Suspension System Measurement Guidelines

[sparky32]

Hello, everyone. This is my first time posting in the forums, although, I have casually read some posts for a few months. My wife bought me an ENO doublenest and the Slap Straps for Christmas (my first hammock). I never thought about not using the ENO straps, however, since perusing the forums I have become interested in, and am almost certain I will, switch to a different suspension system. I am thinking about using 1" straps from strapworks and making my own whoopie slings. As a result, I have a few questions that I'm sure someone will be able to answer.

1. I plan to use 1" polypropylene webbing for the straps. What would be a good/average total length to use for each of the two straps?

2. For the Whoopie Slings, what are the types of measurements I need to consider? How long should the completed straps be and to get "that" length, how much AmSteel do I need for each sling? Also, how many inches from the end should I place marks for making the brummels and how far from the end do I start when making the adjustable section?

I've watched several Whoopie Sling instruction videos and feel comfortable that I will do well in the "construction phase", but I'm just not sure of the the measurements/distances.

[lazy river road]

1. I use 2 ft to 4 ft straps and any combination of. Depending on the area I am hiking in and the sizes of the trees I expect to hang from. I try to have as little line wrapped around the tree as possible. I invert my woopies so the adjustable end is connected to to the hammock via. a Dutch Woopie Hook.

2. I also found these directions on how to make a woopie sling in google search. http://hammocker.com/whoopie-sling. Hope they help. Their are also a lot of youtube videos and if you look through the DIY forum you will find several directions on how to make a woopie sling.

Have fun, I love making woopie's

[mrmike65]

I use 1" poly straps, about 5 1/2' long. I've been thinking about adding a 2' extension strap to my kit, just because I've recently run into two situations where the places I wanted to hang ended up having one tree or another just a little too big.

I made my latest set of whoopie slings from two 15' lengths of Amsteel. Have yet to run into a situation where they didn't work just fine.

[jbrianb]

I'd recommend polyester over polypro (but it's like recommending a Ferrari over a Porsche) and my straps are 72 inches. I have whoopies made from 12 feet of cord. I always make out fine.

Polyester has 1) less stretch, 2) better UV resistance 3) better abrasion resistance and 4) more strength for its weight than polypro. But again, polypro is good.

[seadad9903]

+1. I use DIY 1" polyester straps at a 8' length. I'm usually in areas where trees are a little older and bigger around, so I go for a longer strap.

Can't offer anything on whoopie slings, I haven't made any (yet).

[MAD777]

I agree on the polyester vs polypropylene straps. The length of the straps depends on where you hike. I use 5' straps and hike on the east coast from Florida to Maine and find that I can hang from most of the trees. After all, there's nothing but trees on the east coast. If you are going to hike in the redwood forests of California, plan accordingly.

Most people, including me, make their Whoopie slings 6' long when finished. It takes about 13.5' of Amsteel 7/64" to make those. I also carry a 4' piece of Amsteel with a fixed eye at each end just in case trees are too far apart (and I have used that extension). You could just as well make longer Whoopies since they don't weigh much nor take up much space.

[sparky32]

Thanks for the responses. I figured the tree straps could vary depending on the sizes of the trees but, I wasn't sure what would be a good starting point.

And, wouldn't you know it? A few hours after I posted my question I found what I was looking for. I don't even remember how I stumbled across it, but the graphic shows distances from the ends of the AmSteel where various key points should be, such as, the fixed loop, the bury, the tail, etc. Here is the link in case anyone else is interested.

http://www.diygearsupply.com/diy_gui...oopieSling.jpg

[Streetdoc432]

After all, there's nothing but trees on the east coast. If you are going to hike in the redwood forests of California, plan accordingly.

For those majestic redwoods you can just screw in anchor bolts can't you? an anchor bolt probably weighs less than 20 feet of strap?

p.s. just kidding!

[Hiknhanger]

Thanks for the responses. I figured the tree straps could vary depending on the sizes of the trees but, I wasn't sure what would be a good starting point.

And, wouldn't you know it? A few hours after I posted my question I found what I was looking for. I don't even remember how I stumbled across it, but the graphic shows distances from the ends of the AmSteel where various key points should be, such as, the fixed loop, the bury, the tail, etc. Here is the link in case anyone else is interested.

http://www.diygearsupply.com/diy_gui...oopieSling.jpg

I was going to recommend this guide as I was reading the thread, then I came to this. I made mine from this guide and they turned out great. Very easy.

[alrany187]

Thanks for the responses. I figured the tree straps could vary depending on the sizes of the trees but, I wasn't sure what would be a good starting point.

And, wouldn't you know it? A few hours after I posted my question I found what I was looking for. I don't even remember how I stumbled across it, but the graphic shows distances from the ends of the AmSteel where various key points should be, such as, the fixed loop, the bury, the tail, etc. Here is the link in case anyone else is interested.

http://www.diygearsupply.com/diy_gui...oopieSling.jpg

And again +1 on the DIY guide for making whoopie slings. I used it also and the only problem I had was figuring out the locked brummel knot and for an easy explanation of that I went here. But after doing it a couple of times, prefer the McDonald brummel

Got my tree straps from Jacks R Better and they're about 5' long. haven't had a problem with them yet. Good luck and great hanging.

Ellis