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  1. #11
    Senior Member Peppy's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2016
    Location
    Calamine, Arkansas
    Hammock
    Towns-End
    Tarp
    WB, Towns-End, UGQ
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    LSOH, JRB, UGQ
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    Straps & Buckles
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    5
    Commercially available... Not really. I know Bill has been swamped the last several months with moving and work, but here a while ago he had some of the 1.6 Hyper D mediums left. Shoot him an email at [email protected]. He's a great guy who can answer your questions better than I. I love my hammocks from him. Wider than a RR, yet still a great flat lay!
    Hammock Tourist / Hammock Fiend / Hammock Therapist

  2. #12
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
    Location
    Valpo, IN
    Hammock
    Towns-End Luxury Bridge
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    1,746
    Quote Originally Posted by cneill13 View Post
    I want one of those hammocks. My Ridge Runner shoulder squeeze is making me want to get rid of it. Is the Townes end commercially available?
    https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...-update/page11

    The thread above is the best source on the info....


    But Peppy is correct, I'm still 'down' for a bit here. As they say, two steps forward and one step back. I'm still on the step back and hoping to take those forward steps by mid summer.
    My day job is finally cooling off from 80+ to 45 hours.

    I will likely be getting the forum members and referrals from testers/customers covered first, once that backlog is clear I will work on activating the website itself. That might not be until fall.

  3. #13
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
    Location
    Valpo, IN
    Hammock
    Towns-End Luxury Bridge
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    Quote Originally Posted by Peppy View Post
    Been a while but wanted to give a quick report/update/whatever this is. Spent the last couple of nights car camping with our men’s group from church and wanted to post a couple of pics. Not a lot of details, but I’m using a town’s-end medium bridge w/carbon fiber poles, and a tarp built and used by JustBill as well. Prettt windy last night and about 42 degrees (without windchill). Used a UGQ Zeppelin 20, 3/4 UQ, and a UGQ Bandit 40 TQ. Great hang, great nights rest, and great fishing!
    Attachment 163640Attachment 163641Attachment 163642Attachment 163643Attachment 163644

    The tarp fixes to the suspension/ridgeline of the hammock itself, and the spreader bars help keep it opened. The ends of this tarp are Velcro, and can be closed as shown, or opened up and tied back for ventilation. (The wind was fierce here last night, so that wasn’t an issue.) I really am enjoying this tarp as it doesn’t need tie outs and since it attaches to the hammock itself, it moves with the hammock which eliminates the worry of puncturing a tarp.

    Anyhow, just wanted to share a few pics.
    Attachment 163645
    I am also constantly befuddled by the picture thing, lol. I can only get it right from the desktop computer. Multi-story light gauge buildings, bridge hammocks, gut rehabbing a house... all no issue.
    But posting photos to a forum... impossible

    Very glad the tarp is doing so well... always hard to say if my more unusual designs will translate to usefulness for others.

  4. #14
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
    Location
    Valpo, IN
    Hammock
    Towns-End Luxury Bridge
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    Quote Originally Posted by Otter1 View Post
    Great setup and an awesome mess of fish!

    I like the tarp/sock. On still nights is it stuffy?
    Quote Originally Posted by Peppy View Post
    The ends open up and tie back like a Warbonnet Superfly, so not stuffy at all.
    https://1drv.ms/f/s!Apygyt54yYPwgv9bUWzE3MYcD8-8Zw

    Here is a folder with some more pics. That one is actually my personal tarp that I sent to Peppy to try. So it's already seen a good 100 nights before he got it, but it was specifically made for the medium sized bridges.

    The ends seal up, but the bottom is (mostly) open.

    The tarp can be closed in the center from inside the bridge. It's basically like reaching behind you to tie on an apron to clip it closed.
    That would be for full on storm mode or a windy night so it's not flapping around on you too badly.

    But to add to what Peppy is saying; besides opening the ends... this isn't on a gathered end, but rather on a bridge. So the triangle formed by the bar and suspension on each end is open. So even with it in full storm mode- you have good to decent air circulation as it's never fully sealed. Do you get some frost build up in deep winter... for sure. But I don't recall ever getting any internal condensation in that design during warmer weather.

