Top Quilt Foot Box Construction

[DanAyo]

I've got a number of questions, and answers to any or all are appreciated.

I plan to make a Climashield 5.0 Top Quilt. I am going to taper the footbox and use shock cord at the very bottom.

Would slight over stuffing (extra Climashield) at the very bottom eliminate any hole that the cord might make after closing?
Is the possible hole something to be concerned about?

I really like the TQ built by kitsapcowboy. --- https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...-DIY-Top-Quilt --- In the TQ a zipper was used to close the footbox. My concern with the zipper is that it might be uncomfortable if it rubs against my calf.

Is this a problem?

I'm thinking about adding some sort of way to close the top of the quilt. Maybe around my neck and or shoulders.

Is this a good idea and if so, how would it best be done?

I really like HyperD 1.6 fabric. It feels great and weight is not a consideration to me. Is there any problem using it for both the outside and inside of the TQ? I like the feel, but not enough to sacrifice performance.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

I've learned so much from this forum and appreciate your help and time.
Thanks...

Dan Ayo

[Caminante]

I can't speak to the footbox, I always sew mine shut. I fold grosgrain over the seams for strength, and it doesn't bother me from a comfort perspective, so if you go the zipper route you could potentially sew a flap of grosgrain over the zipper.

For the top of the quilts, I do two things. I sew grosgrain tabs onto either side of the TQ at the top and put KAM snaps in them so that I can snap the quilt around my shoulders/neck area. I also put a drawcord channel at the top with some shockcord that I cinch down with a cord lock. That allows me to snug it up around my neck in cold weather and keep drafts out.

Edit: No issue using HyperD 1.6 for both liner and shell. I like the way it feels, too. I would say that I think the MEMBRANE or taffeta is even more comfortable, and lighter.

[kitsapcowboy]

Hi, Dan. Welcome to HF.

I am glad you like my original DIY top quilt. I've slept in that quilt many nights now over the past few months, and I have never noticed the zipper at all. I do recommend using some good masking tape to hold the zipper in place in the material stack while you sew the perimeter of the quilt, and pin the sandwich well every 3" to 4". If you think you need more room for error because of the thickness of the Climashield, you can mount each half of the zipper on a. Equal length of wide grosgrain ribbon and then tape it in place on the quilt she'll for sewing.

HyperD is a great material for hammocks, and if you use it on the outer shell of your quilt you will have a heavy-duty TQ that will last a long time. I used 1.55 oz Epsilon for my build, and that fabric, like the HyperD, is strong enough to make a single-layer hammock; either fabric will add 1 to 2 ounces to your top quilt build compared to typical 1.0-1.1 oz shell fabrics, but they will surpass them in durability.

However, for the inner shell, I personally think the HyperD 1.6 is a bit too robust. Ripstop By the Roll offers 1.1 ripstop, HyperD 1.0, MEMBRANE 10 taffeta and MEMBRANE 15 poly taffeta (which you can even get custom-printed in OutdoorINK patterns!) as softer, lighter-weight alternatives for the inside, and I have used Dutch's Argon 90 in previous builds (my favorite inner shell fabric for cool- to cold-weather top quilts.

I have been toying with the idea of cinch channels at the top of my DIY top quilts for cold weather. Study how George at Loco Libre Gear fashions his top edges, and also take a look at the quilt demonstration videos online at Mid-Atlantic Mountain Works to see Jared's more radical approach.

HTH. Good luck with your build...

[DanAyo]

Kitsapcowboy; I found this link --- http://www.locolibregear.com/gear.ht...egory=17810105 ---

If I understand the image correctly, he uses shock cord (seems to be attached at both ends) with a cordlock in the middle.

Is this correct? And does it cause the top of the quilt to want to hug your neck and shoulders?

If so, this is great...

[MattK]

DanAyo, sounds like you have a fun project ahead of you!

I agree with Kit; the 1.6 shell will make for a more durable quilt in the long run, but I think it would be over kill as a liner. I assume the HyperD1.0 has a similar feel, so you could go with that as your liner. Personally, I use Argon67 Taffeta for my liners and it is very comfortable.

I use a zipped footbox on my CS Apex quilt, and it has never bothered me in the least. This is also what some vendors use (EE, etc.). A flap of your HyperD sewn into the seam of your quilt is option if you think it will be an issue.

For the foot cinch I suggest sewing a channel, probably of your shell fabric, onto the shell itself. Do this before sandwhiching and sewing the insulation/liner/shell together. I put my channel about 2" off the edge of the quilt. I put one cordlock on either side of the channel. With this set up, when you cinch up the foot box, there is that little extra bit of insulation on the end that gets scrunched up inside the quilt. This helps seal it up tighter than just channel on the end of quilt.

