and What Knot

**Pak-Man** · 11-11-2009, 15:02

Got my HH Hyperlight and set it up for a short second this weekend. I ran the treehugger through itself, and then hooked my line through the open end and tied it in what I can only describe as two 1/2 hitches about 3 inches apart with a slippery half hitch at the third knot.

Now two things: the spectra cord is very stiff and slippery and slipped twice, a problem I havent had in the past with other set ups, the other is that one of the tree straps already is starting to split(i am sure due to me not using it correctly).

So what do you do?

I was thinking of upgrading with 5-6' of7/64 amsteel and then attatching tri-rings from a blackbird set up. Then using just 36" of webbing to adjust the ends. Kind of like a webbing/biner set up but with more rope then webbing.

Or do you think i should jsut go with a different rope like amsteel and stick with the straps?

And has anyone found a way to set the huggers up by running one end through the other without causing damage?

Thank you everyone...

"dirt"

**Rat** · 11-11-2009, 16:29

Tree Huggers:
1) You can use a carabiner in one loop and run the other end through the carabiner instead of the webbing loop.
2) You can sew a thicker material around the loop to act as an abrasion pad; this pad can be replaced as often as needed. You can use 1.5 inch tubular webbing and slice it open then sew it around the webbing in the loop.
3) Use the huggers like Hennessey shows and run the hammock cord through both loops.

Hammock Cord:
1) I hate to say it but the Figure Eight lash is proly the best way to use the stock hennessey cord. I found that most friction hitches or slip and grip hitches will eventually creep; or you need to make so many turns to get it to hold that you might as well use the figure 8 lash anyway.
2) I did have some luck with using prussics on the hammock cord. Run the cord through both loops of the three huggers and then tie or clip to a prussic for adjustment.
3) I never tried it but you could proly get away with using a marlin spike hitch on the carabiner in the tree huggers.
4) I have used my DIY webbing three huggers (much longer than the stock hennessey huggers) with just a toggle. I tied the toggle to the hugger with a marlinspike hitch and tied a bowline in the hennessey hammock cord. it worked pretty well. I actually figured this out when I left one set of Whoopie Slings at home a couple of weeks ago, it worked well.

There are many suspension systems out there right now. If you are considering upgrading your hennessey find the one that you like best and don't be afraid to get rid of the stock hennessey hammock cord.

Even after all these years I have kept the stock hennessey cords on my Eped, I'm not sure why...

Here's a tip also; the hennessey hammock doesn't need to be tied tight to the tree to be comfortable. In fact, I usually have a couple of inches worth of slack in my ridgeline when I hang now. To me, it is more comfortable.l

**MacEntyre** · 11-11-2009, 18:24

Dutch clips cause less damage to the tree huggers than going through the loop, and are both lighter and simpler than any alternative. Add Whoopie Slings between the huggers and hammock... that's the way to go!

- MacEntyre

**JumpingJack** · 11-11-2009, 19:17

I've had a Hyperlight since February. I just followed their lashing directions; rope through both loops, three figure eights; works fine, never slips, never jams. Why exactly do you want to do it differently?

**angrysparrow** · 11-11-2009, 19:23

Originally Posted by JumpingJack

Why exactly do you want to do it differently?

Adjustability without untying the lashing.

**Bunn** · 11-20-2009, 22:29

"Adjustability without untying"

is exactly why I converted my Explorer UL to a ring buckle system.

**warbonnetguy** · 11-20-2009, 23:40

Originally Posted by angrysparrow

Adjustability without untying the lashing.

agreed, it's a bit time consuming, alot of work to untie and re-tie even if you just need to make a small adjustment. you also have to make each "8" really tight otherwise it will tighten once weighted and let several inches of line out in the process.

i had tree straps last pretty long by putting one loop through the other, they do wear down eventually, but it wore out slowly. i don't know about the hh line, but i had great luck tying a slipped sheetbend directly to the end of the strap. heavier folks will probably need a slipped double sheetbend. ties in just a second and unties even faster.

**MacEntyre** · 11-21-2009, 19:34

Originally Posted by warbonnetguy

...i had great luck tying a slipped sheetbend directly to the end of the strap.

Aha! I'm not the only one!

- MacEntyre

**KMACK** · 11-22-2009, 05:45

I have left the stock cord on my HH but switched to using a spike hitch on the tree huggers. I then wrapped a decender ring on the stock cord down near the hammock and make use of that as a truckers hitch in conjunction w/the spike hitch. There is great range of adjustment by placement of the spike hitch and the decender ring also acts as a drip ring too. After a couple wraps from the ring to the spike a slippery half hitch (or two) tided to the ring holds just fine.