UQ setup problems (gathered end hammock)

[wowbagger]

Hi all,

new to hammock camping i soon had to face the question of insolation and finally decided to go with down underquilts. Lightweight, less bulky, et cetera. So i purchased an incubator 40° from HG. Just a week later it was there - and that's pretty much exciting, because it's a long way down to germany. I really should be happy with it (and i know i'll do), but...

...up to now i'm trying to find the right way to attach that downy thing properly under my hammock. I've tried several setups, tighten and loosen it lengthways, the same at the ends and modified the sag (hammock). Always the same result: i'm feeling cold spots under my butt (tight) or/and air gaps under the legs (more loose). That CBS occured down to 43°F, wich was the lowest temperature these days, and and even at 65°F in the livingroom. When i hooked up the longitudinal edges of the quilt to the ridgeline and tighten it up this phenomenon disappeared, naturally. But i do not believe that this is the only way it should be. Researches on forumthreads, on youtube (watching mostly shug's videos, i must admit), blogs and random photos on the internet clearly show no additional modification in any cases. That suggests that i missed something really essential - but what?

I'm actually going to use my grizz bridge but at this moment it seems to be easier to cope with the 10'x5' gathered end hammock (diy). By the way, i'm 6'2 and the scale pretents 220 lbs.

Any suggestions are welcome! Can't wait no longer lying cosy in the woods!

wowbagger

[cliffhanger]

I can (almost) never get rid of the gap between the hammock and FL UQ that runs along the left leg(feet right, head left).

now I just run shockcord over the ridgeline....or I'll stuff my (thin) down jacket in between the gaps to stop the cold.

I have gotten rid of the gaps with just the stock suspension but it took some tinkering, and I must move a lot in my sleep because the gap was back at some point in the night.

[mudsocks]

If your butt is cold and your UQ feels tight against your backside it's most certainly too tight. Loosen it up a bit so the UQ is against your backside but not compressed. I use a bit of shock cord attached to my ridge line and the auxiliary loops on the foot end of my UQ. I don't have any pictures but my setup looks very similar this:



That way the quilt is snugged up against my legs but not too tight against my posterior. Dutch sells quilt clips but I haven't tried them.

[awilder]

I've had a similar problem. The way the incubator is cut (at least the one I have), there is a tight spot that forms just below the butt, where it transitions to the legs. I've noticed this when I try to tighten up the suspension. I don't know if it's good or bad, it's just there. There may be something I'm missing, not sure...

Here's another thread that discusses it.

EDIT: Finally got it dialed in! Turns out I was overtightening the end channels and the main suspension. Slept warm and comfortabal at 21 degrees last night.

[SilvrSurfr]

I had this issue when I first got an UQ, but I really think a lot of it is psychological - getting used to the whole concept. I did have an experienced user look at my setup and tighten me up - haven't adjust the UQ since.

[Chiefstryker]

I had that type of problem when I first started using my incubator. It came from one of two issues. The first was I was hooking it on wrong and the second as down shift. This goes for gathered end hammocks, I don't know if both apply to bridge type hammocks since I can't use them.

1. Make sure that you have both the primary and secondary suspension hooked to the s-biner. This should take care of the gaps and drafts. If you have that taken care of, it is more than likely what I call down shift.

2. To deal with down shift, check the area where you are getting cold to see if there is any down there, sometimes the down moves around leaving just fabric. If there is an area like this, shake the UQ out to redistribute the down. Most of the time when I get CBS this is the culprit.

If this doesn't work, then pics would help.

[wowbagger]

Connecting the quilt with the ridgeline has highly stressed the seams of the grosgrain (where the d-rings are attached) although i kept the tension moderate (to my mind). Recently i've tried a similar configuration like the one you can see on octothorpesaurus' photo. But the seams have started to come loose as mentioned... Perhaps i'll strenghten them with a few stiches and give the bridge-mode a try again...

Inspired by all the replies i played around with the suspension some more. This brought a sudden turn:
I've just extended the continuous shockcord with a few inches of extra cord. This caused the sag of the quilt to increase while the stressed areas decreased at the same time. Nothing spectacular, though. But now the proportion of the length of both suspensioncords seems to be improved (in this specific case). Now that the shockcord is extended it was easier to put nearly the right tension to the whole suspensionsystem.

So there is still some work to do but right now it's not too bad. I've attached some photos (took them before the modification), just in case somebody could find more hidden clues.

02_compressed.jpg 03_nicentight.jpg
04_footend.jpg 05_not the best.jpg

@awilder
I can feel the transition but it doesn't seemed to be defective or abnormal. But the issue of this thread is interesting, i will keep an eye on this.

@Chiefstryker
I've already moved some down to the parts wich have less down, or are more stressed from those wich are not. That makes sens to me.

Thanks again for your helpful replies!
wowbagger

[Dead Man]

Perchance some of these might help....



They can be found here.

They helped me. Just one option of many to be sure.

[Shug]

Must be off somewhere)))
I will offer this video. Maybe some insight to be had.
Carry forth.
Shug

[barchetta]

What about trying some triangle thingies?