Adjustable hammock, not yet insulated

[WV]

Here are a couple of photos of the latest prototype, using 1.9 oz. ripstop. I used 150 lb. dacron kitelines to facilitate splicing the whoopies. It also shows up better in pictures than my usual choice of 130 lb. spectra fishing line. This is an experiment to see how much fabric I could remove. I think this is about the limit, though this hammock is very comfortable. The adjustment completely eliminates the diagonal fabric ridge under my legs. Next step is to add the fitted insulation.




(Pay no attention to that hammock under the old silnylon tarp in the background. Had to hang the new one in my bedroom for the photoshoot.)

[Lost_Biker]

Really nice! Do you just sit down in it and scoot back? Dedicated foot and head end, right?

[gunner76]

Kind of looks like a spiders net and you are the fly caught in the middle

[WV]

Really nice! Do you just sit down in it and scoot back? Dedicated foot and head end, right?

Right. Entry is as you describe, and pretty easy. My dog's mode of entry is to leap into the air and come down on top of me. It is dedicated head and foot. I made the strings at the head end longer so the part of the fabric under my back is at the center of the overall length. Also the adjustment of the individual strings is different at the two ends. If I get in facing the wrong way it feels very different.

Kind of looks like a spiders net and you are the fly caught in the middle

That's a nice metaphor for DIY hammocking in general. Fortunately the hammock isn't as restrictve.

[sargevining]

How do you play that thing?

With a pick or do you just strum it?

I bet its hard to tune.

[Acer]

That is really awesome. How you going to rig a UQ on it?

[XTrekker]

Nice job Dave...Pretty cool...Have you weighed it yet?

[WV]

How do you play that thing?

With a pick or do you just strum it?

I bet its hard to tune.

Tuning is precisely what I do. It's easy to reach back and pluck the strings at the head end to get a feel for the relative tension (sounds nice, too). Then I do fine adjustments based on how the hammock feels underneath me. Doing the foot end isn't quite as easy, but with practice it gets easier. Then I adjust the ridgeline. Then I recheck the end strings. The two side pullouts are the only ones that need adjusting with each setup, and they use line-locs.

Nice job Dave...Pretty cool...Have you weighed it yet?

It weighs 15.5 oz. as pictured, with carabiners and whoopies. Using the dacron lines makes it heavier. If I had used the 130 lb. spectra it would be about 11 oz. However the weight at this stage isn't very meaningful. It would be better to look at the other hammock that has insulation, bug netting, and gear lofts added. It weighs 31 oz. The single layer Climashield takes me to 60° F. When I attach my Minima vest ( about 9 oz.) as a second layer it's comfortable (for me - I sleep cold) to 50°.

That is really awesome. How you going to rig a UQ on it?

It's attached in panels to match the curvature of the occupied hammock. The easiest way to see it is to back up and look at the hammock pictured above before I added the bugnet and gear lofts. It is sewn to the hammock around the edges and quilted at a number of nodes underneath so the hammock to bottom distance is uniform. I used synthetic insulation in part because it made construction easier and in part because I wanted the hammock to be easy to wash and dry.

In the first picture the netting flap with pocket obscures the view a bit. This is what it looks like with the netting folded back.

The camo fabric keeps the lines from tangling and makes a nice gear loft on each end. It saves weight, too, because the fabric pieces are more or less triangular - no need to gather the ends or use heavier fabric, as they are not load-bearing.

Speaking of "load-bearing" fabrics, I had some question in my mind about the 1.5 oz. fabric I used for the hammock bed here, and I received a small object lesson today that confirmed that premonition. What I had been concerned about was the strain on the ends of the hammock where the strings attached, because there were enlarged holes where the needle had penetrated the fabric. (For the orange hammock using 1.9 oz ripstop and a redesigned stitching and reinforcement pattern seems to have fixed that.)

What I learned today is that one should never put stakes in your back pocket and forget that they are there. When I sat in the hammock to take a picture, I stabbed it and produced a 3" rip at the critical butt location. I figured oh well, it might hold long enough to get one picture (without stakes). Nope. It's now a 24" rip.

This confirms that there's not a lot of room for error with this fabric. In contrast, adjustable hammocks I've made with 1.9 oz. ripstop or 2.x oz. supplex are all still going strong. Incidentally, when the hammock bed gave way, the insulation underneath kept me from hitting the ground. The bottom cover is 1.1 oz. I think the climashield actually contributed some structural strength.

Well, this presents an opportunity to give a better view of the shaped panel construction. After I arrive at the correct shape for the panels, using a secret method known only to TZ Brown and anyone who read the 3 or 4 threads in which I described it, I sew the insulation to the fabric panels separately, then sew them together, and then attach the insulation to the hammock.

Next step? I think I will detach the insulation from this hammock and graft it onto the orange one. It is, after all, shaped to fit the occupant.

[Acer]

that is very awesome in the setup..ever think about somekind of sewed on cuben tarp material on the exterior to match for a tarp covering like MedicineMan has on his hammocks? Kind a all-in-one hammock setup? Looks like your darn near there on that setup as its really cool in sewing the UQ to the hammock making it one unit? Can you vent the UQ material if it gets too hot?

[Country Roads]

I have seen WV's insulated hammocks. He puts a lot of thought into them. They are as custom made as it gets. Very functional and they look very professional.