Suspension Horror stories

**pgibson** · 02-12-2014, 18:46

I will quantify that with....regardless of your weight UL suspension materials (this is Dynaglide in my opinion....and heck I have only made somewhere in the neighborhood of 10,000 hammock suspensions) wear out faster than one made from stronger materials. I use dynaglide my self and replace my suspension annually for my own piece of mind. Just like UL packs, trail runner shoes, and all other things that sacrifice durability in the name of weight savings your gear will wear out faster. If you're looking to jump into the deep end of the pool just be aware of the consequences and be prepared to replace parts more frequently. UL fabric hammocks don't last as long as others, UL tarps can be damaged by a stick rubbing against them, UL suspensions need to be hung at the correct angles and replaced as soon as signs of wear show.
Good Luck and hang your hang.

**silentorpheus** · 02-12-2014, 18:47

No judgement here, just a question:

Going with an estimated 12-13 feet of line per side to make a whoopee sling (I know, you are looking at UCRs which may skew these numbers a bit) - let's call that 25 feet.

The weights for 25' of various cordage:

1.75mm Zing-it - 12.5g (.44oz)
2.2mm Zing-it - 17.5g (.6oz)
2mm Dynaglide - 22.5g (.8oz)
7/64" Amsteel - 32.5g (1.14oz)

With such small margins of difference in weight (i.e. fractions of an ounce), and the ability, at least in Amsteel, to have your run of colors as stealthy as you like, as well as the peace of mind of a little bit of a buffer as far as safety margins are concerned, I'm curious as to the reasons why one would steer towards the option that is least optimal.

**Bushwhacker** · 02-12-2014, 19:17

Originally Posted by silentorpheus

No judgement here, just a question:

Going with an estimated 12-13 feet of line per side to make a whoopee sling (I know, you are looking at UCRs which may skew these numbers a bit) - let's call that 25 feet.

The weights for 25' of various cordage:

1.75mm Zing-it - 12.5g (.44oz)
2.2mm Zing-it - 17.5g (.6oz)
2mm Dynaglide - 22.5g (.8oz)
7/64" Amsteel - 32.5g (1.14oz)

With such small margins of difference in weight (i.e. fractions of an ounce), and the ability, at least in Amsteel, to have your run of colors as stealthy as you like, as well as the peace of mind of a little bit of a buffer as far as safety margins are concerned, I'm curious as to the reasons why one would steer towards the option that is least optimal.

Short answer is I tend to be a little bit of a daredevil/extremist in most of my endeavors. (the little is relative). TBH this thread was mainly to gauge other's opinions of the safety of weaker cords, which seems to be a resounding no. If I do go for the weaker cord, at least I can't say I was poorly informed.

**silentorpheus** · 02-12-2014, 19:22

Originally Posted by Bushwhacker

Short answer is I tend to be a little bit of a daredevil/extremist in most of my endeavors. (the little is relative). TBH this thread was mainly to gauge other's opinions of the safety of weaker cords, which seems to be a resounding no. If I do go for the weaker cord, at least I can't say I was poorly informed.

Fair enough. If you want to try it in order to push the envelope, more power to you.

If it was a weight thing, I'd just recommend you make up the weight by carrying one less mouthful of water in your water bottle.

Good luck, either way, and let us know how it goes.

**MAD777** · 02-12-2014, 20:47

I always do as Paul stated. If you go ultralight, you need to replace gear more often. It's just part of the price we pay for going light.
I use 900# straps that weigh less than 5 grams per foot, along with my Dynaglide whoopies. I replace the straps after only 4 trips and the whoopies once per year.
After every trip, I inspect both straps & whoopies and replace if there's any doubt.

**tnrdnck** · 02-13-2014, 21:47

I will submit this for furthering information on what you asked for.

http://www.hammockforums.net/forum/s...t=lash+whoopie

For those that claim it will not work, it does. Is it stupid because of a lower safety margin? Not in my opinion. The lower safety margin is a risk, one that I am willing to take upon myself after much real world testing that I have done. It has held me up everytime without fail for over 75 nights. I am approximately 200 lbs.

To put in a different perspective; Is everyone driving the safest vehicle on the planet, or are they just stupid for not increasing their survival factor in an auto accident because they want to drive what they like?

**GW Sears** · 02-13-2014, 22:10

I see a lot of mathematics here concerning the weight of the user (or is it fall guy?). However, I see NO discussion of the sine/cosine effect when you are change the distance between your uprights because those pesky trees just don't all grow the same distance apart. I can tell you from first hand, painful experience that materials that will hold you up under most conditions, can fail quite spectacularly when you are forced to flatten the angle of the dangle. Personally, I don't think that a 2 or 3 to one safety factor is adequate, because that margin can vanish in the twinkling of an eye. For instance, if you are setting up in the dark, and don't notice how flat your setup is, you can easily erase that margin.

**gmcttr** · 02-13-2014, 23:51

Originally Posted by GW Sears

However, I see NO discussion of the sine/cosine effect....

You can read about it or just play with it.

**HammockHunter** · 02-14-2014, 00:18

Well my suspension has never failed but the first time I tried to whip my hammock warbonnet style I didn't make the ball on the end large enough. So I eased in got situated and WHAP larks head slipped off and there I was, on my back… on the ground.

**XTrekker** · 02-14-2014, 01:31

Personally I wont go past Dynaglide. I am under 200lbs and even 'it', sometimes makes me nervous.

So what is the actual weight savings between a lash-it and dynaglide? I would like to see a straight up comparison between them. They are so close in diameter that I doubt it would make a difference. The average 6' UCR uses 9' of cordage to construct so one could compare the difference in 9' of each x2, one for each side.
So is the weight savings really worth it? I just can't see there being more than an ounce difference in weight

Even the smallest damage to the suspension would almost guarantee its failure with the average dynamic loads. I know we are always pushing the boundary on what is usable but as adventurous as I am, even I have my limits.

On the other hand, my fabric may still be the weakest point. I have no idea what the Breaking strength of my hammock body is...It's 1.1 30D ripstop nylon. Maybe the jokes on me and I am sleeping in 400lb breaking strength fabric, while rocking a 1000lb BS suspension. Anybody know the strength of it?