DIY Tipi help

[acmckeage03]

Here are a couple Pics of my tipi I am just about finished with. However my vent cover came out like a pair of saggy tits.... what have you guys used to keep your vent covers up off your mesh? I made my cover 3” wider and put a piece of weed eater line to add some leading edge rigidity, didn’t work as desired.

 

[realunlucky]

Maybe a piece of ziptie would add more structure

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[gumbl3]

I was gonna say weedeater cord.. If that didn't give enough, look up bougies, they're used by anastesiologists..It's a much more rigid flexible tube, only thing that comes to mind that has more structure than weedeater line

 

[WoodBow]

I used giant zip tie material in mine. They are probably 1/2" wide. I got them at walmart. They work great.

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[Napperm4]

Nite ize gear tie works awesome and is shapeable

 

[acmckeage03]

How many inches extra did you add to the width to get an acceptable bow? I added 3 and am not sure if it was enough

 

[WoodBow]

How many inches extra did you add to the width to get an acceptable bow? I added 3 and am not sure if it was enough

I don't remember. I mocked it up first to get the shape i wanted and then measured what length it was.

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[WV Mountaineer]

Here are a couple Pics of my tipi I am just about finished with. However my vent cover came out like a pair of saggy tits.... what have you guys used to keep your vent covers up off your mesh? I made my cover 3” wider and put a piece of weed eater line to add some leading edge rigidity, didn’t work as desired.View attachment 77912View attachment 77913

That looks to good to be associated with saggy tits.

 

[acmckeage03]

Well thank you WV. Yes, the Tipi came out well! the vent cover has been a struggle and I'm starting to get tired of replacing it!

 

[WoodBow]

Well thank you WV. Yes, the Tipi came out well! the vent cover has been a struggle and I'm starting to get tired of replacing it!

If it makes you feel any better, im not convinced they help much. You will still get plenty of condensation unless you pitch a portion of the bottom off the ground or crack the door to let it draft. Kifaru probably doesnt bother to add them for a reason.

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[Beendare]

I dunno.....I put a big oversized vent in mine [about 8-10" wide 3" tall opening] and you can see it working with a puff bottle inside the tent.

By comparison, the vent in my old SL5 was worthless using the same test.

I've only used my tipi in 2 spots; a swamp in Alaska on a drop camp moose hunt....and the high mtns in Montana....from what I've seen, I think a good vent makes a difference.

As a side note, the orientation can actually matter. Wind blowing against the vent inhibits air movement....but on the leeward side....it can help suction air through the vent with the eddy current. BTW, we had a day of 60 mph wind in Alaska with my tipi pretty exposed and it shed the wind like nothing I have ever seen!

Heres mine but I don't think these pics show the vent...


Edit; oh yeah, the one Ak pic shows the vent being compressed on the windy side [always blowing in Ak] So that grass out in front of my buddy is deceiving...its actually growing in water about 4"-12" deep that goes in under the tipi....no dry spots to pitch within a 1/2 mile of that spot. Why there, we spotted moose from the air on both sides of that lake.

 

[acmckeage03]

So I've already made up my mind to make another tipi. I see you didn't reinforce your stake out points? you used 1/2"-3/4" webbing? has that been adequate? I used 500D cordura to reinforce my stake out points and I feel is over kill. I also attached guy outs 24" up which I also feel is more than is necessary.

I dunno.....I put a big oversized vent in mine [about 8-10" wide 3" tall opening] and you can see it working with a puff bottle inside the tent.

By comparison, the vent in my old SL5 was worthless using the same test.

I've only used my tipi in 2 spots; a swamp in Alaska on a drop camp moose hunt....and the high mtns in Montana....from what I've seen, I think a good vent makes a difference.

As a side note, the orientation can actually matter. Wind blowing against the vent inhibits air movement....but on the leeward side....it can help suction air through the vent with the eddy current. BTW, we had a day of 60 mph wind in Alaska with my tipi pretty exposed and it shed the wind like nothing I have ever seen!

Heres mine but I don't think these pics show the vent...
View attachment 78283View attachment 78284

Edit; oh yeah, the one Ak pic shows the vent being compressed on the windy side [always blowing in Ak] So that grass out in front of my buddy is deceiving...its actually growing in water about 4"-12" deep that goes in under the tipi....no dry spots to pitch within a 1/2 mile of that spot. Why there, we spotted moose from the air on both sides of that lake.

 

[acmckeage03]

Beendare, how did you design your vent cover and what did you use to keep it off your mesh?

 

[gudspelr]

Another vote for the large zip tie. I started off with weed eater line and all mine did was try to twist back up into the coil it was in before... I then tried cutting up some strips from this thin, flexible cutting boards. That worked okay, but the zip tie (got them at Walmart) seemed to end up being best.

Jeremy