    You can fully open it up and/or stake it out too. But that tarp was designed from the perspective of a speed hiker. I just want it up fast with the minimum fuss. I do carry a short dogbone of shock cord and one stake but typically use it fully free of stakes or guylines. Though if you want to treat it like other tarps the center peak is great for storm mode and it's a better shape than a traditional hex for use in your ground game.

    In the set of pics you will see a goofy internal spreader bar system....

    That top secret contraption is simply an umbrella. I like to use those often enough and that's a nice way in a deep storm to prevent claustrophobia. It's simply set on the ARL, opened up, and then I batten down the hatches. It helps for snow or rain to keep air flowing and prevent that bivy sack feel you can get.


    Being an UL guy... I tend to skip the bugnet and use a headnet.
    On a trail like the AT... the best bet is to go with good site selection so there is a breeze. But on that inevitable night you get stuck camping in that lowland valley near a pond or a still evening in a swampy area here in the midwest... then 'storm mode' also helps some with that issue too. Nothing is a nice as a full bug net during peak season... but this (with a small headnet or grizz style RL one) is a good balance of light and practical.

  5. #15
    Senior Member Otter1's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    FL
    Hammock
    DIY Hexon 1.0, Hexon 1.6
    Tarp
    WB Mountainfly
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    HG UQ's, EE TQ
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    Dutch Mantis
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    2,669
    VERY nice, Bill! I am liking the possibilities. Is the green along the bottom sil as well? Thank you both for sharing.

  6. #16
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
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    Valpo, IN
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    Towns-End Luxury Bridge
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    Quote Originally Posted by Otter1 View Post
    VERY nice, Bill! I am liking the possibilities. Is the green along the bottom sil as well? Thank you both for sharing.
    Thanks!
    The black is .93 oz Membrane Silpoly... the green is 1.1 sil nylon.

    With all UL stuff... you need to find a balance with it. That combo and that design takes advantage of each.

    Membrane Silpoly can be more prone to pinholing or damage, so using the regular nylon as shown adds some durability near the ground and reinforcement without breaking the scale. Practical UL. Due to the location of those seams, seam sealing isn't critical. It's a highly water resistant seam as is, but placing them outside the critical zone of coverage reduces the odds of getting a few drops and saves the weight of sealing.

    Cuben Fiber is pretty sweet... but having quality UL alternatives lets you get reasonably light without breaking the bank. And CF pitches sharp and neat for those who like that.

    Cuben and bomber tarps are oak trees. Some folks like that style but it comes with cost. UL means ultra $$$$. Drum tight roof over your head style pitch means heavier fabric and reinforcement are required with nylon or poly. In a bridge it also means you need to increase tarp size or height to get it up and out of the way of the bars.

    This tarp is a willow tree. It bends and flows. The membrane is a very soft fabric with good hand, so it doesn't have the crinkle of CF or the snap of other fabrics in the wind... you don't want a drum tight system with a fabric like the membrane either. So using a stakeless approach and 'floating' the tarp like this reduces wear and increases long term water resistance. It does introduce the problem of your tarp flapping in the breeze... but the membrane isn't prone to the rattling and banging and tends to whisper in the wind.

    It doesn't have the crazy hydrostatic head numbers of a full PU coating, but doesn't need them because it gives under the rain drop. It doesn't suffer aged HH numbers as badly as a tightly strung tarp either since you are not stress cycling the coating with every pitch. Membrane isn't perfect, but it can be close when used properly.

    Above all... it fits with this bridge. There is something aesthetically pleasing to me in the graceful shape and curve of bridges overall... especially a recessed bar.
    Practical reasons overrule romanticism fer me... so I will still use a solid roof or sharp hex tarp at times. And nothing like a solid roof over you at a fixed camp.

    But when you are on the move flowing down a trail; something about pairing a floating flowing stakeless tarp with an UL bridge on a walk in the woods strikes me as a truly harmonious balance.

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