Hammock Gear Dyneema Ground Shelter Hiking Tarp

I am always looking to save a few ounces in my pack and an ultralight tarp shelter is a good place to start, so I bit the bullet and reached out to Hammock Gear in Ohio.  I chose HG because their products are made in the US and I've heard good things about their customer service.

All of their stock options are rectangular so I asked for a quote on a 10'x10' custom Dyneema hiking tarp.  The price was reasonable and it was pretty easy to get exactly what I wanted.  They even asked me to draw a diagram so the D rings and guy out points would be where I wanted them.  Easy peasy (I know, cheesey).  The work was completed quickly and it was shipped within a week of completing my custom order.  Communication was outstanding.

When it arrived I weighed it (9.26 ounces), threw it in the pack and took a short hike to try it out.  The tarp was beautiful, the demensions correct and the D rings well attached.  But it was hot, 97 degrees, so I didn't plan to spend too much time outside but ended up hiking 3 miles before setting up the tarp in a clearing.  It was quick and easy to use and very roomy using it as a star pitch off my trekking pole.  I lounged around hydrating for about 35 minutes then began to pack up.  When I was folding the tarp I found a lot of grass stuck to one of the seams and realized the glue had heated up and slipped.  Bummer, to say the least.  I opened a warranty claim and had a shipping label the next day.  From the time I opened the ticket to when the repaired tarp showed up on my door totaled 4 days, outstanding customer service and communication.  Then I took it out again in near 100 degree weather and another seam slipped a little.  Not to the point of a gap, but it slipped a little and some glue ran out of the seam.  I contacted HG and they quickly gave me a work order number and told me they'd not only repair the seam slip, but they'd reinforce all of the seams for me at no charge.  Again, outstanding customer service.  The moral of the story is that apparently Dyneema shelters shouldn't be used in extreme heat without extra seam reinforcement.  I elected to wait until I came back from my backpack hunting trips to the Rockies to have the service performed and will update the review afterwards.

Where this shelter really shines is in the cold, high backcountry!  I used this shelter on a 9 day backpack hunt in Colorado and was completely satisfied.  The tarp with 550 cord corner tie outs, bank line wall tie outs, a 20' ridgeline and 6 mini hog Y pegs in the supplied Dyneema stuff sack weighed 15 ounces.  This is a shelter that has almost limitless configurations, could sleep 3-4 people in an A-Frame set up, 2 comfortably in a star pitch and weighs less than a pound with hardware.  

The tarp is not ideal in extreme heat but will work with some care.  Otherwise this thing seems indestructible.  I now can't imagine not having Dyneema shelter in my ultralight kit, and I can't imagine a company offering better service than I have received from Hammock Gear.