Webbing as Float Bag Lacing: Help Me Find the Negatives

[Mississippi Mud]

I was browsing possible float bag purveyors and came across Tribal Bags, a British outfit that ships overseas. They make good-looking custom bags similar, it appears, to Fall Line in quality. While scanning their Facebook page for inspiration, I saw the following photo and it made me wonder why this isn't more common.

Webbing Lacing

ETA second view of this boat:

Canoe with Webbing Lacing

I've tried to think of potential issues using webbing as float bag lacing, and the only one I can think of is added weight, but that seems like it would be offset somewhat by the fewer number of pad eyes (or p clips or whatever) needed for retention since the webbing is larger. Thinking further, the webbing could be accompanied by a D ring like the ones below glued/screwed to the bottom of the inwale.

D Ring

Cost is a consideration as webbing is more expensive than accessory cord, but it's not a significant expense. Beyond that, I'm struggling to see the negatives here.

Help me think of the downside of such a system before I commit.

 

[sailsman63]

Several of your photos aren't showing up...

 

[Mississippi Mud]

Several of your photos aren't showing up...

Thanks for the heads up. They were all showing for me on the post and preview. I added links to the images so hopefully that will help.

 

[Gamma1214]

I don't use float bags but I don't see any reason why webbing would be inferior (or superior) to paracord in that application. Use what's readily available or aesthetically pleasing to you & paddle on.

 

[Nick Pending]

I would agree with Gamma that webbing isn't inferior, but I'd consider it overkill for the purpose. Costs more if you don't already have it on hand and weighs more after it's installed, but neither of those may be a big deal to you. As to the strength, the weak point in the system is likely the attachment to the gunnels or maybe the bag popping if old or "inferior brand"(?). That's if you get into a situation where it's really tested, like a boat pin with it mostly under water. Get D rings on the floor of the boat to tie it down to so as to supplement the gunnel ties. Good luck in any case.

 

[MrPoling]

It does look really cool. But I see disadvantages. The first is weight, as already mentioned.

The second disadvantage is your attachment points have to be wide enough to fit the webbing. Some methods this won't be a problem at all. But if you're using little d-rings attached to the gunnels this would force an upgrade that might triple the cost of the hardware..

One advantage of cord is you don't have to worry about the orientation. It will take more time to rig this because you'll constantly be fidgeting with the webbing.

If you do leave it in the canoe while car topping it's going to cause more noise. Webbing flutters and hums much worse than cord. Especially when it's in cool looking flat stretches.

 

[goonstroke]

Not to pile on, but another disadvantage is that in an emergency webbing would take longer to cut than paracord. If the boat and its float bag lacing are tangled up with a strainer and the only way to get it (and possibly a swimmer) free is to cut the lacing that might be an issue.

 

[Mississippi Mud]

It does look really cool. But I see disadvantages. The first is weight, as already mentioned.

The second disadvantage is your attachment points have to be wide enough to fit the webbing. Some methods this won't be a problem at all. But if you're using little d-rings attached to the gunnels this would force an upgrade that might triple the cost of the hardware..

One advantage of cord is you don't have to worry about the orientation. It will take more time to rig this because you'll constantly be fidgeting with the webbing.

If you do leave it in the canoe while car topping it's going to cause more noise. Webbing flutters and hums much worse than cord. Especially when it's in cool looking flat stretches.

Good thought on the noise. That would certainly be a drawback. Another consideration: since I'm a few hours away from substantial whitewater, I'm playing with the notion of a quickly removable float bag tie down system and thought webbing might help with this as well. A "float bra" for bags would be an option, but it doesn't seem like they are made anymore.

That's probably a topic for another thread, though.

 

[Mississippi Mud]

Not to pile on, but another disadvantage is that in an emergency webbing would take longer to cut than paracord. If the boat and its float bag lacing are tangled up with a strainer and the only way to get it (and possibly a swimmer) free is to cut the lacing that might be an issue.

Not at all. Piling on is what I hoped for here since I was having trouble thinking of drawbacks. I did consider the issue of snags from strainers or rocks (after a flip), but my thoughts were more along the lines of which (webbing vs accessory cord) would be more likely to become entangled rather than which one was more easily cut.