One other thing you might consider is shortening the length of the white cord so the buckles are only a few inches away from the hammock.
That will let you hang between closer trees w/o loosing any length from your hammock.
One other thing you might consider is shortening the length of the white cord so the buckles are only a few inches away from the hammock.
That will let you hang between closer trees w/o loosing any length from your hammock.
I too will something make and joy in it's making
just read through this thread.
'though the shouting seems to be over, for what it's worth
- RamblinRev is correct in remembering that the sheetbend is used particularly when the ropes involved are of significantly different diameter
- The "double" version of the sheetbend is stronger still
- The hammock expert par excellence Youngblood has taught this method of attaching suspension to hammock. It was from him on HF anyway that I first heard of the method. I'm trusting Youngblood on that call.
Grizz
Sorry, but there was no intention for there to be any shouting. I asked for people's opinions and they were given. I appreciated the input as it will make me rethink the setup. I was merely having a discussion about the different suggestions.
As for the sheet bend, I still remember doing research on this and saw a reference to the knot weakening as the disparity between the 2 ropes grew larger. That is what scared me off from even trying a sheet bend.
So, I'll give it a shot and see how it works out.
John
Last edited by Mrprez; 08-26-2008 at 21:18.
forgot the smiley
now that the shouting is over* ()
Grizz
*colloquial phrase meaning that some event is over
I just so happens I have been playing around with the AmSteel Blue cord. It makes a great bear line as it slides over tree limbs with very little friction. Knots are another matter. It will slip knots under load that ropes with polyester sheaths will hold with no problem.
Tying knots with it requires a new level of expertize, and that is probably true for any knot under heavy load. I have found that it will drop you if you use a double sheet bend to tie it into the hammock knot. There are a couple of ways that I found that do seem to work but I don't know that they have a name.
Both are a variation of a sheet bend. The last one I tried was a triple sheet bend with both ends of the rope tied off together with a variation of a bow line just outside the hammock knot. The variation to the bow line is to make it slippery and tuck the end of the slip back into the slip loop and cinch down on it, effectively backing up the bow line. When all this is done, it seems to be a secure knot, but I don't have a lot of experience with it. I would recommend backing up any bow line with this slippery rope similarly, and it can be done with a slip loop--- basically a slip loop cinched on a slip loop and it will release if you are careful in how you tie the basic bow line with the 2nd pass inside the first pass though the loop you form when you start tying the knot.
The AmSteel Blue is amazing stuff, but it is very different where knots are concerned... don't forget that! I will slip under heavy load where other rope material won't. And when it does it is sudden, it is gone before you have a clue. You have to rethink your knots.
Just for reference, I had three different knots fail and drop me when I was trying various things. I have used those 3 knots for years on hammocks with webbing and other types of rope without any problems. They initially held and failed suddenly after a few minutes in the hammock. I had stressed them before I got in and thought I had it under control. After the third drop, I tested it by stringing it between the trees as taut as I could so I could get a whole lot more stress on it without getting getting into a hammock. Once I figured out which knots held and which didn't by over stressing the line, I replaced that line because I don't trust it after that.
Last edited by Youngblood; 08-26-2008 at 23:18. Reason: spelling
Youngblood AT2000
One other thing with the AmSteel Blue. Fraying is little different with this stuff. I found that cutting it with sharp scissors and using about 1/2 inch of heat shrink tubing on the end works well. I just shrunk it with a lighter. I didn't have much luck with hot cutting or just melting the ends like with other materials. The heat shrink tubing makes the tip stiff and that seems to be a good thing when working with it.
Youngblood AT2000
Note to self..... what you already knew from experience but is not something you want to forget. And thanks for the Sheet bend information specifically. I don't use that as a matter of course with my Amsteel but I have found I need to tie my bowlines a little differently or the tails will slip.
I had hung on a sheet bend but not with the Amsteel.
I may be slow... But I sure am gimpy.
"Bless you child, when you set out to thread a needle don't hold the thread still and fetch the needle up to it; hold the needle still and poke the thread at it; that's the way a woman most always does, but a man always does t'other way."
Mrs. Loftus to Huck Finn
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Yep, I've had experience similar to Youngblood's when it comes to knots in Amsteel or Vectran. Amazingly light and strong. Amazingly slippery. Amazing ability to jam up tight on knots that are "supposed" to be easy to untie once load is off.
My current approach to using it for the main suspension is Real Simple. Bowlines at the end of lines hold (but Alpine butterflys in the middle of the rope don't). I always have a stopper knot on the short end of the bowline, Just In Case. So I attach one end of a line using techniques suitable for a rope with a fixed loop at the end. The working end of the cord passes through rings or biners. Round turns with two half-hitches hold (actually when I do this I use 2 round turns as it further takes force off the half-hitches that hold it), and can be undone. Better still is a trucker hitch style attachments, when the anchor for the hitch is a ring, not a loop in the cord. Get a 3:1 thing going on, and there isn't enough force on the end of the cord to cause jams; half-hitches work just fine to tie things off.
Good to know not to trust the stock version of the sheet bend on the hammock body. I'm a bit surprised by that actually, but maybe I shouldn't be given the other places I've seen that kind of cord behave in unexpected ways.
Grizz
Do the Amsteel like cords hold double fishermans knots well. If so couldn't a loop be made with the fishermans knot, then prussiked to the rings & larks headed to the hammock? I guess if the fishermans knot works the larks head on the hammock is the next question of slipping.
My knife is so sharp it cut the sixth finger off my right hand! On the plus side, Inigo Montoya no longer hunts me.
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