5 inch wider Bear Mountain Bridge

[DougTheElder]

Hey Skinner, Good job...I have to agree with Rev, if you've got it...you can flaunt it. But your choice of models does take some of the sting out of the bragging rights! DTE

[te-wa]

pretty cool work. I only have one question:
what's that green stuff all over the ground?

[bob2guns]

I have been enjoying my DIY Bridge and tweaking it every day for a while now, but I finally altered my JRB Bear Mountain Bridge to be as wide as my DIY. I actually like it better than mine now since it is as wide, lighter than mine and narrower in the center than mine; it's easier to get out of by far.
What i did was cut the end caps and open them by about 8 inches at the top and sewed Omni around the hemmed edges. I intend to make a bugnet insert and a DWR insert for the ends. It is so much more open and there is no shoulder squeeze at all. :):p;)
I will post pictures on this thread tomorrow of the hammock hanging with me in it. Sorry about that, don't have another model that will get their picture taken.... mule

----Maybe this is the answer----- about the only thing left i haven't tried. i sort of regret getting a new BMBH now, not good at all w/the neck/shoulder ache. Can't get used to it. tried all combinations of spreader bar lengths, sag, structural RL lengths. Can't sell it w/o taking a hit.....so i think violence is the only thing left.
I'm not a sewingmachine kind of person, so how do you think it would work if i just cut the head endcap out w/ a solder gun, and leave it open ? ditch the bugnet (or sell it on HF ), maybe use a WB net...... If i hang a pack in the triangle, it couldn't be any easier to get at it. I could do it right and get another male spreader bar from JRB, cut it down to 7 or 8 in. and use it between the two stock bars. The foot end i got cut down to 20 in. already and leave it the way it is. the one thing i'm not sure of is when i'm done and its a yard wide, is it gonna be flat enough to live with ? i don't think it will go much wider than that......and if it don't feel good enough then all i got is a blown up bridge hammock.......

[gargoyle]

You are a braver man than me. I wouldn't trust a soldered edge without sewing on some kind of extra reinforcement. I know the soldering, wood-burner method melts the fabric together, but how well? I would hate to see you rip thru, and be left with no hammock. Have a freind sew it or take it to a sewing/tailor shop. An awning repair shop could also stitch all the parts on easily.
But hey, give it a whirl, and if it holds., great!!! Then I can replace my sewing machine with a soldering gun. You are the control group/guinea pig.

[Roadtorque]

----Maybe this is the answer----- about the only thing left i haven't tried. i sort of regret getting a new BMBH now, not good at all w/the neck/shoulder ache. Can't get used to it. tried all combinations of spreader bar lengths, sag, structural RL lengths. Can't sell it w/o taking a hit.....so i think violence is the only thing left.
I'm not a sewingmachine kind of person, so how do you think it would work if i just cut the head endcap out w/ a solder gun, and leave it open ? ditch the bugnet (or sell it on HF ), maybe use a WB net...... If i hang a pack in the triangle, it couldn't be any easier to get at it. I could do it right and get another male spreader bar from JRB, cut it down to 7 or 8 in. and use it between the two stock bars. The foot end i got cut down to 20 in. already and leave it the way it is. the one thing i'm not sure of is when i'm done and its a yard wide, is it gonna be flat enough to live with ? i don't think it will go much wider than that......and if it don't feel good enough then all i got is a blown up bridge hammock.......

how are you getting neck pain? Are you using a pillow? By shoulder pain are you talking about the squeeze you feel if you lay on your back with your hands on your sides or something else? Maybe I have missed your post where you post your problems but I find it odd you are getting neck pain. I will offer suggestion if I understand your problem. I dont see how cutting out the end cap would help solve your problems

[bob2guns]

well, looks like i might not blow up the bridge .........might trade it off......
cutting the end cap out is so you can install a wider bar,or at least cut it vertically so the rings can expand out enough. the way its made , theres too tight of a radius. theres no give like a gathered-end. i hope that makes sense. does to me anyway.

[Sweeper]

----Maybe this is the answer----- about the only thing left i haven't tried. i sort of regret getting a new BMBH now, not good at all w/the neck/shoulder ache. Can't get used to it. tried all combinations of spreader bar lengths, sag, structural RL lengths. Can't sell it w/o taking a hit.....so i think violence is the only thing left.
I'm not a sewingmachine kind of person, so how do you think it would work if i just cut the head endcap out w/ a solder gun, and leave it open ? ditch the bugnet (or sell it on HF ), maybe use a WB net...... If i hang a pack in the triangle, it couldn't be any easier to get at it. I could do it right and get another male spreader bar from JRB, cut it down to 7 or 8 in. and use it between the two stock bars. The foot end i got cut down to 20 in. already and leave it the way it is. the one thing i'm not sure of is when i'm done and its a yard wide, is it gonna be flat enough to live with ? i don't think it will go much wider than that......and if it don't feel good enough then all i got is a blown up bridge hammock.......

Bob2guns - can I ask what you feel is the source of the neck/shoulder pain? That's one of the reasons I purchased the BMBH was the potentially flatter lie, as I have two fused discs in my neck already and pretty wide shoulders to start with. I can't even sleep in a normal bed too well. If the BMBH makes things worse then I've just bought a spare hammock for my family/friends to use, lol!
-PH