Not that I know of, but somebody, I forget who, mentioned something about them so I included them to be complete.Originally Posted by angrysparrow
Not that I know of, but somebody, I forget who, mentioned something about them so I included them to be complete.
TeeDee ( or anyone else here?), do you have any experience with the MINI Hitchcraft? Or have you not used them with hammocks due to rope diameter incompatibilities with your 1/8" rope? I think the rope diameter on my UL Explorer is a bit thicker than what's on your ULBP.
This mini the one that Hitchman uses with his HH. Though some might question it's weight bearing ability, it is rated 50lbs higher(safe working load) than the cleats, which have proved adequate so far. At .9 oz each, they would actually come in just under the 1.25 oz. cleats and over the HH hugger/lashing in weight. They would be just barely over (.2 oz.) the rings in weight, but with the same rope weight advantages of the cleats or lashing, so it might actually be lighter overall.
It seems like a potentially attractive option, though the most expensive of the bunch.
Last edited by BillyBob58; 08-03-2007 at 20:55.
I've been using the Mini Hitchcraft for a few months now with my HH Expedition. I come in at 180* and I haven't had a problem with them. Pulling the hammock tight is so effortless that I'm almost affraid of over doing it. I've got them at both ends now, they've completely won my trust and set up is super quick. Once I set them, I throw in a couple of sloppy half hitches just to store any extra rope so I don't hang myself on it
If you must choose between two evils, opt for the one you've never tried before
Yes, I have 4 of the mini HitchCraft Rope Ties. I started with 2 and found them versatile enough that I ordered 2 more.
A truly ingenious device. I use one to hold the bend on the glass fiber rod when I make the arc for the Bridge Hammock ends. Of course, they have many, many uses beyond that.
I use 2.8 mm, ~1/8", diameter Spyderline for the suspension on all of my DIY hammocks. The Monster rope tie is only good down to 1/4" diameter rope. So I tried the mini on my 2.8 mm suspension, cannot remember if it was the Bridge Hammock or the Safari, that doesn't make any difference. Hitchman had pm'ed me about the concentration of forces if the diameter of the rope was small, but I pm'ed back that I would try the mini on my 2.8 mm suspension and pm him the results.
Well I set both ends up with the mini rope ties, put the testing 2" thick foam down for a soft landing if needed and sat on the hammock. Swung my legs into the hammock and heard this "ripping" sound as the Spyderline ripped through one of the mini's. Cannot remember if it was the head of foot mini, but the Spyderline had gone through the Rope Tie and burned/gouged a channel out of the bottom of the cleat.
Pm'ed hitchman about the results and ordered 2 more Rope Ties. He was right, the 2.8 mm diameter Spyderline concentrated the forces too much on the bottom of the cleat. He sent me a replacement Rope Tie for my testing effort.
I just looked at his online specs for the Rope Tie again and notice that he now lists the minimum diameter rope for the mini at 4 mm. I think I remember it spec'd lower than that before. Maybe my testing urged him to do some more testing himself and up the lower limit somewhat. I think he changed the minimum diameter for the Monster size also, I could have sworn it was 0.25" back when I last looked.
Anyway, I would paid heed to his spec'd minimum and maximum rope sizes, they seem to be accurate.
By the way, I highly recommend hitchman's HitchCraft Rope Ties. They are an ingenious design, solidly designed and extremely useful even if you don't use them for hammocks. The purpose I was originally going to use them for didn't work out, no fault of the Rope Tie, just that the geometry of the situation, not the Rope Tie, was wrong for what I wanted.
hitchman is a knowledgeable individual and I found working with him to be a good learning experience. I hope he is extremely successful with his Rope Ties, from my experience, I think he deserves it.
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