Turtle Lady Stand Question

**ggreaves** · 06-09-2013, 18:40

What should I use as a cross beam between tripods. I need it to span 15 or 16 feet and not bow under compression. Ideally it should be 1 piece and available at a Lowes or Home Depot. I just made short work of a pair of galvanized 10' chain link fence tops. They gave way on my second hang. I need something much stronger. I'm thinking about just going to get a 4x4 but it seems other people are able to use pipes of some sort without issues. I'm about 200 lbs and have no trees in my backyard from which to hang. Any ideas?

BTW, I have browsed the Turtle Lady Stand thread but it goes on too long to quickly find useful info.

**stalker42** · 06-09-2013, 18:41

If yu are not worried about moving it what about some black iron pipe?

**ggreaves** · 06-09-2013, 19:09

Perhaps. Is it any less flexible than this?

http://www.rona.ca/en/fence---top-ra...ain-link-fence

Incidentally, it failed right at the taper in the picture from the link. I had it pretty much right in the middle of the span. Perhaps I'll try again with the pieces joined 1/3 along the span instead of 1/2 way. Just curious if other 200ish people have used this stand or the turtle dog stand which has similar issues with the cross beam to any success. I know several people have made one, but do folks hang in them regularly? Does the top piece eventually give out? Is this a stand for lightweights only?

**stalker42** · 06-09-2013, 19:11

I am just under 200 and i used fence top rail with the join right in the middle spanning 14.5 feet and have had no trouble at all.

**ggreaves** · 06-09-2013, 19:15

The fence rail top I used was 1 1/4". Are there larger diameter ones?

**dammfast** · 06-09-2013, 19:26

was the hammock suspension at the same point the top rail was hung at? If you hang your hammock inside or outside of the point that the rail is hung from and it will cause flex in the top rail.

**ggreaves** · 06-09-2013, 19:26

Originally Posted by stalker42

I am just under 200 and i used fence top rail with the join right in the middle spanning 14.5 feet and have had no trouble at all.

Perhaps my scale's busted.

Thanks for the info. I will try to make the span a little smaller (13 or 14 feet) so I can take away some leverage. I'm probably over 16 feet right now because the pipes are 10'3" and I've got a few feet hanging out the back end of the tripod on each side.

**ggreaves** · 06-09-2013, 19:29

A little bit 2" outside. I will try again with it dead center under the tripod.

**hppyfngy** · 06-09-2013, 20:07

Originally Posted by dammfast

was the hammock suspension at the same point the top rail was hung at? If you hang your hammock inside or outside of the point that the rail is hung from and it will cause flex in the top rail.

This has been found to be the key. Literally almost 200 of the TD stands that we know about using the chain link fence top rail option with no failures that I know of before yours.

I think the ones I have been using are 1-3/8" but there is almost zero flex or thought of flexing if it's suspended right. For my three piece top rail setups, I do try to have a long section in the middle, rather than having a joint right in the middle, but it's really academic if all else is right with the world.

Might want to show us your setup if you continue having trouble.

Good luck!

**ggreaves** · 06-09-2013, 20:20

Originally Posted by hppyfngy

This has been found to be the key. Literally almost 200 of the TD stands that we know about using the chain link fence top rail option with no failures that I know of before yours.

I think the ones I have been using are 1-3/8" but there is almost zero flex or thought of flexing if it's suspended right. For my three piece top rail setups, I do try to have a long section in the middle, rather than having a joint right in the middle, but it's really academic if all else is right with the world.

Might want to show us your setup if you continue having trouble.

Good luck!

My top rail was 1 1/4" and it was definitely flexible. I'm in Canada and I don't know who sells 1 3/8" top rails around here. Lowes and Home Depot don't have 'em. The 1 1/4" ones that I found were from Rona. I would take a picture but right now it's in a bamboo / amsteel / fence-pole heap in the backyard. I might have to drive to the US just to get my pipe. I see that lowes in the US sells it...

http://www.lowes.com/pd_103268-264-0...roduct_price|0