Ring Buckle Supports

**kohburn** · 10-18-2007, 10:31

Originally Posted by Rapt

I thought about that option... But decided that the other way..... Attached to the hammock lets you separate the suspension rope from the hammock. AND lets you have a variable length piece of webbing for the tree, your choice how long it is.

If the tree is bigger than the webbing then some rope gets pulled into the loop around the trree, but doesn't really damage the tree the same as an all rope suspension since most of the pressure is still on the webbing at the "back" of the tree. This a weight thing since more 3-4mm rope is lighter than more webbing.

thinking about it some more your way also has the advantage of the extra rope acting as a drip line to keep rain from running down the line to the hammock.

**Rapt** · 10-18-2007, 10:50

Hmmmm

!!!

**nogods** · 10-22-2007, 12:41

Here is my quick an dirty ring buckle set up with a claytor hammock. My first thought was to use webbing at both sides of the rings but it didn't want to hold. I then tried tying each side of the hanmmock webbing to a seprate ring with bowlines and then using webbing from the post to the rings. This held if the webbing from the post was in a perfect position but that was to precarious for me.

It seams to me that one side of the rings needs to be cinched tight together with a larkshead for the system to work. So I took a short piece of rope, tied a bowline in one end, a bright in the other, and used the bright to tie the rings together with a larkshead. I then cliped a carabiner to the end with the bowline and hooked it to a slap strap.

This seems like a lot of hardware to me but was the only way I could it to work short of replacing the hammock webbing.

**Rapt** · 10-22-2007, 13:59

From what I can see and gather... In your photos the two pieces of olive webbing are coming from the hammock. As is the yellow line (ridgeline?) I'm guessing these are quite close to the hammock body in the photos.

What you can do to save weight is. Put a loop on the end of the olive webbing about 6-8" shorter than where you want the ring to be the use a loop or twp of line to larkshead to the rings... Then on the other end (where the blue webbing is cut it short... say 3-4' if that's all you'll need to just get around the trees where you hang, and tie a length of rope from the end of the blue webbing which then runs to the rings and feeds thru them like webbing does currently. Its this line that has all the adjustment. Its much lighter to carry 10' of line than 10' of webbing for adjustment at each end of the hammock.

If you look at this photo

You can see the hooks that are larks headed to my hammock with about 6" long loop of spectra and you can see the orange line that is similarly attached to the webbing at the tree (again with about a 6-8" loop of spectra) There's a figure 8 knot that keeps the orange line from sliding through the larks head from the webbing.

The hooks are a direct replacement for the rings... as shown like this...

Here the hammock is just off screen to the left of the image. And the tree (post?) with webbing is a few feet to the right.

**Bug-Bait** · 10-22-2007, 14:24

Originally Posted by Shadowmoss

ALWAYS use a backup knot with the rings. Yes, they can slip. If things are lined up nice and straight they tend to slip less. Use a slip knot. I use a couple of loops pulled through, then tighten the second loop around the coiled up extra webbing to keep things neat.

I've used ring buckles from day one...tieD a slip knot, which takes all of a few seconds...and, have never slipped.
QPENS

**nogods** · 10-22-2007, 15:59

Thanks for the suggestions Rapt. The olive webbing is the stock webbing on the claytor hammock. The yellow line was just tieout for the bug net. The blue webbing was a slap strap. I played with the system using some of your suggestions and came up with this: (the bright green strap is just a piece of tubular climbing strap replacing the slap strap. the yellow tieout line is not in this picture)

I made a loop with both ends of the olive green webbing from the hammock. I then pushed the loop through both rings and pulled the sides of the loop back over itself to form what I believe is a larkshead - please correct me if I'm wrong. I then tied a bowline in one end of the bright green tubular webbing, wrapped the webbing around the post three times and threaded the end through the bowline loop. I then threaded the end of the bright green tubular webbing through the rings.

I got in the hammock and bounce around a bit - switching from my back to a side position several times. I even managed to turn myself around in the hammock without geting out. No slippage so I guess it is good to go, although I may look for somme of that polyester webbing from home depot everyone has been talking about to replace the bright green tubular webbing.

**Rapt** · 10-23-2007, 06:38

Looks good.

(Yes the thing you made is a larks' head) That system will certainly work and be a bit lighter than with the extra hardware you had before.

If you're making 3 or so wraps then you don't really even need to use the bowline loop to secure it. Just wrapping over itself will hold the webbing on a tree. Conversely you can use the bowline loop and one wrap will hold since its closed and cinches down on the tree when loaded.

I've added a sketch showing the basic ring buckle suspension and how to reduce the weight by replacing most of the webbing with rope.

**bmike** · 10-23-2007, 07:56

Originally Posted by Rapt

Looks good.

(Yes the thing you made is a larks' head) That system will certainly work and be a bit lighter than with the extra hardware you had before.

If you're making 3 or so wraps then you don't really even need to use the bowline loop to secure it. Just wrapping over itself will hold the webbing on a tree. Conversely you can use the bowline loop and one wrap will hold since its closed and cinches down on the tree when loaded.

I've added a sketch showing the basic ring buckle suspension and how to reduce the weight by replacing most of the webbing with rope.

nice sketch...
but why add the intermediate rope? why not just get the rings on the straps? (rope or sewn or some kind of knot?)

this is what i am planning - soon as my rings arrive. i won't have to cut my original suspension...

**bmike** · 10-23-2007, 07:57

Originally Posted by Rapt

Looks good.

(Yes the thing you made is a larks' head) That system will certainly work and be a bit lighter than with the extra hardware you had before.

If you're making 3 or so wraps then you don't really even need to use the bowline loop to secure it. Just wrapping over itself will hold the webbing on a tree. Conversely you can use the bowline loop and one wrap will hold since its closed and cinches down on the tree when loaded.

I've added a sketch showing the basic ring buckle suspension and how to reduce the weight by replacing most of the webbing with rope.

and... what type of knot are you using at the adjustment rings with rope?

**Rapt** · 10-23-2007, 08:15

I use the intermediate rope because then my hammock doesn't have a long rope attached.

Conversely if I end up needing to hang from a much larger tree than I planned on the rope gets pulled into the wrap and yet the webbing is still protecting the tree on the back side where most of the force is against the bark. If I have rings on the webbing I'm basically unable to do anything with it easily.

The rings with rope work just like with webbing. See here for the post showing how I use them and the knot involved.