Well, I can't resist an opportunity to try something new. And since joining this forum my head has been spinning with ideas. Anyway, I found a few interesting ideas for hammock stands outlined here:

http://theultimatehang.com/2013/04/3...hammock-stand/

and here:

https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...ght=tensegrity

and I decided that I needed to give it a try. I wanted to use materials that I had readily available, so I skipped the 2x3 boards and went straight to bamboo, which we have growing all over the place in southern Louisiana. Here's the parts list -

3 - 8' x 1.5 to 2" bamboo
1 - 50' paracord
12 - 2" Steel rings
3 - 100' braided nylon rope
6 - 2' x 1/2" rebar

I won't go into detail on the setup as it is already outlined in detail in the above links, but will tell you a bit about how I connect my rope to the bamboo. I decided to use the paracord to tie the steel rings via the distel hitch. This is a climbing knot and is designed to not slip when pulled on. Below are a series of pictures that outline the process:

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I started out by cutting 6 pieces of paracord at 45" long.

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Next I tied the 4-1 distel hitch.

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Then I put the steel ring on the lose ends of the paracord.

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Then I wrapped the paracord around the steel ring twice (note - this picture only shows one wrap).

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Then I secured the ring to the bamboo with a square knot on the back side.

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Here's what the finished distel hitch and steel ring look like. Next, I attached rings at the ends of each bamboo piece. Note, I made the distel hitch pull taught opposite directions on the top and bottom. This way when tension is applied pulling down from the top it stops the paracord from slipping and when it is pulled up from the diamond braid rope it stays put at the bottom.

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Here's a finished piece of bamboo.

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I set it up as outlined on the Ultimate Hang website.

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Pulled everything taught.

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And connected my hammock.

I ultimately connected two hammocks (all that I had on hand) and it worked like a charm. Thanks to Derek at The Ultimate Hang for some awesome instructions and inspiration. And thanks to the Turtlelady for giving me the idea to try and use bamboo!

Happy Hangin'!

RedStix