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Thread: Sticky Fabric om Harrison Tents

  1. #11
    village idiot BennehBoy's Avatar
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    Re: Sticky Fabric om Harrison Tents

    What period of time are we talking about? My Harrison tent has been stored in the bag since I bought it 10 years ago and there is no stickiness. Maybe climate also plays a part, it's never particularly hot here in the UK.

  2. #12

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    Re: Sticky Fabric om Harrison Tents

    Quote Originally Posted by BennehBoy View Post
    What period of time are we talking about? My Harrison tent has been stored in the bag since I bought it 10 years ago and there is no stickiness. Maybe climate also plays a part, it's never particularly hot here in the UK.
    It's a big spin on the cosmic wheel, as there can be elements beyond our control, such as the batch of material it's been made of etc... The same material for these was used for the Photoflex softboxes I was given, that were purchased by my friend about the same time (in the late very 90's), stored side by side, and one was almost perfect (with barely a touch of sticky), while the other was sticking to itself quite a bit... Other things like my North Face rainjacket has the same materials, and was about 7 years old was rolled up tight in the bottom of one of my travelcases, and was sticking together, and some other articles I have made from the same stuff is fine...

    You might be proactive and wash it down sometimes, and you can test a spot with the mink oil polish above, and see if it is not too greasy for you, but when spread and polished thin, it dries to a barely noticeable film in a day or two, so consider that... Think about how it can be stored where any of the material does not make contact with itself, but being in a soggy climate, consider what storage/use would not let it get damp or wet during use, and rolled up and stored, to avoid mold and mildew if still damp...

    And don't leave it in hot or freezing cars, and if you don't want to loose it or get it damaged stupidly, don't loan it out to anyone!!! ;-)

    Good Luck!!!

    Steve K

  3. #13

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    Re: Sticky Fabric om Harrison Tents

    I bought 8x10 sized Harrison years ago for $60, and the intermediate lining was a little sticky. Not too bad, though.

    But, I've noticed that the silver lining has started showing the same symptom. Again, not too bad, but noticeable.

    I'll store it in a box and see if that helps. Probably should get a new one, though.

  4. #14
    Steve Sherman's Avatar
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    Re: Sticky Fabric om Harrison Tents

    Quote Originally Posted by LabRat View Post
    The biggest issue is storage where the laminated materials are rolled tight, and plasticizers in the material out-gas, and start attacking itself, while not allowing the material to evenly breathe... I have had this happen with rainjackets and some nice softboxes someone gave me, that when opened, everything was sticking to itself, after being tightly packed for about 10 years...

    If only slightly sticky, clean as much of the sticky off as you can with strong detergent, alcohol, or lighter fluid, and give it a thorough wash/dry, then get a tin of mink oil leather protector from the shoe shine dept, and rub and polish it in... The mink oil will penetrate and replace some of the lost plasticizer, and the silicone in it will cap the surface... YMMV depending on how far the "disease" has developed, but will often halt it if not too far gone...

    Try not to store these materials rolled up, but allow breathing space, and that goes for vinyl, plastics, or other synthetics too... And keep away from UV, or temp extremes...

    But one of my nice softboxes was a real gone daddy, and repeated treatments and sunbaths etc did nothing but stick the silvered and white insides to itself and my sleeve, and smelled a little like New Jersey (same material), so it ended up going down the round hole to another life...

    Call Harrison, and explain, 'cuz some mfgs will replace their products long after purchase, and don't forget to mention to them that you have been asking about this on on-line forums wondering what could cause this, and see if that helps get their attention... ;-)

    Good Luck!!!

    Steve K
    Appreciate the info Steve, Not easy to find the Harrison medium size Darkcloth but I did find one @ Atlanta Camera. I will make sure and not store a tightly wrapped darkcloth on the backpack to ensure it lasting much longer than previous one. As an FYI, I have the ULF Harrison changing tent, at least 10 years old and have keep it loosely stored in the pouch that it came in, just checked it's condition and happy to report being stored in a normal below grade basement with no water issues the changing bag is as new. Appreciate the mink oil suggestion.

    Cheers, SS


    Real photographs are born wet !

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  5. #15

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    Re: Sticky Fabric om Harrison Tents

    There really is no reason for pu coatings on these tents (I have couple). Pulled one out and the black sleeves and area around it have that tell tale funky smell.

    Sooo, having asked about similar issues with tent flies and floors, a Sierra Designs (they make expedition tents etc) tech suggested using, I believe, isopropyl alcohol and scrubbing away the sticky coating. Then use a product (name escapes me) to recoat.

    For changing tents I would try to remove the pu coating but not bother recoating as it serves no purpose, afaik, for making the tent lightproof.

    I wish you could still get Shadow Box tents as they're cotton/canvas (have had no issues with dust fwiw). Perhaps if enough people asked, Harrison could make an uncoated tent and dark cloth.
    notch codes ? I only use one film...

  6. #16

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    Re: Sticky Fabric om Harrison Tents

    Oddly enough I just went looking for Harrison tent fixes, I got mine used several years ago and it's finally started sticking to itself.
    I may try the alcohol strip to get rid of the silver gunk, thanks for the idea! It's like CPR: patient's already dead so no matter what I do I'll be ahead!

  7. #17
    http://www.spiritsofsilver.com tgtaylor's Avatar
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    Re: Sticky Fabric om Harrison Tents

    The link posted above specifically warns against using cleaning compounds (for the exterior):

    Cleaning Your Tent or Bag
    Turn the tent inside out to clean the interior. Either sponge clean with water or a mild solution of dishwashing soap, or soak in a bucket of water. Set the tent up to completely air dry after washing.Machine washing or drying will damage the coating on the fabric – never machine wash or dry-clean your tent or bag. Don’t use cleaning products on the tent, as chemicals can damage the fabric coating.

    Thomas

  8. #18

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    Re: Sticky Fabric om Harrison Tents

    [QUOTE=biedron;1412964]On the Camera Essentials product support page https://www.cameraessentials.com/product-support they recommend storing the tent unrolled in a cardboard box.

    I read that somewhere too, so after I got my Jumbo tent, I bought a cardboard box from my local UPS store.

  9. #19

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    Re: Sticky Fabric om Harrison Tents

    Quote Originally Posted by tgtaylor View Post
    The link posted above specifically warns against using cleaning compounds (for the exterior):

    Cleaning Your Tent or Bag
    Turn the tent inside out to clean the interior. Either sponge clean with water or a mild solution of dishwashing soap, or soak in a bucket of water. Set the tent up to completely air dry after washing.Machine washing or drying will damage the coating on the fabric – never machine wash or dry-clean your tent or bag. Don’t use cleaning products on the tent, as chemicals can damage the fabric coating.

    Thomas
    Yea, but they didn't advise about what to do about the sticky stuff...

    When I tested different cleaners on the softbox, the white or silver didn't come off using barely diluted dishwashing liquid, and as this is a "go for broke" rescue effort, the sticky is hard to remove, and I suspect the coating on top is just a reflector to keep the inside of the tent cooler...

    The suggestion to check sites that have camping tents etc made from this material for mfg suggestions about what to to with the sticky problem is good thinking...

    Steve K

  10. #20

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    Re: Sticky Fabric om Harrison Tents

    Even sticky and near dead it's better than an unmodified, stock KangRinpoche, where you can read about light leaks from the embroidery stitching that goes straight through both layers I wonder if they've improved that since then...

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