Scouting magazine says...

[toferj]

I went in a hang not too long ago where one of the gals said that of all her hammocks she still uses (and prefers) her $20 hammock. I asked where she found a hammock that cheap and she pointed me to the Grand Trunk ultralight that DuctTape mentioned above. I bought one (because, heck, it's only twenty dollars!) and this weekend will be my first test in it.

As for intro pads... I'd like to submit: a car sun shade. I got mine at Walmart.

http://mobile.walmart.com/ip/Blockad...-by-department

A buddy said his took him down to 50° (but just barely, it was still a little cool). I've had mine down to the mid 60s and been just fine. I had the idea of buying two of them (got mine on clearance for $5 ea.) and glueing them together.

My trip this weekend is supposed to get down in the low 50s, so we'll see how good a double layer does.

Oh, and the weight of the two doubled up is 25.6oz (1 lb. 9.6oz)

[CeeVee]

Had to quit $$$. Checked self into rehab😀!

[Wanderlost]

I went in a hang not too long ago where one of the gals said that of all her hammocks she still uses (and prefers) her $20 hammock.

It's funny. I own4 or 5 hammocks..everything from a Dream Hammock to a WBBB to a couple ENOs. My favorite and most comfortable hammock is still my el cheapo homemade tablecloth hammock. There's something comfy in its simplicity.

[captaincoupal]

Great article Derek! I think Scouting is a great place to mainstream hammock camping - these are boys who will grow up to be men who love to camp, and who bring what they learn with them to their families and friends.

[fishbait]

I went in a hang not too long ago where one of the gals said that of all her hammocks she still uses (and prefers) her $20 hammock. I asked where she found a hammock that cheap and she pointed me to the Grand Trunk ultralight that DuctTape mentioned above. I bought one (because, heck, it's only twenty dollars!) and this weekend will be my first test in it.

As for intro pads... I'd like to submit: a car sun shade. I got mine at Walmart.

http://mobile.walmart.com/ip/Blockad...-by-department

A buddy said his took him down to 50° (but just barely, it was still a little cool). I've had mine down to the mid 60s and been just fine. I had the idea of buying two of them (got mine on clearance for $5 ea.) and glueing them together.

My trip this weekend is supposed to get down in the low 50s, so we'll see how good a double layer does.

Oh, and the weight of the two doubled up is 25.6oz (1 lb. 9.6oz)

The sunshade works well, two are better. Duct tape them together instead of gluing. Every once in awhile I find a Emergency Reflective Blanket that's perfect for hammock camping.
The Emergency Double-Sided Outdoor Mattress and then there is the Emergency Double Sided Thermal Reflective Blanket that you can lay over the ridgeline to reflect the body heat back at you.

[toferj]

I used rubber cement to glue them together because I figured it would be flexible after it dried. It worked okay. Duct tape probably would have been easier though. I considered sewing them together, but decided against that as just too much effort.

The nice thing about putting two together is that I can flip the one so that the cutout that normally goes where you rear view mirror goes is covered bt the other sun shade! Goodbye cold spot!

I had some problems with it shifting in my hammock last weekend, but overall it was good, and kept me plenty warm. It is a bit bulky and so I had to strap it to the outside of my pack. I also covered it with an extra t-shirt so it wouldn't accidentally blind the hiker just behind my if it happened to catch the sun just right.

The blanket and mattress you linked to look cool. I'd be curious to know how much thw blanket weighs.

Also, I did just buy a Jarbidge UQ from Paul over at AHE. At $100 for a 3 season UQ (all I should need in Texas) I just couldn't pass it up!

[bobwhite]

The sunshade works well, two are better. Duct tape them together instead of gluing. Every once in awhile I find a Emergency Reflective Blanket that's perfect for hammock camping.
The Emergency Double-Sided Outdoor Mattress and then there is the Emergency Double Sided Thermal Reflective Blanket that you can lay over the ridgeline to reflect the body heat back at you.

Do you have condensation with the windshield? My Hennessy Deep Jungle XL came with a reflection pad, which I imagine is like a high-falootin' Sun shield. I had condensation on top of it if I didn't have a lot of layers of fabric (shirt, bag liner, sleeping bag, ground pad) between me and it. I sleep directly on the Hamid fabric once in 70° temps and had considerable condensation.

This set up worked fine for me for a year, as I was mostly car camping or backpacking very short distances with it. Once I committed to ditching the tent for the hammock on longer backpacking trips, and in colder weather, I decided it was time to invest in down quilts. On one hand I regret investing so much in Adam and Jenny's kid's college fund, BH it on the other hand, I am so glad I did. I am so much more comfortable now, and the whole 20° under/over quilt combed is only 2 lbs, 2 oz.

[fishbait]

Do you have condensation with the windshield?

I did a winter hang a couple of years ago. Along with the reflectix pad I used a DH Winter Sock. There was so much frost inside the sock from the condensation that built up that it looked like a snow cave. But I was very warm. Now understand that I also backed that up with a 40* sleeping bag that was covered by a KAQ 30* Owyhee Top Quilt. I also strung up a 30* KAQ New River Under Quilt. This was a car camping trip in single digit temps. The biggest problem that I see with sleeping pads is their lack of breathablity. The sweat from your body has to go somewhere and takes on the form of moisture build up. So yes there will be condensation. But a pad is still an excellent option for a low budget setup.

The rule of thumb has always been... Get what you can afford now and save for better equipment later. Over time I have upgraded to downey goodness as funds and some really lucky purchases from the Forum Market place or freinds who where also upgrading.

[fishbait]

I used rubber cement to glue them together because I figured it would be flexible after it dried. It worked okay. Duct tape probably would have been easier though. I considered sewing them together, but decided against that as just too much effort.

The nice thing about putting two together is that I can flip the one so that the cutout that normally goes where you rear view mirror goes is covered bt the other sun shade! Goodbye cold spot!

I had some problems with it shifting in my hammock last weekend, but overall it was good, and kept me plenty warm. It is a bit bulky and so I had to strap it to the outside of my pack. I also covered it with an extra t-shirt so it wouldn't accidentally blind the hiker just behind my if it happened to catch the sun just right.

The blanket and mattress you linked to look cool. I'd be curious to know how much thw blanket weighs.

Also, I did just buy a Jarbidge UQ from Paul over at AHE. At $100 for a 3 season UQ (all I should need in Texas) I just couldn't pass it up!

I really feel that AHE is very underrated. Paul makes some of the best quilts at some of the best prices I've seen. There are days that I regret selling my KAQ quilts, they were just that good. Even now I still think about ordering new ones as backups to my Hammock Gear and Warbonnet quilts.

[bobwhite]

[QUOTE=fishbait;1334048

The rule of thumb has always been... Get what you can afford now and save for better equipment later.[/QUOTE]

That's a great way to sum it up. Do what you can at first; just get out there and enjoy it.