PS Magazine - TB 43-PS-609

PS, The Preventative Maintenance Monthly

ISSUE 609

AUGUST 2003
PS Magazine - TB 43-PS-609 - Page 28 of 33
PS 609
S
mall holes and tears can turn your coated polyester tent or tarp into a sieve. You
need to make repairs while they’re still small, before the damage becomes major.
That’s where tent repair tape comes in. It’s made for permanent small repairs on
canvas or coated polyester tents and tarps. NSN 8315-01-423-6231 gets you a roll
of tape 3 inches wide and 50 ft long.
PS 609
AUG 03
52
•
Spread the tent or tarp on a flat surface.
•
Brush off loose soil or dirt from the areas to be
patched. Wash these areas with mild detergent and
water. Rinse with clean water.
•
Let the tent or tarp dry completely.
•
Cut a circle from the tape slightly larger than the
hole you want to cover. The circle’s rounded edges
make the tape less likely to peel off.
•
Press the tape against the outside of the fabric.
•
Allow the tape to set. The longer the better.
Overnight is best, but give it at least 20 to 30 minutes.
if you find a
hole more than
2 inches across,
turn the tent or
tarp over to DS.
They’ll repair it
with machine-
sewn patches.
Here’s
how to
use it…
W
hen it comes to driving tent pins, it
pays to know all the angles.
Once a canvas tent gets wet, it shrinks.
And when it shrinks, guy
lines tug hard on the pins. A
pin with its head angled away
from the tent acts like a lever
under the tug of the tight line.
The pin enlarges its hole in
the ground and works loose
until it pulls clear out.
Or something worse hap-
pens. The pin doesn’t pull
free but continues to strain
the tent until the canvas tears.
•
Drive short pins straight up and down. By short, we mean the 12-in steel pin,
NSN 8340-00-823-7451, or the 16-in wood pin, NSN 8340-00-261-9750.
•
Drive longer pins with the head
slightly angled toward the tent-
–about 15° from vertical. Longer
pins are those like the 24-in wood
pin, NSN 8340-00-261-9751, or
the 36-in wood pin, NSN 8340-
00-261-9752.
One other pointer about pitch-
ing a tent: Keep an eye on the guy
lines. Lines need to be taut
enough to hold up the tent, but
slack enough to deal with shrink-
age when rain and snow fall.
Drive longer
pins with top
toward
tent
TENT PINS:
A Driving Lesson
The solution lies in
two simple rules
for pounding pins
into the ground…
I’m not
angled
correctly!
Canvas Tents…
Polyester Tents, Tarps…
there. that
oughta hold
it--
good
as new!
I think
there’s a hole
in your plan,
there.
Now that you’re thinking PM
for tents and tarps, order the
updated tentage repair kit,
comes with two yards of
green coated polyester fabric
and two yards of tan coated
polyester fabric
don’t
blame
me
for that
tear!
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