Strap Length Question

[sparky32]

I am looking for some opinions and advice.

I have decided to purchase a Beetle Buckle suspension system. I have a choice between 8-foot straps or 15-foot straps.

It just seems as though 8 feet is too short but 15 feet may be too long. What if I get to an area and discover 8 feet is too short to make it around trees and leave enough extra length to give me a good hang angle? 15 feet would seem to alleviate that issue, but then there is more bulk and weight to carry around and in many situations maybe I will have too much extra strap laying around to keep out of the way.

I understand that what works for one person does not necessarily work for another but, which length straps would you purchase and why?

By the way, I live in Michigan and backpack primarily in Michigan and the mid-east. I don't expect to be camping in areas where I need to hang from giant redwoods.

[rallywagon]

8 feet is just too short....a tree of any sizable diameter eats up a lot of strap length.

[Redoleary]

I run a pair of 12’s and can’t recall ever having a problem. Maybe you could get 1 8’ and 1 15’ and the average of the two would get you there?

[scrope]

You could always get the 15' and cut them to the size you want.

[sparky32]

8 feet is just too short....a tree of any sizable diameter eats up a lot of strap length.

Exactly what I was thinking.

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[sparky32]

You could always get the 15' and cut them to the size you want.

Yes, I had also considered that as an option.

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[Five Tango]

I don't know where you are buying your suspension components but have you had a look at Dutchwaregear.com?Dutch will sell you most any length you want in numerous materials too.If you want to use beetles you will have to use either standard black poly or his spider/poly(black and white stripes) as the lighter weight suspensions just will not work with a friction device without slippage.

I have had good results with the beetle buckle on either one.The black and white spider poly is a good bit lighter though.Since you are using whoopies you would likely have plenty of strap if they were 10 or 12 feet.A two foot diameter tree is pretty common most places and it eats up over 6 feet of strap.
My beetles on 12 foot spider poly have served me well but I eventually went to a seven foot spider poly hugger with 15 feet of blue spider 2.0 and a marlin spike hitch with a Dutch titanium toggle because I don't use whoopies and just hang the hammock continuous loop on the knot.Yeah,takes a little guesswork on where to tie but that's all part of the fun.

Another plus for the black and white spider/poly strap is that it's quite noticeable on the tree,making it a little harder to forget to pack in the morning.People have done that so I've heard.

[sparky32]

I don't know where you are buying your suspension components but have you had a look at Dutchwaregear.com?Dutch will sell you most any length you want in numerous materials too.If you want to use beetles you will have to use either standard black poly or his spider/poly(black and white stripes) as the lighter weight suspensions just will not work with a friction device without slippage.

I have had good results with the beetle buckle on either one.The black and white spider poly is a good bit lighter though.Since you are using whoopies you would likely have plenty of strap if they were 10 or 12 feet.A two foot diameter tree is pretty common most places and it eats up over 6 feet of strap.
My beetles on 12 foot spider poly have served me well but I eventually went to a seven foot spider poly hugger with 15 feet of blue spider 2.0 and a marlin spike hitch with a Dutch titanium toggle because I don't use whoopies and just hang the hammock continuous loop on the knot.Yeah,takes a little guesswork on where to tie but that's all part of the fun.

Another plus for the black and white spider/poly strap is that it's quite noticeable on the tree,making it a little harder to forget to pack in the morning.People have done that so I've heard.

Actually, it was on Dutch's site. There were several strap materials in the drop-down list but only two choices for length.... 8 and 15.

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[jcksparow]

For me, the headache of discovering my straps are too short for the trees I want to hang on is drastically more inconvenient than any negligible weight penalty I'd pay by carrying an extra few yards of webbing--especially considering the new lighter webbing options.

If you ever need to eat up extra strap length so the excess isn't dragging on the ground, either throw an extra wrap around the tree before going through the loop/biner/clip or just tie the excess out of the way with a slippery half-hitch or two.

[scrope]

Depending on your strap attachment, another possibility is to carry a couple of 6' Amsteel dogbones that you can attach to the straps to lengthen them. Ideally you'd want large straps around the entire tree but to replace part of the circumference where there isn't a large load it should be fine and extending the part that isn't wrapped around the tree is no problem. If this is going to be a usual occurrence I'd suggest longer straps but if you are concerned about an emergency situation some extra Amsteel weighs almost nothing.