First time, first purchase, accesories, add ons, questions ?

[Muskrat]

why did you get a superfly and a big mamajamba?

I'm guessing he meant the Black Mamba 3-Season Top Quilt

[keg]

...
Hope you enjoy all the new gear. Now is the hardest part. . . the waiting game. Keep yourself distracted by looking into underquilts and stoves. Time will fly and next thing you know . . .

I'd say the hardest part is trying not to spend too much money while looking at underquilts etc.


I'd agree that the stock hammock is more than good. No need to play around unless you really just enjoy it (I've made whoopies but haven't seen the need to put them on yet).

[japanlinked]

Thanks for all the replies.

First off... I did not order two tarps I ordered the superfly tarp and the big mama jumba top quilt. Let's hope it is long enough I am 6' and ordered the regular I was sure i didn't need the extra width so decided just to get the shorter version.

I will try not to spend all my money looking at under quilts...my biggest problem is decideding whether to spend the $350 to go check out DiscoveryDiver's set up and enjoy camping near fuji mountain

[DiscoveryDiver]

Yikes! I guess that means you'd be taking a Shinkansen train down?

Well, naturally up to you...it will be a great chance...and there will be others, though later in the season...my diving season is starting up and will be pedal to the metal for the next few months...

[Muskrat]

Thanks for all the replies.

First off... I did not order two tarps I ordered the superfly tarp and the big mama jumba top quilt.

Not sure that Brandon makes a TQ called "the big mama jumba top quilt". He makes a tarp called "Big Mamajamba w/panel pulls" and he makes a TQ called "The Black Mamba".

I think you have the names mixed up which is severely due to you scrutiny of gear , decision making , "which to get" , "do I want this or that" , Sil or Spinn, camo or grey , . . . . it happens to the best of us

[japanlinked]

@discoverydiver I just couldn't find the time to get to the campout. I really would love to meet up for the next one so let me know!

Tonight I got excited for the first time, lol! I knew I was going to buy a hammock and new gear. Although tonight for the first time I started to get excited. A few of the items I purchased were on back order how do I know when my order is being made/ready/shipping?

Also, I was going to buy a bunch of other things like dutch clips etc. but the shipping is crazy 2 itmes from this site, 2 items from that site, one item from here and there... but they all charge $30 shipping even for a few dollar items. Any ideas on what to do?

Here is what I was looking at getting.
Whoopie slings, Guyline (brandons website says sold out), dutch clips, titanium steaks (8), seam sealer... and a few others

[DiscoveryDiver]

@discoverydiver I just couldn't find the time to get to the campout. I really would love to meet up for the next one so let me know!

OK...next time!

[TadTheTinker]

Best thing you can do is get the hammock, get it hung as is, or as close as possible, and see how it works for you. Then start adjusting things to preference as you go.

My first Hammock has been a Hammock Bliss with No See Um. I hung it as is and the first thing that went was the rope suspension. Made some whoopie slings, got some straps and life became good almost instantly. Still working on a sil tarp and some other things I want to do. But one step at a time.

[Snugglesthemonkey]

I am in the same position as you! I am not that far away in the grand scheme of things. I am in southeast China. I am on the cusp of ordering a WBBB and am trying to get everything in one shot. I imagine where I am , it would be even harder to get odds and ends than in Japan.
Anyway..hope it all works out for you. I am tempted to skip an UQ for the sake of saving some money but apparently people use them even when its still quite warm.
Oh, who would have ever though buying a hammock could be such a big deal. I had no idea.
Maybe one day we can have an Asia Hang Day!

[sturgeon]

Hajimemashite. Sturgeon desu. Yoroshiku onegai shimasu.

I agree with the advice given above: Keep it simple.

You've got a nice hammock, and the suspension on the Warbonnet Blackbird hammock is fine as it is.
You've got a great tarp.
You've got a nice warm top-quilt.

What do you need?

If you bought the tarp that has panel pull-outs (loops sewn into the centre of the side of the tarp to permit you to pull the tarp away from the hammock to give you more space inside the tarp) then you need to seal the seams around the pull-outs with a silicone sealant like Silnet. The ridgeline of the WB tarps does not require sealant.

You need two stakes to stake out your hammock netting and shelf. You need four more stakes to stake out your tarp. Probably two more because you'll lose some (I did!). Minimum 6 stakes, best to buy 8.

You need some kind of cord that doesn't stretch to make a ridgeline for your tarp, and to tie down the four corners. Start with fairly cheap stuff. 80 or a 100 feet is good. Then you can experiment and see if you want to have one long continuous ridgeline or two separate pieces on each end, or a clothes hanging line under the tarp, etc. Later you can buy expensive Dyneema (dyna-glide) or Zing-it, Lash it etc.

You need a closed cell foam pad to put into the space between the double layers, to keep your back and butt warm. If you have a selection, my advice is to go with a stickier feeling foam, to avoid any slipping, though the sleeve seems to hold anything in place quite well. Don't know how thick a pad to buy? More options if you two thin pads than one thick one, I'd say.

That's all you need. But you will want more. Like most hobbies, you'll start upgrading and trying out newer stuff, and fiddling and fixing and extending etc. It's fun.

Main thing is... get out there and play in the woods and see for yourself. You might just find that hammocking is not for you, and then you'll regret spending so much on it. So start simple. (But don't worry too much about that--if you decide it's not for you, you'll find lots of buyers for your stuff here!)