought it would).
It did not leak. There were absolutely no damp patches on the inside of the tarp, even at the seams.
On a recent (28th July 2012) trip I used the Hennessy tarp as Strider was borrowing my DD tarp. We had two short showers and my underquilt got soaked as the tarp did not completely cover the extra width of the quilt around the hammock, the rain dripped off the tarp onto the quilt. Strider was perfectly dry!
The following photo shows the size comparison of the two tarps. The red outline shows the edge of the Hennessy Tarp (obviously the large tarp is square being 3 metres by 3 metres).
One of the ways I pitch the tarp to use it as a tarp-tent
I shortened a Vango Tornado tent pole, put guy lines on the pole it is stable and pitched how I want it.
DD Small Tarp 2.8metres by 1.5metres
I've only used this tarp once so far. I'd pitched it in the A-frame setup, quite high with the bottom edge about a foot off the ground as the weather forecast had said light winds and light showers. The forecast was wrong... Strong winds and a deluge from about midnight to 8am. The tarp didn't leak although my bivi was wet due to the height I'd pitched the tarp. With careful packing the tarp packs so small I can get the tarp, pegs and a multimat sleep-mat in the tarp bag!