View Full Version : newbie with many ?'s
i am very new to hammocking. i am planning on placing my order for a WB Blackbird sometime this week but i have many insulation questions. i was planning on purchasing a montbell sleeping bag and using my thermarest trail-lite in a dual layer WB. but now after reading on here i am starting to think i may want a single layer WB and getting a TQ and UQ instead of the SB and using the pad i already own. that would cost me a couple hundred bucks more it looks like. or i was thinking of getting the dual layer and TQ and using my pad as the bottom isulation for a while. is that realistic? and if i did go single layer and TQ/UQ, should i just get the quilts from Warbonnet? or are there better options for about the same price. or should i just go with my original plan and get the bag, use the pad, and save the money. and what are the weight differences in each senario? i know i definately want a Blackbird though. any help would be greatly appreciated. like i said i want to place my order soon.
My 2 cents, I'd say go with the double layer and use a pad until you get a feel for how much you like hammocking. I wish I had gone with a double layer for my first hammock.
gargoyle
03-21-2010, 13:30
Welcome to the forum, I've got family up in Manton.
As far as advice, buy what you can afford.
Buy what your going to use and for which season(s) your planning to hike/camp. You can get by with the sleeping bag for now. Good hammocks, and good tarps and top and bottom insul. will cost you a lot of dough. Closer to a $1,000.00, alltogether, with suspension and all the other doo-dads.
Try it for a while, if you buy good stuff, you can sell it later to recoup your money, if its not your cup of tea.
Or make your own, little cheaper and its a good hobby.
Beast 71
03-21-2010, 22:58
My 2 cents, I'd say go with the double layer and use a pad until you get a feel for how much you like hammocking. I wish I had gone with a double layer for my first hammock.
I'd do what HamMike said, but if you don't have a good sleeping bag consider buying a TQ instead of a sleeping bag. If you have a good enough sleeping bag, that you already own, use it and put your money into a tarp for now. But that's just my opinion, Gargoyle makes some good points too.
Cannibal
03-22-2010, 08:53
My suggestion would be the same as above, don't put yourself into the poor-house until you know you're addicted. Pads work fine as long as you aren't an excessive sweater. Coming into the summer months anyway and you won't need an underquilt below you for warm nights. You'll want an underquilt before it's all said and done, but waiting a couple of months and making a more informed decision can do nothing but good.
The WB quilts sure are nice. You couldn't really go wrong ordering the complete set (Full Monty) from him.
lazy river road
03-22-2010, 09:31
HI and welcome....good luck on this search it is a fun and tedious task. Id suggest shopping around and comparing prices and specs in regards to UQ/TQ. Dont get me wrong WBGuy makes top quality quilts and you cant go wrong but Storm Crow, JRB and all the other vendors (including WBGuy) are constantly having TQ/UQ sales so it kinda just all depends on what your looking for, how fast you want it and how much you have to spend. Also keep your eyes out for members seeling Quilts and what nots. Pads also work well. have fun and watch out the wallet starts to wear thin real fast once you start realizing all the cool stuff you find and want to buy on this site.
If you dont mind the weight then I say a double layer so you can sandwich in a pad if you need to.
Single layer if you want a lightweight.
Oddly enough the first hammock I built was a double layer and I wish I would have made it a single layer for the weight.
Either buy something like a golite ultra 20 or build a 5oz climasheild top quilt.
Campmor sells a 20dF down bag for $120 that you could convert to a quilt.
I think it weighs 2#4oz.
You can build a topper, 2.5 oz climasheild quilt that weighs about 14 oz and that would extend an ultra 20 down to about 0dF. Also thin enough to use as a summer quilt.
I think 2.5 oz climasheild is like $10 per yard.
Either way a 5 oz climasheild bottom quilt is easy and cheap as it is just a rectangle.
I think it cost $16 a yard so you would need 2 yards for an UQ.
Buy some ripstop from the walmart bin for $1.50 per yard. Lately I have found 1 oz ripstop there. You can also order high end expensive DWR and other 1oz fabrics form thru hiker.
A 5oz climasheild UQ should be good to about 30dF.
Augment with either a pad if you need more.
If you have a double layer just stuff it in.
If you need even more U insul add garlington type under made of a driducks poncho, 2 garbage bags and 2 space blankets.
I just did a hang to 14dF with an Ultra 20, CCF pad, garlington under as above with my insul jacket stuffed in there too, in heavy johns, double socks and a down hat and was warm all night. With an additional 2.5 oz climasheild topper quilt and a 5 oz climasheild UQ I could have probably taken it down to -5dF.
That said, that is the cheap way out and not that compressible. A down 0dF top quilt, and a 4-4.5" loft down UQ would be lighter and more compressible and more expensive.
Both probably overkill except for extreme cold
Just Jeff
03-22-2010, 12:45
Welcome to the forum! My advice:
Buy the single layer Blackbird.
Buy the SPE from Speer Hammocks (www.speerhammocks.com). Your current pad won't be wide enough to keep your hips/shoulders warm. And the SPE makes managing a pad inside the hammock very easy, so you won't need the double layer in my opinion.
Buy a top quilt instead of the sleeping bag. It's much easier to use than a sleeping bag (either in a hammock or on the ground), and it's less weight and bulk to pack and carry. Be sure to have some sort of head insulation...just a beanie in the warm months, or a JRB hood or one from backpackinglight.com, or a Blackrock in the shoulder seasons.
If you find that the pad isn't comfortable or that you sweat too much for a pad (like me), upgrade to the underquilt. Definitely a worthy investment for those who hammock a lot and aren't comfortable on pads, but it's worth finding out if the cheaper method keeps you comfortable first!
TinaLouise
03-22-2010, 14:05
don't put yourself into the poor-house until you know you're addicted. .
:lol: now there's a lot of wisdom in that !!!
Just wish I'd learned it sooner:rolleyes:
TinaLouise
Is there a list of top quilt makers anywhere?
I know there is Speer, Warbonnet, and Jacksrbetter - who are some of the others?
thanks guys for the input. i decided to just go with the full monty package from Warbonnet. i placed my order last night. it was a little more than i wanted to spend right now but i'm sure i'll be happy with the results. now i just can't wait to get my new stuff.
thanks guys for the input. i decided to just go with the full monty package from Warbonnet. i placed my order last night. it was a little more than i wanted to spend right now but i'm sure i'll be happy with the results. now i just can't wait to get my new stuff.
You won't be sorry! Hard to trade up from Brandon's gear!:laugh:
sclittlefield
03-22-2010, 16:40
Is there a list of top quilt makers anywhere?
I know there is Speer, Warbonnet, and Jacksrbetter - who are some of the others?
ThePerfectTrees (http://www.ThePerfectTrees.com) I got a sneak preview (shhh) of his top quilts and lemme tell ya, pretty spectacular!