I got the $, but I'll probably never buy a DCF shelter

[Dos Perros]

I'll admit I had been lusting after a lighter shelter. I'm not really sure why, my current shelters are pretty light, but I'm always up for saving weight. Then I saw Andrew Skurka's Instagram post wherein a crew of his experienced hail and all or most of the DCF shelters were destroyed, while the silnylon shelters survived.

https://www.instagram.com/andrewskurka/ go check it out, post from 8/15/2022

1) Obviously you need your shelter to be robust, otherwise what's the point?
2) I'm not sure I could stomach such an expensive shelter getting destroyed and needing replaced.

 

[BBob]

I’m not getting rid of or worrying about any of my DCF because one group had a freak hailstorm that ruined their gear. I have lots of years and trips with some pretty bad weather here and there and haven’t had something like that happen so??? It COULD happen but how likely? At some point you just have to quit with all the analysis paralysis and worries over just what might happen and just do it. If something happens deal with it but most likely it won’t.

 

[Svivian]

I remember a high country mule deer hunt i was on in 2016 i think and i was testing out some new gear for a popular camo brand. They had just come out with a tent and sleeping bag system as well as a frame pack. We set the tents up at the highest point at 12,500ft to see what they could handle. We got battered for two days in hail, snow and rain and the tent had some problems. The down sleeping bag however was amazing and kept me warm even though I was soaking wet on the outside.

What I'm getting at is the worst case scenarios don't happen often but its when they do happen that its absolutely the most important time your shelter performs.

 

[Ferrulewax]

I saw that too. One day I may step up to a dcf shelter, but it seems like you don’t gain a ton for the $$. It’s definitely diminishing returns over silpoly/nylon but it does have it’s benefits. You just have to know what situation calls for what shelter. I wouldn’t take a tarp with no bug netting for an august trip, just like I wouldn’t take a SUL dyneema shelter for a 3 week trip to alaska

 

[Dos Perros]

I’m not getting rid of or worrying about any of my DCF because one group had a freak hailstorm that ruined their gear. I have lots of years and trips with some pretty bad weather here and there and haven’t had something like that happen so??? It COULD happen but how likely? At some point you just have to quit with all the analysis paralysis and worries over just what might happen and just do it. If something happens deal with it but most likely it won’t.

No analysis paralysis here. I've considering inputs and made a decision. I didn't fret over it one bit.

 

[Gone4Days]

I have both (BA Copper Spur and Zpacks Duplex). I like both but for packability water shedding and weight, there is no comparison. The Duplex is bigger, lighter, sheds water better and packs down WAY smaller. DCF is super strong and hundreds of thru hikers use DCF shelters for multiple 6 month long thru hikes with no problems. Don’t let one horror story scare you away. I can find many stories of Silnylon tents failing in bad weather too.

It’s amazing how small and light my Duplex packs down. 18 oz (including stuff sack) and packs down to about 2x size of a Nalgene bottle

 

[mlgc20]

I have both (BA Copper Spur and Zpacks Duplex). I like both but for packability water shedding and weight, there is no comparison. The Duplex is bigger, lighter, sheds water better and packs down WAY smaller. DCF is super strong and hundreds of thru hikers use DCF shelters for multiple 6 month long thru hikes with no problems. Don’t let one horror story scare you away. I can find many stories of Silnylon tents failing in bad weather too.

It’s amazing how small and light my Duplex packs down. 18 oz (including stuff sack) and packs down to about 2x size of a Nalgene bottle

Similarly. I traded my BA Fly Creek 2 for a Zpacks Triplex. Wouldn't even think of going back. But, there are lots of great shelters out there, that meet different needs/wants.

 

[Dos Perros]

DCF is super strong and hundreds of thru hikers use DCF shelters for multiple 6 month long thru hikes with no problems.

Is strength really the metric we ought to be measuring? What I'm really after is durability, and strength being correlated sometimes to durability. It appears in this case that DCF might be like carbon fiber, strong and light but prone to catastrophic failure, while aluminum is heavier but will usually give before failure. Obviously there are stacks of arguments for both. I'm only sharing because I had perceived DCF to absolutely be stronger than silnylon, and the story I shared has altered my perception.

