I posted pics and got some feedback and thoughts on design after throwing together my first hammock to determine if I wanted to go further. That hammock was nothing more than a piece of Wally World ripstop folded over. The thread can be found at the below link:

http://www.hammockforums.net/forum/s...ight=hurricane

Naturally I decided to move forward so I intended to buy another block of tan ripstop b/c of the design I had in mind. Wally World was sold out when I made it over there so I had to check another. They did not have the tan, but they did have ACU which was even better. It looks just like the first stuff I bought, but has a rubber type coating on one side. Water rolls off so I wonder if I could use my spare material as a rain fly?




I wanted a two layer hammock for the strength, and decided I would put the ACU camo on the outside. I helped my Momma stitch it on three sides and leave one end open since I want to try a closed cell foam insert. She did this a great deal quicker than I would have. Since I wanted to experiment with the width we also folded one side over and sewed it with a single stitch. That way I can open it back up later and resew it at a different width if I need to. Current dimensions are a few feet short of 12 feet and 46 inches wide.

The rope thing was horrible enough that I abandoned it after the first try. It works but is just not what I want. Again rounding up what I had on hand I put together some slings and am very happy with the performance. That will be the route I go. I want to use one 1" sling with loops on each end for the tree sling, one sewn loop of sling for the hammock itself and possibly a 'biner to tie the two together. That seems pretty simple and light which is what I am going for w/o being a "gram weenie." I will also try the Dutch clips at some point. Right now I am also using the web loops to secure each end. I will try a different method as I go along later. I have plenty of time to experiment.

Below are pics of the seams and the final layout hung up.




I still think the lighter color tan would work great on the inside since it would help lighten up things at night so you can see better inside but that will have to wait. I got the idea from a Spec-Ops pack I have with a yellow liner on the inside. It really brightens up the inside so you can easily see the contents. I think the tan will work nearly as well w/o being out of place in the woods.