Adjustable Structural Ridgeline

[DemostiX]

The structural or adjustable structural ridgeline has just one structural purpose.* That is to set the arc or hang. Now, it is common to also refer to a tangent to the arc, usually at a point further up to the tree,so the ridgeline can also be said to set that angle; but it is the overall length of the arc which is being set by the ridgeline.

Draw for yourself an arc, a broad V shape on a piece of paper. Nothing says the hammock has to occupy that whole arc. In fact the hammock must be hung so the ends of that V will usually be occupied by a rope. My point is that the % referred to, something between say 80% and 90% can be the taken the ratio of a horizontal line intersecting the legs of that V just about anywhere. (I made the usual "U" a "V" so that the previous statement would match visual intuition about it.) If you want to run a ridge- line between your tree-straps, that's OK, too

Finally, the 83% figure most often referred to here is not magic, and does not result in the hang angle being 30 degrees. It is a few degrees off, about one degree for each % point.

Refer back to that broad V shape. What you are doing, assuming you were jack-knived in the hammock, is setting the ratio of one half the ridge-line length to one leg of the V, and the ratio of one leg of the right triangle to the hypotenuse. Commonly said to be "setting the sag."


* (Yes you can hang pictures of your children, siblings, or unrequited love from it, too; but that wouldn't satisfy a structural purpose.)

[U-Turn]

Height may be related to SRL length and sag, but not in a way I can recall has been posted here.

To the OP:
The SRL made in the form of a whoopie could go through the channel at one end. It is more easily larks headed through the rope loop or whoopie loop that is larks headed in the the channel. The other end will need a carabiner or soft shackle or short strong rope with a knot.

While it is usual practice for the SRL to be connected to the ends of the hammock, there is no reason for it NOT to be connected to rings or some other points in the suspension beyond the end of the hammock.

For SRL length, when adjusted: The length is some proportion of numerator SRL length to (denominator) hammock length

What counts as the denominator is the length of [hammock + rope] between ends of the SRL. Connect at the channels and the "rope" drops out, is zero. Denominator = hammock length

Often recommended as a starting point is 83% = 5/6 of whatever that is. It is likely you will find comfort within a few % of that either way. 90% is tightly strung, with ridges under the legs likely, along with tightness in the shoulder. That % is strung and loaded. AFTER the stretch in both. 78% will let most get comfortable in a curled up position

If the hammock is a 10ft =120" and the SRL is connected at the channels, then a SRL of 100 inches will be 5/6 the length.

If your hammock is short (and sweet) as mine are, then you may wish to connect a SRL at some points beyond the end of the hammock. Keeps the SRL out of your face. I have continuous loops in the channels of an 8'=96" hammock.The total length of hammock + extended loops comes to 110". That is where the SRL is attached. I am comfortable with a ridge-line adjusted to about 83" + 8 ", about 92".

Thank you!! That is exactly what I was looking for. I will try it out this weekend!

[Bob Bobson]

U-Turn, did you get a chance to try out the ridgeline? I ordered my ASR, but it's not in yet, and I'm really curious about how much this improves comfort.

[Camobob]

I put a srl on my DN and never looked back . It's dialed in and ready to take me to snoozeville. Makes setup easier too. but Im 5'10 275

[jasen4_30]

I put a srl on my DN and never looked back . It's dialed in and ready to take me to snoozeville. Makes setup easier too. but Im 5'10 275

Can I get pics of where and how you attached the ARL?

[DemostiX]

Here is one of Derek Hansen's fine illustrations


For close-up, if that is what you mean,

http://www.buttinasling.com/riin.html

Notice how the ridgeline (or ARL or ASRL) is shown connected at the ends of the hammock? In my earlier post I claimed it you could attach it anywhere you wanted to. That is true, but if you want repeatability, the length of the arc including the hammock will not change between hangs, because if it grows the ARL will need to grow in the same proportion in for the shape of the arc to remain the same.

In practice, you might have short fixed-length ropes or loops extending out from the ends of the hammock, and you could attach the ridgeline to the outward ends of these, maybe at rings. Reasons to do that would be to raise the ARL up out of your face or away from your head when seated. Or to support a tarp, or to hold the bug net up higher.

Theoretically, if those short loops added, say 10% length to the virtual length of the hammock, and you made the ARL 10% longer than it was before, then the arc would have exactly the same hammock will feel the same.

[hanghigh]

The ENO double nest is just shy of 10 feet long and I have the ridgeline at 96" and that is perfect for me it allows me to sleep on my side if I want as well My friend has his set closer to 98" so 98" +/- an inch or two and you cant go wrong I might add I have the ASL attached at the base of the whoopies

[dkperdue]

I don't worry about weight. I used a small Nano type climbing biner at both ends to connect to the descender rings I have on the DN.

Also, I am 6'5" and it made all the difference in the world when I got the length correct!

[Jhb627]

This is my setup on a DNImageUploadedByTapatalk1339161498.371481.jpgImageUploadedByTapatalk1339161510.960092.jpgImageUploadedByTapatalk1339161536.973509.jpg

[jbrianb]

The ENO double nest is just shy of 10 feet long and I have the ridgeline at 96" and that is perfect for me it allows me to sleep on my side if I want as well My friend has his set closer to 98" so 98" +/- an inch or two and you cant go wrong I might add I have the ASL attached at the base of the whoopies

Most folks are going to find this range to be the best. hanghigh's RL is 80 percent of his hammock's length. At BIAS, we build our non-adjustable RLs to 9 feet on our 11 foot hammocks (81.8 percent). Some HF scholars claim 83 percent is perfect.

I've found that the range of 80-85 percent is very comfortable with most folks. Some may prefer 85 and others 80, but this is the most common range and represents a really good place to start dialing in. Any hardware that extends the RL would need to be taken into account (rings, biners, etc.) as it could add length to the RL and affect the sag.