My tent pattern

[Ivan Henry aka Moose]

Not sure if this is the correct spot for this, but.... I spent a few hours planning out a large wall tent that can be made with painter's tarps from Lowes/Home Depot, etc. Being the picky person that I am, I made a 1/2 scale pattern. It's currently still being sewn, so the end results are not conclusive yet. At any rate, I thought i would share my pattern with everyone. Enjoy!

Painter's Tarp Tent Pattern 1/2" = 1"

[Jack Roberts]

Are you putting this together with Flat Felled seams? If not you could run into leakage. I like the pattern. Should make a nice little wall tent.

[Ivan Henry aka Moose]

Yes Flat Felled, double stitched.

[Jack Roberts]

Are you putting this together with Flat Felled seams? If not you could run into leakage. I like the pattern. Should make a nice little wall tent.

It looks like "panel 3" of the pattern measurements are off. 166" x 44"?? I would think it should be wider than that.

Edited September 25, 2009 by Jack Roberts

[Ivan Henry aka Moose]

134" - cut and paste error! good catch. i'll fix that and repost it.

[Ivan Henry aka Moose]

New one is posted. thanks again!

[Jack Roberts]

Yep anytime.

Do you have the Dimensions for the door flaps? Also I would add approximate Width x Length x Height.

[michaelsbagley]

I don't know how much effort you want to put into this, or how much you are limited by the size of available drop sheets...

But adding some overlap on the opening panels (marked #4 on your design) can and will make a huge difference if you ever get caught camping out in the rain. I think most commercial tents have about 8 inches (+/-) overlap. It can be done two ways.... Sewing in an additional flap, or extending each panel so they actually over lap which would mean extra layers to sew through where they meet towards the peak.

But it looks great!

[Ivan Henry aka Moose]

Good points! Version 3 is up now. Added are door dimensions and a note about the dims being finished size. around 1' needs to be added to the cut on all sides for finishing.

[Jack Roberts]

What I was looking for was an approximate finished dimensions. It looks a 13'long by 8' wide 7' high. Like I said just approximate. Even the pro's tell you to measure your finished tent for pole sizes.

[Paisley]

...dont forget shrinkage :)

without looking at pattern, are you making it double doors???

i couldn't live without double doors on my a-frame. when no paytrons around i get a nice breeze or i can always close "the front" and leave the back open.

good luck!!!

[Kenneth]

It's looking real good!!

[Stynky Tudor]

...dont forget shrinkage :)

without looking at pattern, are you making it double doors???. . .

Hey Pais, yep it's double door pattern.

But that's a good point. Does anyone know how much this Home Depot/Lowes stuff does or doesn't shrink?

Not that I know much about such things but Mooseworth, it looks to be a petty sweet pattern. Show us some in-process pictures of it being built.

[Dutchman]

this past summer in charleston we experienced a downpour of three inches in two hours and sustained winds of around 40 knots i think. there were around thirty pieces of tentage up and unfortunately all of the painters tarp tents and flies fell- about a dozen as i recall. In all fairness, this was a nasty blow and many commercial grade canvas pieces hit the ground as well. But a characteristic I noticed was as there is no waterproofing on the stuff it absorbs water and stretches out as it makes its death march to the ground. I do not know how this stuff handles with a water proofing applied though. I have a painters tarp i have used as a sun shade for a few years now and its wonderful even handling brief light summer showers, but not much more.

This is a great tent plan and looks like it will go together very easily. As a thought. I've had good luck finding decent sized remnants and salvages of canvas as fabric shops. It may take a few visits and some looking, but thats an option as well. I currently have a six foot by eighteen foot piece i found for ten bucks waiting to become something.

[Bright]

To all me lads & lasses,

We has made a fine suggestion, to write down the incidences and particulars of the storm we went through during Harbor Fest. I think this a grand idea and rather than just have my thoughts the whole crew should pitch in their perspective as well.

To get us started there's an incident after we first got kicked on our arses, I was standing outside with 3 or 4 mates and one (probably one not from Charleston), said he was glad it was over. I told him not to relax because the storm was likely to circle around and hit us again. Which (of course) it did. I'm sure such a display of seamanship made an impression on him and he told the story all the way back to Maryland. The storm is the kind of thing we should have in our log. All of ye that were in camp email me so I can add your names to the log only mates that were encamped in the village need to respond. If ye sought shelter in car or building or your lover's place or boarding house need not respond. Don't worry, I ll make sure you are involved in the next natural disaster. The legend and lore of the Charles Towne Few will make a great addition to the stories of the English Main.

In Spirit & Health,

Capt. Red Richard

Ayes returned to camp to find Jake a crew member of the Bermuda visiting with Edward Lowe. Edward Lowe introduced us to our visitor to camp and he came over to my dinning fly to visit with me and make inquires of our encampment as the Crew of the Vigilant head out to dine in town and asked that ayes keep watch on their area of camp as they were all heading into town.

