I can finally breathe...

**brown4914** · 12-08-2013, 13:00

In the mean time the list:

Pack: ULA Circuit S/S
Tarp: Custom Zpacks cuben
Hammock: DIY 1.9oz ripstop
Suspension: Dynaglide whoopies
Top Insulation: JRB No sniveler 20*
Bottom Insulation: UQ shell from underquilts.com with 900fp down from thru-hiker
Cook Kit: Pinnacle soloist pot, whitebox stove, aluminum coffee cup, windscreen, washcloth, 2oz or 8oz fuel bottle with HEET. (HEAVY cook kit, need to subtract some oz's here without a doubt)
Water & Filtration: Sawyer Squeeze with smart water bottle (love their squirt caps), 2L sawyer bag
Random necessities: CCF pad with reflectix (sit pad, foot insulation at night), Tyvek ground cloth for boots & pack, tripod
Random Non essentials: Extra hunk of dyneema cord, small hunk of paracord, book or tablet, huge ridiculous fur hat, extra buff, pack towel
Camera: Kodak Playsport
Pointy: Esee-3 (Considering trading)

Still much work & testing to do, but many items are here to stay and I've come a long way from a 4lb sleeping bag, HH scout and a pad stuffed in an old milltary bag with no cook kit, just dry food.

**brown4914** · 12-08-2013, 15:52

Its a long road to perfection...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZAUb...ature=youtu.be

Appreciate who took the 7 1/2 minutes to view, I would love comments, concerns, suggestions. As video says, would like suggestions on tarp prussics to whoopie, I need it to slide better for easier adjustment.

Working on less "uh's" and "um's"

Proud of my very first Youtube upload.

Cheers.

**hairbear** · 12-08-2013, 16:04

Nice video
Very interesting tarp design.

**skinnerback** · 12-08-2013, 16:05

Nice work and video!

**Detail Man** · 12-08-2013, 17:16

It's clear you've been working on your setup. I know the feeling of finally getting things sorted out.

That's a different tarp from any I've seen before. To address your concerns, you might try losing the prussic-to-whoopie connection and tie the tarp to the marlin spike, perhaps with its own small whoopie for adjustability. I've successfully used some 1.75mm Lash-it whoopies. That would allow the hammock to be adjusted freely, and you can adjust the tarp to suit conditions. If it were me, I'd also have the option to rig the tarp to the trees independently of the hammock suspension. In my experience, a tarp-to-suspension setup interferes with maintaining a taut pitch. YMMV.

I like how you've taken the UQ suspension to the ridgeline. My system uses four seperate mitten hooks attached to the ridgeline with very small prussics made from 200lb dyneema fishing line. It's yielded great results, completely eliminating CBS.

One final comment. You don't have a water break on your hammock suspension. I'd recommend doing something. On a thru you'll have enough rain (eventually) to run down and wet the end of your hammock. It could be as simple as using a small continuous loop lark's headed to the end of the hammock, combined with a biner or Whoopie hook to make the connection to the whoopie sling. This method works very well for me, is simple, effective, and adds minimal weight.

Attached are some quick pics. For water breaks you can see a biner/whoopie sling/cont. loop vs. a Whoopie Hook/UCR/cont. loop.

Also shown are the mini prussic/mitten hooks for the UQ suspension. I like how I can vary the attachment points to skew the UQ to fit a diagonal lay. For a head-left lay, I keep the left side points shifted toward the head end about 3-5" further than the right side.

Finally, just cause, are pics showing how I spliced cont. loops thru my sewn channels. This was my final solution to come out of the mini spreader bar thread. https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...=52094&page=10 post #469. It helps make for a larger sweet spot and minimizes calf ridge. I like it. YMMV.

**brown4914** · 12-08-2013, 18:01

Thanks gentlemen.

I like the idea of a mini whoopie for the tarp, but would probably be on the same marlin spike. That would keep me from going around the tree again (more time) and it would be able to stay a short hunk of line (less weight). I don't think it would affect how taut it stays if it already stays taut on the same whoopie. Only tests will tell...

I already have a continuous loop-to-whoopie connection, but there is definitely something I could do for a water break. I've seen set-ups as simple as a slim piece of pack towel hanging between the connections that would do the trick. Something else to craft and try.

The UQ suspension you have is what I was initially thinking about installing but seemed redundant at the time, now I'm thinking it would have been worth the extra prussics. Laying flat would be much more comfortable not fighting against the UQ.

All, very awesome & productive ideas love the input Detail Man

Had never seen that mini spreader bar thread before. Very interesting. I suppose thats to keep the very middle of the hammock from being extra tight, or making a larger "sweet spot"?

**Detail Man** · 12-08-2013, 18:28

Your very welcome.

Yes, I meant to the same marlin spike as the hammock in that example.

I missed your cont. loop in the video. The pack towel drip line works, but then you have a couple of wet gobs of fabric in the morning to deal with. Water is weight. For me, I prefer the whoopie hook/biner option because I can separate a dry hammock from a wet suspension if necessary. The added weight is minimal compared to the added functionality. Again, YMMV. This is my conclusion after many wet trips in the woods. With the hardware, you could set up the tarp and hammock suspension to get in the dry before ever taking the hammock out of the pack. Just something to think about.

Yes, you're exactly correct on the mini spreader bar. I really like it, enough to retrofit a couple of hammocks.

With your UQ suspension, as well as mine, there's no need to disconnect the UQ when packing up. I just leave my TQ and sleep clothes in the hammock, and pack everything as a unit into a trash compactor bag. I call it a "one stuff" method. I don't go into the woods to be in a hurry, but when the T-storm is bearing down it's nice to get set up efficiently.

Good luck on your thru!

**brown4914** · 12-08-2013, 18:46

Very good points. I see why you call yourself the Detail Man! Must come with a good dea of backwoods experience... All will be taken into consideration.

Never even thought of a "One stuff" I have to give that a go next hang, so convienent not being organized sometimes! Ha!