Overall Weight

[jrmyh]

So I've got my hammock setup and I'm very happy with it. The only downside is that it actually weighs more than my friends 2 person kelty tent. Right now I'm using the pacific rap ring/caribiner suspension setup and I was wondering if I would see a noticeable difference in the weight if I swapped over to the dutchware setup (http://www.dutchwaregear.com/cinch-b...uspension.html)

I have the hennessy asym zipper model, with the hex deluxe tarp wrapped in snake skins all stuffed into the bag and like I said it's noticeably heavier than his tent. The rings and biners don't weigh much by themself but I guess all together I'm adding weight? Should I go to the cinch buckle system?

Thanks in advance!

[Shug]

You could save a bit of weight by switching suspensions but consider your comfort in the hammock. Cinch and strap and dutch clip should reduce your suspension wieght some. A marlinspike/toggle/whoopie sling even a wee bit more.
Think about this.....in your hammock you more than likely will have better sleep and feel invigorated for the day. There are lighter hammock systems than your rig but don't sweat it. Tote thel oad and nod well.
Shug

[jrmyh]

Shug - Love your videos and thanks for the reply.

Do you think it would be worth the weight/convenience to go to the cinch/buckle system?

[MDSH]

An UL hammock set up is a whole other animal.

It eats $$$.

But as a rule, the less hardware the less weight involved.

One could build a lightweight suspension with a couple of tree huggers and 7/64" Amsteel leads down to the hammock CL and tie a double Becket hitch there.

That is what I used last night in a severe T-storm under a cuben tarp. Having made a bug net for it yesterday and working on a top quilt today it will be virtually complete. I was testing the fleece material for the top quilt. It got down to 69 degrees with no UQ and it worked just fine.

[Boston]

FWIW, being in a hammock does't necessarily mean lighter weight than a tent. Just like there are lighter and heavier tents, there are lighter and heavier hammocks, and related gear.

Hennessy in general tends to be on the heavier end of the hammock spectrum. If the tarp you have in the PU coated version, it's one of the heaviest hammock specific tarps you can buy.

Before dumping a bunch of money on dutchware, which in general is very good for it;s purpose, you might just do a bit more research into all the equipment, and evaluate cost vs benefit vs what you can afford to get the most gain with your money. Potentially look at alternate hammocks, tarps, insulation, suspension, cook kit, backpack, etc...

[etsauer]

It's really hard to compare carrying a tent to a hammock system, but one thing that my friends who tent need to carry that I don't (at least in warm weather, no insulation) is a sleeping pad, generally an inflatable one for extra comfort. Those can add considerable weight to an ultralight tent system. Of course once we start adding insulation we hangers need to carry extra pieces again so yes there are definitely times when you will need to carry more weight. In that case it's back to the comfort argument.

[Boston]

It's really hard to compare carrying a tent to a hammock system, but one thing that my friends who tent need to carry that I don't (at least in warm weather, no insulation) is a sleeping pad, generally an inflatable one for extra comfort. Those can add considerable weight to an ultralight tent system. Of course once we start adding insulation we hangers need to carry extra pieces again so yes there are definitely times when you will need to carry more weight. In that case it's back to the comfort argument.

Actually it's pretty easy to compare:

Shelter: Hammock (and bug net), Tarp, and sometime ground sheet vs Tent, Rain Fly, and sometimes ground sheet
Bottom Insulation: Underquilt or Pad vs Pad
Top Insulation: Sleepingbag or Top Quilt (same for both)

[Mike04345]

I have a Dream Hammock Thunderbird with continuous loop. I thought I could experiment to see what I liked the most. I have a dutch whoppie set up and the cinch bug set up. Here is what I have found so far. Randy puts approx 9 inch continuous loop the hammock but being new to hammocks I did not think to ask him how long the loop is. Randy will make it what ever you want, than when I added the Dutch whoopie slings it comes with a whoopie hook. The whoopie hook may be a problem if you want to hook directly to the hammock. The bury creates another 8 inches of dead space than there is another 10 inches of dead space from the end that connects to the strap. This creats 27 inches of dead space per end or 54 inches total. For me this is not a good thing. I could remove the continuous loop and connect a whoopie directly to the Hammock..and Randy sells is his hammock's w/ whoopie's in this configuration I believe. I might be able to DIY a whoopie and have less dead space that fits my needs better but I would not go any shorter on the bury. Now on to the cinch bugs nice idea but the camo straps than come with them seem lighter and thinner than the black ones. They straps tend to roll easily and the cinch bug jams when the strap rolls. Practice may make it better. The Cinch buckles I think...I have not tryed them would work better than the cinch bugs. With either one I would order straps with the Adutchable clips instead of the sewn on. Sewn on are by default. You have to request the Adutchable's in the comments section I believe. I agree with all the above comments on gear weight. Hammocks are all over the weight spectrum depending what you want. So do a lot research and compare weights. Make sure your comparing apples to apples. Some hammocks vendors do not include the weight of the suspension and other do. I have bought from Hammock Gear, Dutchware and Dream Hammock all who I came to know through this form and they all have good customer service will build what you want but you have to do your homework and know what you want. Hence I still need to keep learning and reading on the form.

[MarkThompson]

I've been using a HH asym zip and recently got my DreamHammock (just got it this last Friday and was out camping so haven't tested it yet except for in the back yard). Switching to the cinch buckle system did save me some weight, and moving over to the ThunderBird DreamHammock (single layer) also saved me even more weight.

I've been using hammocks exclusively for the last 8 years or more. My wife has switched back to tenting and picked up a Big Agnes Fly Creek UL1...so she is now easily 1 pound or more under the weight that I carry (even when you add in her rainfly, ground mat and foot print).

But as Shug (and others) have mentioned, that extra weight is WORTH the better nights rest. It's ALSO worth the extra PORTABILITY that a hammock provides. I'll give two examples:

1) We recently went on a 8 day, 90 mile backpacking trip on the AT. Several nights my wife had to very carefully select where she wanted to set up. She searched high and low to find the "perfect" spot for a tent. I found two trees and was setup long before she was. I didn't have to worry whether the ground was level or not.

2) One time just before evening it started raining. I set up my tarp and casually went about setting up my hammock (which doesn't take long anyway, but I didn't have to rush because I was out of the rain). She had to scramble to put her stuff up in a hurry and STILL got her stuff wet until the rainfly was put on properly. And since she setup in a hurry she set her tent up in a low space and found out that she had a river flowing all around her. Once the rain died down she broke camp and went and found higher ground to setup again. I was technically in her low spot as well, but none of that bothered me since I was above ground.

So, figure out which is more important to you: weight or comfort and then run with it. To me, the extra pound is absolutely worth the better rest I get as well as the portability.

[WeWalked]

I agree with other posters in this thread (including the great and wise shug) that its a comfort thing. Hammocks aren't always lighter than tents, but they are almost always more comfortable.

As you learn, and experience more hammock adventures, you'll figure out small ways to lighten the load. My <$400 summer/fall hammock setup is about the same weight (or less) as a $300 backpacking tent, $200 sleeping bag, $60 ground cover, and $100 pad and so much more comfortable and versatile.