I took the same approach on the head end, except I put a grommet/button hole in the middle of the channel for the cord lock to adjust. I also put a 3/4" grosgrain tab on each side of the head end of the quilt, with a plastic snap to connect the tabs. This lets me snap the sides together behind my neck, then adjust the cordlock right in front of my face. this pulls the quilt nicely around my neck. Again, that insulation that is outside of the channel acts as a bit of of a baffel to seal out drafts better. Not as effective as a nice big overstuffed down collar would, but better than a simple channel in my estimation. On my first quilt, I left the ends of the neck channel open, and then tied off the ends to the grosgran tabs. This makes it easy to swap out the cord if I ever wanted too. On subsequent quilts, I have sewed in the cord. Both work fine.

Foot box channel (foot end of the quilt ends about 2" to the right of the channel):
IMAG1835.jpg

Neck Channel with gromet (head end of the quilt ends about 2" to the right of the channel):
IMAG1836.jpg

Hopefully this helps!

[kitsapcowboy]

Kitsapcowboy; I found this link --- http://www.locolibregear.com/gear.ht...egory=17810105 ---

If I understand the image correctly, he uses shock cord (seems to be attached at both ends) with a cordlock in the middle.

Is this correct? And does it cause the top of the quilt to want to hug your neck and shoulders?

If so, this is great...

Affirmative on all counts.

[Flash Grundelore]

RE: that hole on a gathered footbox:
Just stuff two seperate golfball sized chunks of your leftover Climashield in the toe of an old pair of your wife's panty hose. Stitch it closed and tie the footbox drawstring between them. Voiy-lah! a tiny insulated dumbbell to poke through the hole!
Tied off to the drawstring it's always there.

[Fishbite]

I kind of like the dumbbell idea. It would take peoples attention away from noticing some of my topquilt seams are on the outside!

[DanAyo]

DanAyo, sounds like you have a fun project ahead of you!

I agree with Kit; the 1.6 shell will make for a more durable quilt in the long run, but I think it would be over kill as a liner. I assume the HyperD1.0 has a similar feel, so you could go with that as your liner. Personally, I use Argon67 Taffeta for my liners and it is very comfortable.

I use a zipped footbox on my CS Apex quilt, and it has never bothered me in the least. This is also what some vendors use (EE, etc.). A flap of your HyperD sewn into the seam of your quilt is option if you think it will be an issue.

For the foot cinch I suggest sewing a channel, probably of your shell fabric, onto the shell itself. Do this before sandwhiching and sewing the insulation/liner/shell together. I put my channel about 2" off the edge of the quilt. I put one cordlock on either side of the channel. With this set up, when you cinch up the foot box, there is that little extra bit of insulation on the end that gets scrunched up inside the quilt. This helps seal it up tighter than just channel on the end of quilt.

I took the same approach on the head end, except I put a grommet/button hole in the middle of the channel for the cord lock to adjust. I also put a 3/4" grosgrain tab on each side of the head end of the quilt, with a plastic snap to connect the tabs. This lets me snap the sides together behind my neck, then adjust the cordlock right in front of my face. this pulls the quilt nicely around my neck. Again, that insulation that is outside of the channel acts as a bit of of a baffel to seal out drafts better. Not as effective as a nice big overstuffed down collar would, but better than a simple channel in my estimation. On my first quilt, I left the ends of the neck channel open, and then tied off the ends to the grosgran tabs. This makes it easy to swap out the cord if I ever wanted too. On subsequent quilts, I have sewed in the cord. Both work fine.

Foot box channel (foot end of the quilt ends about 2" to the right of the channel):
IMAG1835.jpg

Neck Channel with gromet (head end of the quilt ends about 2" to the right of the channel):
IMAG1836.jpg

Hopefully this helps!

Thanks for the input. I think I'll go with 0.9 oz MEMBRANE 15 poly taffeta - Burnt Orange for the inside and 1.6 oz calendered HyperD - Woodland Camo on the outside.

From what I've read, I think the zipper should not present a problem as far as comfort is concerned.

Thanks...

[DanAyo]

Should I make the outside fabric larger than the inside to account for compression? I'm using Climashield 5.0. I just made an under quilt (Climashield 7.5) and did that.

I've found a lot of DIY information for Under Quilts and not near as much for Top Quilts. If you have any links, please reply. I'd like to take a look at everything I can before starting.