New Frabill flip over with pinholes??

[Lostlunker]

I guess I'm looking for some opinions on if I should send this thing back or not. I got a deal on a Frabill Recruit insulated 1 man flip over this last week and just got around to putting it together last night. The pinholes on this tent material are something else. I know insulated tents have pinholes but nothing like this. Anyone with a insulated Frabill seen anything like this? I like everything else about this hut but I might end up sending this thing back due to all these holes. Hopefully these pics can give a good idea on what I'm talking about.

 

[Vollmer]

Hard to say til you get it out there. But i bet it holds heat. This the one you were talking about on ice shanty? If i remember it was a good price on it.

 

[KDM]

So much for the insulation value of that sieve. I don't know much about these types of houses, but that doesn't look like it would hold back much wind.

 

[deleted_account]

every insulated house ive been in you can see some light through the stitching.

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hard to tell by pics if yours is worse or not i guess.

 

[Vollmer]

I think it just looks worse because of the black fabric.

 

[Lostlunker]

Hard to say til you get it out there. But i bet it holds heat. This the one you were talking about on ice shanty? If i remember it was a good price on it.

Yep I found out about the deal on ice shanty last week ($226) and after putting it together last night I searched on ice shanty and seen another post on there about this same issue I'm talking about. Hard to say if the clear is material or not, I can actually look through it when I am sitting in there and see items on a table that is a few feet away.

 

[guywhofishes]

You sure they are true holes?

I think many makers thermally bond - rather than stitch - their fabric laminates together. Those "holes" are likely spots where the fuzzy lofting was fused/melted to bond it to the other layers - thus those spots became transparent.

Still great thermal properties compared to non thermal but you'll see little tiny frost spots grow where those "holes" are. NorpacR2 (Canvascraft and a couple others use it) is truly quilted layers with stitching and minor pinholes here/there. Darn near perfect light block. No better material out there IMO.

http://www.norpacr2.com/

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I've had some popups with that look - including my Eskimo thermal now I think - and they have those transparent spots. They are wind-proof but there's no thermal property. Still - >95% of the surface area remains quilted - so heat loss isn't bad at all.

 

[Stinger]

My Jason Mitchell insulated flip over is just like that. Had it for 4 years. No problem with wind blowing through

 

[luvcatchingbass]

After the hole and melted zipper my $300 Shapell sustained a few years ago your pics don't look so bad to me.

Actually I think guy is correct because I have been in a few other thermal houses and have never noticed any air coming through but I also think they were all Clam Thermals

 

[Lostlunker]

Thanks for the advice fellas I think I'll give it a shot this winter and if I have problems I'll try and deal with it then I've just never seen anything like that before.

 

[LBrandt]

Do the blower door test like they do to houses. Go inside and light up a fatty with a big fan blowing in. If anyone walking by gets a contact high send it back.:;:smokin