The sky's darkened and the rains came in as ayes entertained or guest under me dinning fly till the winds began to blows the rains vertically under the fly. We retired to inside our tent as the winds howled and the thunder claps came closer and more frequent as the rains came down in 85 gallon drums. We would step out to the fly from time to time to to check on the pools forming in the fly and the surrounding tents to see how's they were fairing the weather. Our guest inquired as whether we were concerned with the rains but ayes told him its wasn't the rain but the winds as we be in one of the larger tents in camp a and all that canvas acted muck like a large sail. As he was on Bermuda he understood the power of the heavy winds on a large canvas. As we pushed a large pool that was forming from our fly the wind lifted the corner of Vigilante's large fly behind our tent pulling their iron stakes from the ground and whipping them about on the end of the lines lifting three of the support poles in the air and slamming them back to the ground with such force that two of poles snapped right into.

Jake came to assist me as ayes went to aid the failing fly. Aye grabbed the corner line as it sailed past me face and had Jake passed me one of the poles that had not broken in two and we rescued the comer pole and drove the stakes back into the ground holding that corner backing in its place with out that pole and lines in place the the large ridge pole would have certainly toppled over with the next gust crushing whatever lye in its path. The spinning ladies cover gave in at that point but as their was nothing under it and the lasses were not in camp this was not an emendate concern till the commercial steel poled cover that the town had put up at the Conner of the camp as shade for those awating the shuttles, was picked up in air and came back down on its top. We were concerned that it would continue on a rolling path of destruction taking out all other period camp tents in its path but once it was upside down the rain filled it quickly holding it in its place upside down a sort distance from its original space. The Georgetown mates were running to those sties that had no one in camp and trying to keep the pools from filling in fly's so the weight of the water would not tear them into. There was a lull in the Storm and the winds died down for a bit. Our guest Jake took this opportunity to return to the Bermuda as he could see that it was circling back for a second go round. The Crew of the Vigilant returned they were surprised to find that they had suffered some as they said they were rigged for heavy weather. Edward Lowe had another camp set up some distance away from our period encampment and asked that ayes keep watch as he need to check on things there. The mates from Georgetown took to the Pride as they had alls had been soaked to their core draining dinning fly's around the camp. The wind returned again accompanied by the 85 gallon a minute torrent of rains. The winds lifted Edward Lowes fly and drove it back in the ground snapping one of his poles as well blowing his fly up against his tent like a second door covering the entrance to his tent.

The snap must have been louder or different enough from the thunder claps as it awoke Chissy from her slumber as she had sleep through the first torrent or perhaps the change of the winds direction as it cased our fly to make loud pops as the wind would blows it upward toward the sky the back toward the ground violently we thought for sure that it would not survive the second torrent of winds and rains as one of the lines gave way but it seem to ease the strain of the wind from that point and all we suffered was a tear in one of the corners of the fly. But we had our eyes to the sky as we had been advise of tornados seen nears bys.

By me hand

Edward Bright

[Dutchman]

huzzah! a fine rendition of the events!!! and thats about how it happened too! As grace and I were accompanying the crew of the Vigilant that weekend, let me share my perspective. The clouds were forming as we were headed out to dinner so I figured I'd throw out some extra wind lines fore & aft about 30 feet out. Durring dinner the heavens let loose as described by Bright. Rather than run all the way back to camp, we figured what had blown over had blown over. Upon returning to camp we were indeed in the lull and got pounded again. Grace and I went to bed in a standing dry tent, others were not so lucky. Bright, thanks for minding the store- I didn't know till now who had looked out for the site.

[Ivan Henry aka Moose]

The pattern is based on standard sized tarps. The main piece is one tarp, the sides are two long narrow tarps and the flaps are cut from another large tarp. I plan on waterproofing it and creating proper poles, lines, etc. I am having someone sew it for me. Once I get it set up with poles and stuff, I will take pictures and list more details. It took multiple hours to accurately design this pattern, so I'm happy to see that it could be of use. I will report more soon. The first actual use should be at the Pirate Gathering in St. Augustine Florida on November 12th - 15th. Look for me and my new tent!

[Paisley]

The pattern is based on standard sized tarps. The main piece is one tarp, the sides are two long narrow tarps and the flaps are cut from another large tarp. I plan on waterproofing it and creating proper poles, lines, etc. I am having someone sew it for me. Once I get it set up with poles and stuff, I will take pictures and list more details. It took multiple hours to accurately design this pattern, so I'm happy to see that it could be of use. I will report more soon. The first actual use should be at the Pirate Gathering in St. Augustine Florida on November 12th - 15th. Look for me and my new tent!

great moose...cant wait. i'll be there as well with the west coast mutineers "fight circle"...i'll be playing mary read (squee!...*can pyrates squee?)

[Commodore Swab]

Im in the process myself of designing a simple wedge tent to use 2 tarps and be as high as possible and still fit a nice mattress inside that can be inflated at night.

[Ivan Henry aka Moose]

So, after all is said and done, I think I have a pretty decent tent. It's certainly not as robust as commercial ones, especially in fabric weight, and i only saved about $100 from a commercial one with poles included. The good news? On our first encampment, the wife and I won a Best Encampment prize! I treated the tent with three gallons of Thompson's Water sealant. As it weathers a rain is thankfully yet to be determined as the weather this weekend was beautiful. Michael is dead on that an additional 8" on one of the flaps on each side would be good. Our doors close, but there is a small gap in between the ties. All in all, the tent is pretty cool. It can sleep 4 easily.

[William Brand]

I want pictures of your award winning camp. STAT!