Underquilt width question

Hammock Forums,

I have been doing many backyard "shakedown" nights and have decided to get serious about an UQ & TQ combo. My question is why do most top quilts look too wide..photos show the quilts way up the sides of the hammock. It appears they do little good to insulate the person in the hammock. I can see how that might contribute to overall warmth inside the hammock (but not under the the TQ where you need it). Is condensation an issue due to breath on this exposed section of the UQ? Any comments from the gurus here would be appreciated OR links to existing threads.

Considering Phoenix or incubator with burrow or WB Mamba.

all the best! and thanks in advance!

I'm confused by the post, and wonder whether you may not have meant the cite the UQ sometimes when you meant the TQ and vica versa.

So, first: To get and enjoy diagonal I often have a shoulder, and not always the same one, pressed against a 52" wide hmmk bottom all the way up the side, just below the bug net zipper. So, I've wondered that I'd want an UQ narrower than the 45" I currently have. As there are several on the market that ARE narrower, they must work for others. Warbonnet explicitly expects its Mamba TQ to be installed diagonally. Minimization of size and weight through optimal match of design and use. Others make wider TQs, insulating more than needed at any given instant of use.

For the TQ, you want enough to tuck, but many / most / (all?) don't want to be tucked in as tight as some mummy sleeping bags wrap them. Many / all TQ's, typically 48" + wide, have a draw cord so at the top so the width at the neck can be restricted, but there is ample room for drape and tucking and some movement for shoulders and torsos. Arguably, some expensive insulation value is lost when it compresses between body and hmmk, but then, some insulation is warmer than no insulation.

Note that some top quilts also taper toward the foot / foot box lower legs so tucking of a narrower quilt is achieved by securing the feet in the TQ foot-box. This allows some material and weight saving.

In another thread at HF on adapting a bottom- insulation-free sleeping bag to TQ use, some asked whether after slitting and spreading most of the length of the fabric bottom there was enough[ insulation on top for warmth. What had been the fabric-only bottom obviously was more than enough to tuck in. 40" was reported to be enough, but that is with wings to tuck under.

They are not necessarily extra wide. I think that a lot of pictures are taken without the occupant inside. That gives the misleading impressioin that the UQ covers more than it does. For example, all my underquilts are 39" - 40" wide and here are 3 pictures from my gallery which make them look huge.
http://www.hammockforums.net/gallery...earchid=114160

http://www.hammockforums.net/gallery...earchid=114160

http://www.hammockforums.net/gallery...earchid=114160

I have several Burrows, a few phoenix's and an incubator and love them all. I am 6' 200 and find that they are the perfect widths (phoenix, incubator and burrow). Remember you want a little over lap between the TQ edges and where the UQ comes up over your shoulders. Remember most people lye on a diagonal so that flattens out the UQ. When I am not in my hammock my UQ lifts up the hammock I string it so tight. That prevents CBS (cold but syndrome) I have never had an issue of condensation with my UQ and the only condensation Ive had on my burrow is when I'm in single digits (only happened once) and the condensation from breath makes an ice layear close to my face. I fixed this problem by sleeping with a neoprine face mask now in really cold temps. So the Phoenix or Incubator with the Burrow is a great set for any hammock. Just my 2cents. Hope this helps.
LRR

All the UQs I've made have been the same dimensions when finished. 60x48. I like to have my UQ over my shoulders so in case it moves in the middle of the night, I don't have to come completely out of my hammock coma to adjust it.

Fronkey

Thanks guys. Demostix..yes I fat fingered the question, but managed to get some answers anyway. I look forward to the Mahha event where I can see and discuss the merits of all this different equipment.