The latest Greatest in Suspensions?

[obx hiker]

So what’s the latest, lightest and simplest in suspensions these days? Has it moved from amsteel and whoopies to light straps? And how are they fastened adjusted and then loosened?

Did a trip a couple of weeks back in the Grandfather Mt. Linville Gorge area and lots of whoopie milking fiddling and etc. getting the hang right. Looking to simplify a little.

 

[Hoosier T]

I got so tired of feeling with minimum hang distance with whoopie slings. A couple years ago I switched to 1” Dyneema straps and the Beckett hitch. It’s truly glorious how light weight and simple this setup is. I would highly recommend giving it a shot. I use the black venom straps from RBTR and they still look now after probably 50 nights in the hammock.

[Chris R]

Dutchware Spider Daisy Chain with Mantis buckles. Light, very quick to set up and I like the way the Mantis buckle can be spliced in to the hammock end loop so it cant be lost

[dirtbag]

I use Dutch Spider Poly straps with beetle buckles… brainless.

[Sloan]

I will second the straps+ Becket hitch, I use muletape for the straps and 1″ uhmwpe tree huggers. I think my setup is less than 2 ounces heavier than the lightest one piece strap options. I also get muletape for free from commercial construction sites. You can also buy it from anti gravity gear.

[obx hiker]

Thank you all for these suggestions. Doing my own research yesterday I  measured the weight and calculated the confusion and decided to go with the spider straps and beetle buckles/clips. The straps are nice and light. The hardware buckles + clips weighs @ 35 grams and I ordered the clips for the tree-end sewn in. I ‘ve used them before and like the simplicity. I’ve found that 8″ is enough strap but bring a couple of amsteel loops along just in case. Seems like trees too close are more of a problem than trees too far apart WR2 tree selection.

I use a sheet bend almost every day and could probably tie one in my sleep but the idea of the becket coming loose or the attention to the knot to be sure it didn’t slip was one thing. Another was un-tying the knot the next morning. Still I think I might experiment with that system and see how it goes. It’s appealing to avoid any mechanical parts and just rely on a strap and a knot.

[dirtbag]

I have the clips for tree end sewn on also… smart move.. negligible weight difference and makes it so simple to get hung quickly and effortlessly.  8 ft. Staps.. another smart move.. they are plenty long enough.  You wont regret your choice!!

[John R]

I started with polyester tree straps and whoopie slings, then last year switched to 1″ Dyneema straps tied with a Lapp knot (Beckett too slippery) directly to the hammock loops.  Extremely lightweight, and adjusting the strap length is actually pretty simple. The only downside to this straps is that they don’t remain flat after the knots are released.

I bought this kit from myerstechhammocklab on eBay https://www.ebay.com/itm/284181244109?hash=item422a85a8cd:g:vysAAOSwvPpgJa9u

[Jeff McWilliams]

John R – that’s the same system I’m using with my cheap “Ridge Outdoor Gear” brand hammock while I play and learn about hammock camping. I’m using the modified beckett hitch that Myers demonstrated in one of  his youtube videos and that works fine. The soft shackles are interesting as well.

This certainly requires a little more technical knowledge in knot tying than using something like Dutchware’e beetle buckles.  But it’s still a nice setup.

[Amber]

I use the Dyneema straps and Beckett hitch. I’ve got one 8ft UHMWPE and one 13ft Spider strap (I wouldn’t have ordered a strap that long, they just sent me what was left on the roll). They weigh 1.5oz together. I’ve never had a problem with the knot slipping, but as someone else mentioned, they do roll up. Takes just a few seconds to smooth it back out at the tree end. Painless.

To untie it in the morning, I have a small zing it continuous loop larksheaded to the continuous loop of my hammock. It makes untying the Beckett hitch as easy as untying my shoes. If I don’t use that loop, it can be pretty tough to undo.

The beetle buckles look really cool! I tried whoopies for awhile, with a MSH, but I just prefer the simplicity of a single strap.

[Trace Richardson]

Tree straps, whoopie slings / hooks and single suspension setup: 6 feet dyneema tree straps from warbonnet, whoopie slings with whoopie hooks and a single suspension setup where my tarp connects to the whoopie hooks that also connect to my hammock’s continuous loops. Works amazing, is light and no separate guylines for tarp.

[Jason W]

Trace –  do you have any pics of this setup you could share?

Thanks.

[Trace Richardson]

I just got an entirely new rig, hammock, tarp, suspension, etc. and it’s super dialed in! I’ll make a video and link to it shortly.

[Trace Richardson]

Jason, here’s a quick walk through of my single suspension setup. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JX_9tWYHwCo

[Matthew / BPL]

That’s an interesting setup, Trace. I tried something similar with a Hennessy Hammock years ago and wasn’t pleased with the sag issues when I got in the hammock but it looks like you have it working well.

Thanks for sharing it.

[Trace Richardson]

No worries Jason, its hard to explain with words, so have been meaning to make a video for a while. I didn’t like how the last video came out so made a better one with more specifics in case anyone is interested :) https://youtu.be/FD6OWFKHybY

[Matthew / BPL]

My only hesitation with this setup is that I like being able to put my tarp up first or take it down last in the wind.

[Trace Richardson]

Matthew, the tiny guylines on the both ends of the tarp don’t change for the most part once their distance is set if you’re fairly consistent with your tree distances, so you could easily set your tarp up first and the hammock is going to be right in line where it needs to be if you do that secondary. :)

[Kevin Babione]

Trace – My biggest concern when I watched your video is that you need strong pegs to anchor the tarp.  I’ve been very happy with my Ti shepherd’s hook stakes and they’ve held my tarp without issue in some pretty strong winds here in PA.  I get that once you lay down in your hammock you need to reach around and tighten all of the tarp anchors because of the sag laying down creates, but I’m afraid of the stress that puts on the tarp when you get out of the hammock and the sag is no longer there.

I think the other thing I realized is that I only put my tarp at my hammock ridgeline when I’m expecting nasty weather – otherwise it’s a good foot (or more) above my ridgeline with a “porch” on one side created using my trekking poles.

I’m glad your setup works so well for you and I really appreciate you making the time to take the video and explain everything so clearly.

[Matthew / BPL]

Good point about being able to put up your tarp first because the distance doesn’t vary much. Hmm.

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