 

[Turkeygetpwnd38]

Interesting for sure. I have one DCF floorless shelter but yet to use it. Just got back from Nevada and had some substantial hail, had some in bear season as well. Seek uses a .8oz vs zpack .5oz, wonder if that would make a difference?
Sometimes I don’t want to pack it but never regret being in the Hille when weather rolls in.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

Cuben Fiber is loud and has a short lifespajn...sticking with my Tarptent. Shows no weathering after many seasons.

 

[Poser]

Many CDT Thru hikers do just fine with DCF tents and they are subjected to far these types of weather events with far greater frequency and intensity.

 

[ljalberta]

No stretch and serious hail. That’ll do it. There’s a time and a place for both fabrics. Pretty wild storm they caught though.

 

[ljalberta]

Many CDT Thru hikers do just fine with DCF tents and they are subjected to far these types of weather events with far greater frequency and intensity.

Yeah, I think suggesting that the CDT trail users are subjected to more intense storms as a general statement is most definitely untrue.

If you have fellows like Andrew Skurka and Dave Eitemiller saying it was a severe storm and terrifying in the moment, that generally means a little something.

It’s also worth mentioning that on the backpacking forums, it’s quite well documented how dcf can often fail in hail due to the lack of stretch. Time and a place for everything, but dcf in a hailstorm is not my first pick.

 

[Poser]

Yeah, I think suggesting that the CDT trail users are subjected to more intense storms as a general statement is most definitely untrue.

If you have fellows like Andrew Skurka and Dave Eitemiller saying it was a severe storm and terrifying in the moment, that generally means a little something.

It’s also worth mentioning that on the backpacking forums, it’s quite well documented how dcf can often fail in hail due to the lack of stretch. Time and a place for everything, but dcf in a hailstorm is not my first pick.

Why do you think that is untrue? Have you ever spent time on the CDT in the summer months?

Also, I don’t know who either of these guys are.

 

[Bubblehide]

The tents not surviving could simply be due to the shape of the hail that fell on them. It's possible the tent material would not have mattered, unless you got into a really heavy material, and even then hail in the right shape could have put holes in it.

 

[Poser]

The tents not surviving could simply be due to the shape of the hail that fell on them. It's possible the tent material would not have mattered, unless you got into a really heavy material, and even then hail in the right shape could have put holes in it.

This is true. I got a couple of holes in my silnylon Cimarron this summer from hail (on the CDT). Nothing some tape doesn’t fix, but still. Could be as simple as letting a tiny bit of tension off your tent pole. Regardless, if we’re talking hunting in the Fall, hail of that type of intensity is far less likely. I’d have no issues taking DCF out in the Fall or winter. -might be selective during the summer, depending on conditions.

 

[Poser]

The tents not surviving could simply be due to the shape of the hail that fell on them. It's possible the tent material would not have mattered, unless you got into a really heavy material, and even then hail in the right shape could have put holes in it.

This is true. I got a couple of holes in my silnylon Cimarron this summer from hail (on the CDT). Nothing some tape doesn’t fix, but still. Could be as simple as letting a tiny bit of tension off your tent pole. Regardless, if we’re talking hunting in the Fall, hail of that type of intensity is far less likely. I’d have no issues taking DCF out in the Fall or winter. -might be selective during the summer, depending on conditions.

 

[Gone4Days]

Is strength really the metric we ought to be measuring? What I'm really after is durability, and strength being correlated sometimes to durability. It appears in this case that DCF might be like carbon fiber, strong and light but prone to catastrophic failure, while aluminum is heavier but will usually give before failure. Obviously there are stacks of arguments for both. I'm only sharing because I had perceived DCF to absolutely be stronger than silnylon, and the story I shared has altered my perception.

buy what you want. Can’t go wrong with either.

 

[BBob]

...sticking with my Tarptent

Same here....my DCF Tartptent

 

[Where's Bruce?]

Same here....my DCF Tartptent

You appear to have a tart in your tartptent.

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