orginal message
>Date:    Sun, 5 Jun 2005 08:59:44 -0500
>From:    John Rodgers <inua@CHARTER.NET>
>Subject: NVC - Camping Tent Problem

>I've got a very nice mountain tent .............snip..... Wow, did it smell
>bad.......  polyurethane coated nylon .....Has anyone had any experience
>with this sort of thing???

I have an old Cannondale tent that has given me many fine years of
service.... and it also is urethane coated nylon..... the urethane breaks
down with age to Urea.... you know what urea is right?.....that's why it now
smells like a wolverine pissssed on it... I don't have a clue how to remove
all the urethane coating on the nylon (which is what makes it waterproof) If
you look closely at the coating  on the inside you'll see it is pealing and
rolling into little balls. I wish I could remove the smell from mine also,
but I just gave up a few years ago and moved on to a newer tent. Maybe it
could be resprayed inside with something to cover up and seal off all the
old urethane.... other wise even with the added bouquet of a dozen pine tree
air fresheners it's still a goner.

VC.... don't put it in your vanagon.

RR