Ultralight, highly adjustable, affordable suspension

[JoeBobJr]

First off I wan't to say this is only a review. I have no affiliation with the guy I bought this suspension from. I just really like it for it's simplicity and being metal hardware free.

I have been using a suspension set that weighs less than 3 oz and has great adjustability from Jeff with Myerstech Hammock Lab in Oregon for less than $30. The suspension consists of a 7' dyneema tree strap, lightweight 6' whoopie sling and continuous loop with button knot. There is no metal hardware whatsoever adding weight or wear and tear to the strap or tree. The connections are made by tying the strap to the whoopie sling with a beckett hitch. The fixed loop end of the whoopies connect to the button knot continuous loop at the hammock using a simple soft shackle technique. The whoopies have a spliced loop though the adjustable end that you tie the beckett hitch to, so the beckett hitch doesn't hinder the adjustability of the whoopie. With 7/64 amsteel whoopies the suspension weighs less than 3 oz. I had him make me a set using "dynaglide" whoopies for a 2.2 oz total suspension weight. He sells on ebay, but I have purchased direct from him using Messenger to his Facebook page . He is a great guy to work with and his shipping times are quick.

I like Dutch Bling-tanium as much as the next hanger and appreciate his company's support of this forum. This option just seems to fit best with me personally.


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https://www.ebay.com/itm/Ultra-light...oAAOSw1RVaeRjC

[QFT]

Yeah he's doing interesting stuff. I have some dyneema straps from him; I actually use them successfully with beetle buckles though it's not endorsed by Dutch.

[Winnie]

He’s also got some good diy videos on YouTube. I just made a continuous ridgeline for my tarp using his methods. Instead of soft shackles the connections are made with button knots and continuous loops. Works like a charm.

[hutzelbein]

Maybe a stupid question, but why bother with a whoopie sling? I don't know which Dyneema webbing Myerstech is using, but I belive most Dyneema webbing is actually lighter than a double length of Amsteel. Attach a continuous loop to the hammock and tie the webbing to the loop. No whoopie slings necessary. Or am I missing something?

[Phantom Grappler]

Hutzelbein, that’s the way some of us are going.
One piece ultralight strap from tree to hammock
Dutch and MyersTech vendors and RipStopByTheRoll and others.
I’m using Dutch’s 2.0 webbing with my off the wall
suspension, Kokomo. And can use it in my other suspension Carolina Red, that is real close to the way you describe in your post.
At local group hangs in Carolinas there are all kinds of suspensions—-whoopie slings, daisy chains with carabiners, Dutch bling with poly straps or poly dyneema straps, marlin spike hitches, and ultralight dyneema straps and becket hitch to continuous loop at hammock.
We use what we got....for now....
Phantom, laughing at the mirror...

[Baka Dasai]

Maybe a stupid question, but why bother with a whoopie sling? I don't know which Dyneema webbing Myerstech is using, but I belive most Dyneema webbing is actually lighter than a double length of Amsteel. Attach a continuous loop to the hammock and tie the webbing to the loop. No whoopie slings necessary. Or am I missing something?

Weight isn't everything. I can think of two reasons:

1. Whoopies are easier to adjust than having to undo and retie a becket hitch or marlin spike hitch.

2. Whoopies are less bulky to carry than straps.

Nevertheless you have a good point, and these two reasons aren't all that strong, and might be outweighed by the beautiful simplicity of a strap becket hitched to a continuous loop.

[cmoulder]

Maybe a stupid question, but why bother with a whoopie sling? I don't know which Dyneema webbing Myerstech is using, but I belive most Dyneema webbing is actually lighter than a double length of Amsteel. Attach a continuous loop to the hammock and tie the webbing to the loop. No whoopie slings necessary. Or am I missing something?

Also no-whoopies setup for me because straps permit hanging between more closely spaced trees, and strap to CL is about as minimalist as it gets.

I have both Venom and Myerstech 15' straps and they handle similarly. The Myers straps are a bit thicker and weigh 22g more than the Venoms, and that's for the pair. The Myerstech straps are easier to flatten out after use, although with either of these straps it only makes sense to flatten out a few feet at the tree end.

[Caminante]

Jeff is doing some really innovative work and providing quality stuff at a great price. He's really an asset to the DIY community, and hammock community at large.

Weight isn't everything. I can think of two reasons:

1. Whoopies are easier to adjust than having to undo and retie a becket hitch or marlin spike hitch.

2. Whoopies are less bulky to carry than straps.

Nevertheless you have a good point, and these two reasons aren't all that strong, and might be outweighed by the beautiful simplicity of a strap becket hitched to a continuous loop.

I'm not sure that my Venom straps from RSBTR aren't less bulky than a similar length of Amsteel, but I haven't specifically made that comparison. When tightly rolled, the Venom straps are extremely compact for the length and I suspect other UHMWPE straps are the same. I'm now carrying Venom straps + UCR's because I have tree distance anxiety, but eventually I'll realize that I don't need the UCR's and start leaving them. Or maybe one of them.

[<-Pointer]

Because it's fun to talk about your "Whoopie Sling" in front of ground dwellers - the looks are sometimes worth the extra ounce or two :P

[cmoulder]

I'm not sure that my Venom straps from RSBTR aren't less bulky than a similar length of Amsteel, but I haven't specifically made that comparison. When tightly rolled, the Venom straps are extremely compact for the length and I suspect other UHMWPE straps are the same. I'm now carrying Venom straps + UCR's because I have tree distance anxiety, but eventually I'll realize that I don't need the UCR's and start leaving them. Or maybe one of them.

Venom straps are quite compact. First photo is how I usually roll them up when on the trail — less than 10 sec to stow them, and it's really pointless to flatten them out all neat and tidy, anyway. However, the second photo shows how compact they are when flattened out and rolled up... I'll do this just once for the photo! Yes, there are 2x 15' straps there.

Venom_straps_compact.jpg Venom_straps_compact_02.jpg

In any event, hard to find a lighter (as shown, 2.05oz) or more compact setup.