Paddy Pallin Tent

[Rodsports]

G,Day, I have a Paddy Pallin Paddymade tent, it still repels water but I would like to 'freshen up' the weather proofing. Could I use Scotchguard? Or is there a better product that someone could recommend?
Thanks for the help.

[andrewa]

Is that a japara tent???

Have a look at Nikwax stuff, dependent on what your tent is made of. I've never found scotchguard all that durable.

[davidmorr]

I once walked with a fellow who had been a fabric finisher in an earlier life. This was someone who determined what chemicals were used to give the raw woven fabric the right characteristics.

His advice was to get something made specially for the fabric you wanted to proof. So if it is cotton, get something made for cotton. The reason is that the proofing has to bond to the fibres of the fabric, and something that bonds well to nylon may not bond to cotton.

He was also quite skeptical of Scotchgard, which is just a version of Teflon. Teflon's main claim to fame is that things don't stick to it. By the same token, it does not stick well to things it is applied to. In my experience, Scotchgard was good for a few wettings, but got less effective each time.

Roger Caffin has some good information on waterfproofing and fabrics on the NSW Confederation site:

http://bushwalking.org.au

Look for the FAQ section.

[Mark F]

The original proofing sold by Paddy's for their japara tents was paraffin wax ( in a conical cardboard cup) which you would melt and mix with kerosene. Soak the tent in the mixture and hang to dry. Any of the cotton canvas proofings should work well. Spaying with silicone is likely to temporary only.

[Rodsports]

Thanks Guys, much appreciated.

[Moondog55]

I have an "Era" with the sewed in floor, I waxed mine and while it is now much more water resistant it hardly breaths at all. Best way to do it is probably to use a large flysheet, which is what we did in the "Olden Days" when using Japara tents in the snow.

[DaveNoble]

I have two old Paddy japara tents - both made out of "stormtight" japara - which is light green in colour. An excellent fabric. It never let rain in - in even the heaviest Fiordland storms. Even if you touched the roof. I understood that it was the weave that kept the water out - the cotton swelled up and kept water out. The fabric never seems waxy at all so I assumed there was no proofing added.

Dave

[Mark F]

Dave,

The secret of the Stormtite japara was a very thin pu coating on one side of the fabric otherwise it was the same weave as the normal green japara just a different colour. The coating was thin enough that it was not a full seal, on nylon it might have rated as an extremely poor showerproof coating. The pu proofing was done in Australia at Bradford Mills (!?)

You are correct that the weave in japara is important but that applied to all three japara fabrics (including Golden Tan) and has to do with each filament receiving a very high degree of twist as it is woven. The only mills that could produce it were ancient mills in the UK and only at 30" or 36" widths. By the 1980's these mills had virtually all closed down and sourcing the cloth became almost impossible.

[Moondog55]

I believe mine was the last one made ( or at least one of the last ) made using the golden tan cloth.
Good tightly woven cotton is almost impossible to buy now, Ventile is still available tho and Bradmill were weaving a very tight cotton fabric here, sold as japara; down-proof covering for Doonas, but the last fabric I saw at Spotlight was labelled made in China

[taswegian]

I have an Era 3 man - 'rot proofed' - fantastic tent IMO. Separate floor.

I haven't done anything to it (bar someones big Frog Flats muddy footprint on side) and my understanding was they didn't need treatment.

If a drip decided to make its presence felt it was just a simple job to run the finger down the tent wall to make it drip at the bottom.

Rodsports is it really necessary to 'freshen it up'? I'd be concerned of making a rod for your own back. Once that japara is treated in some other way what are the consequences as aluded to here!
Breathabilty was a real forte of the Paddy tents. Amongst other things.

[Moondog55]

I wish I hadn't done anything to mine, waxing it was a mistake, for the cost of the wax and gum turpentine I could have purchased or made a flysheet

[Rodsports]

Thanks Guys, I didnt realise that these tent DIDNT have a coating from the factory (hence my thought to 'freshen it up'). It certainly explains the reason I couldn't 'feel' a coating. The tent is labelled as a Paddy Made with rot resistent material. I put the tent up and ran the hose over it and it appears to shed water very well. I will take the advice and not coat it. Thanks Guys, I appreciate the information....Rodsports.

[taswegian]

Rodsports my comment re drips referred to one that develops when you rub against the wall when its raining and the tent drips inside, then just run your finger down the wall from the drip area to the bottom of the tent and the water then follows the line rather than drip into the middle of the tent area.
Once the tent is dry the drip wont be there. Drips aren't permament.
You may know all that?

So enjoy your outings in an Aussie icon.