cheap UQ ideas?

[pure_mahem]

oetzi on the forum made himself an UQ out of a military poncho and liner. Check out this thread http://www.hammockforums.net/forum/s...t=poncho+liner. I believe he was able to get down to 50 degrees.

I did this and use it. It works great for me. I would say 50 degrees is about it's limit but if you make one of these you can always put other stuff in between your UQ and your hammock to add insulation like a blue pad or spare clothes or a sleeping bag. I don't camp much below 50 degrees so it isn't an issue for myself. I don't see why the same type conversion of a sleeping bag wouldn't work. I got a real deal when I found three poncho liners on ebay for a total of 10 bucks I made a complete sleep set with the ability to add a third quilt if neccesary it's bulky but light. and my wife is always stealing my extra blanket to snuggle up in. I was surprised at how warm these poncho liners actually are. Great piece of kit just to have. One thing I didn't know is that the head hole to use it with the poncho which they were designed to be used with isn't already sewed in I guess your suppose to cut it when you need it. Great light synthetic blanket though.

[thecrumb]

Thanks - the poncho liner photo was just what I was looking for!!!

Going to run out this weekend and see if I can find some cheap stuff to make a prototype out of and see if the wife will give me a quick sewing lesson

Jim

[Bugzee Malone]

I took my old down filled sleeping bag that by luck had a full length zipper, opened it out, put a smooth pebble almost in each corner and then folded the corner over the pebble. I tied cord a few times around under the pebble trapping it and left a loop in the cord. This way I didn't have to sew or make a hole in the bag.
I then hung it under the hammock using bungy cord from one corner up and a few loops around the suspension line and down to the other corner. I used bungy cord because it allowed me to enter the HH's bottom entrance and then the sleeping bag (now underquilt) would snap back into the right position. Because of the bungy's elasticity I found that I could position the underquilt from inside the hammock to adjust for the HH's asymmetrical laying position.
The other thing I would recommend is to leave the bungies a little long so you can adjust how snug the underquilt "hugs" the hammock. This lets you get into a good comfortable diagonal positional. This also allows you to adjust the temperature too.

[JayS]

I'm screwing around with this very idea at the moment. I have a pair of cheap eddie bauer rectangle bags from target sitting on a self collecting dust. These things are so huge, I'm actually considering using one as a makeshift peapod instead of an underquilt.

I've done this and gotten down to 11* with an additional top quilt. The tricks I found helpful were to open the zipper at the foot end enough to allow the bag to slide a little way down the hammock towards the head, tie up the loose part of the bag's footbox, turn the bag so the zipper stays on or close to the top and tie the head to the suspension to keep it from falling on the ground and from slipping toward the feet while sleeping. You'll find a "draft stopper" (a coat, a towel, etc) around your shoulders helps a lot, especially if the sides of the hammock hold the bag up off you. Another trick for the bug net on your SBPro is simply to turn the hammock over, essentially giving you a netless hammock. When I do this, I can use the net to hold an underquilt perfectly but that might depend on the shape of your netting. Mine works great - the UQ doesn't move or compress.

The bag as peapod is heavy and bulky when using a cheap bag, though.

[pure_mahem]

I had an advantage with the poncho liners, it was a no sew deal for me. The poncho liners have a binding that runs all the way around the parimeter. I just cut four small holes in it, one at each corner and threaded my shock cord through the edging. Don't know if you would be able to do something similar with the sleeping bags or not. Just thought I'ld let you know how I did it.