Portaledge Repair

So I've got this portaledge that a friend of a friend gave to me to try to do something with. He said that it was left up in a tree during a storm? Anyways there is a very significant hole and a couple smaller ones that need repair.

From the research I've done it seems like sewing ripstop patches is next to impossible and people often recommend glue patches for smaller tears. I do have some sewing experience and I currently have some 210D HDPE Gridstop: 210d link

and 420D Double-Grid Ripstop Nylon: 420d link

Right now I'm wondering if I would be able to essentially replace the entire panel that is damaged with one of these materials? And then patch the smaller hole on the other panel with glue and a patch? Would love to fix this portaledge myself but it also might be worth sending to someone who's got more experience than I. Let me know what you think, I'm open to any ideas. Thanks!

Willard K Haynes wrote:

Search for 10 inch wide Dacron tape for fixing spinnakers. Both sides. 

What's the difference between Dacron tape and Ripstop tape? Strength? Any reason not to use the Ripstop tape for both sides?

You can probably send it back to BD for repair if you don't want to DIY. They fixed my ledge a while ago and did a great job.

Crotch Robbins wrote:

You can probably send it back to BD for repair if you don't want to DIY. They fixed my ledge a while ago and did a great job.

How much did it cost for them to fix it?

Not gonna give a dollar figure since it was 20 years ago and times have changed but I was left with the distinct impression that BD customer support was much more interested in stoking me out than breaking even on the repair. They took great care of me; 10 out of 10 service.

If I was in your shoes I'd call the customer service team in Salt Lake.

was the ledge left out in the sun for a long time?  The hole looks like it might have happened when the ledge was stepped on rather than getting torn From being blown around.  If so, the fabric could be toast from UV?  that Is a big hole to repair…

making a new bed isn’t too hard, similar patterns on BigWalls.net

Pretty sure they have not modified the frame size from my original 1990s “cliff cabana” design, so this pattern might be the exact fit:

full patterns:

http://bigwalls.net/download/a5-alp-double-frame-and-fabric-specs.pdf

Ps.  I recommend a monolithic 2-point fin rather than separate divider fins.  See the original  D4 design (2017).

ps. see this video (rough cut) on making a one-off bed in a few hours : bigwalls.net/diy-50buck-por…

Hey everyone, thanks so much for all your suggestions and beta. I ended up repairing the ledge as a bit of a pet project/learning experience as I got it for free and didn't see any reason not to just try. I may end up remaking the bed in the future (thanks for those patterns John, awesome!), but for now the repair is holding up well. I set it up on my homewall and have slept a few nights on it so far, and will continue to do so to build my confidence Below are some photos of the repair process and the final product. My next steps are to design and make a fly for the ledge, if anyone has beta for this it would be greatly appreciated!

The setup:

Test piece:

Setting up the first stitch:

First stich:

Old material sewn back:

Finished product: