Any new bridge hammock designs?

[Obiecamper]

Any new bridge hammocks released or soon to be released? Or any hybrid tent hammock combos?

[BillyBob58]

Any new bridge hammocks released or soon to be released? Or any hybrid tent hammock combos?

I believe a new JRB is due any moment.

[Peppy]

Just Bill has a few innovative designs working as well.

[email protected]
https://thisgearsforyou.com/

[Just Bill]

Any new bridge hammocks released or soon to be released? Or any hybrid tent hammock combos?

Just Bill has a few innovative designs working as well.

[email protected]
https://thisgearsforyou.com/

Peppy is about a day away from getting another new design to test, and the recessed bar models I produce are a few years into it but still fairly new.

So question is... what are you looking for?

Personally I find the hybrid tent combos to be more gimmick than useful gear.
If you were to put a truly waterproof floor onto a hammock; you'd have a pretty clammy hammock. You also have weight, cost, and complications without much value.

With a hammock system you already are carrying a pretty generous sized tarp system (by ground standards).
If you happen to also use trekking poles then you don't need trees to pitch that tarp, so half the battle is won.

Shug has a good video or two of how to 'go to ground' and generally speaking I feel that most who elect to use a hammock are doing so specifically to avoid going to ground. They've already chosen to carry a little more weight to enjoy a better nights sleep... so why ask them to carry more to do something they don't really want to do? My general philosophy on outdoors gear is governed by the 80% rule. If you gear works perfectly for the trips you take 80% of the time then it's a good choice. 15% of the time it will be adequate and 5% of the time you may run into a problem... but you'll live. Since you'll likely spend 95% of the time doing what you planned to do, don't overburden yourself 95% of the time just to cover that 5%.

Point being...
One reason I got into bridges is that they work well with pads. Are Underquilts better... 80% of the time yes. But if you know you're going to an area where you may want or need to sleep on the ground then an UQ really sucks. With a bridge you can easily leave the UQ at home for that trip and carry a pad. With the addition of a polycro ground cloth then you can readily go to ground with a fairly comfortable pad. If you use a bottom entry bug net rather than an integrated net... you can easily hang that net under your tarp much like a net tent inner and have a good solid ground setup without disrupting or compromising your primary piece of gear (hammock).

Personally, I prefer an open bridge and a headnet. Coming from a more minimalist backpacking background I'd rather use the 1 ounce headnet I have than add 8-16 of nets and zippers.

Overall, bridges are growing right along with hammocks.
As mentioned, JRB is looking at a refresh with a lighter weight model.
The Ridgerunner remains a good bridge for many, and 'off the shelf' probably fits easily into the go to ground idea without adding crap you don't need. Get a double layer, slip in a pad and hang it. Add a poly cro sheet to your kit and you just need to lay that down and use the RR body if you need a bug bivy... or just sleep under your tarp.

I build 'premium' bridges at the moment to meet the needs of folks who have found no joy elsewhere. Either people too big for other models, folks with injuries, or who simply want more room/comfort. I also build the lightest bridges in the world and some of the lightest you can buy commercially. However most of those premium models run in the $300- $400 range.

I'm working on some simpler bridges to chase both weight and wallet.
Peppy is about to receive an 11 7/8 ounce bridge (poles included) which is a full sized model (as opposed the 10.25 ounce micro which is barely a sleeping pad size).
Were you to use my trekking pole system, you could cut another few ounces out of that system too.
The general long standing argument against a bridge is that it is heavier than a gathered end... while still generally true...
An 11' wide bodied hammock in roughly 1.7 ounce fabric is a decent benchmark to compare to... which comes in at about 12.25 ounces so I'm getting closer and closer to addressing that issue more directly.

On the Wallet side: I made up 10 versions of this model that I hope to get into the $160-$200 range and even the 'heavy' models in this series are roughly 19 ounces.
These models are more in line with my 'medium' size bridges with a bedspace about the size of a large sleeping pad.

Right now (tonight) I'm finishing something similar to these but in a larger size that will fall in between my medium and large bridges. Also lower weights and hopefully lower costs for the customer.

I'm also going to tinker with a recessed version of these designs as a potentially lower cost version of my premium bridges.

So that would put me at four models in production (Happy Medium, Happy Medium UL, Luxury, and Big Guy).
And three models in testing (Just a Bridge, Just a Bigger Bridge, Mountain Hanger).
With about two or three in the pipeline.
I'll also hopefully be working on some integrated net models for some of my southern customers... While the integrated net doesn't work great for my UL philosophy... it does make a lot of sense for those in warmer climates who need the breeze to flow freely underneath and want more coverage than a headnet.

So quite a bit going on with bridges from my perspective.
Plus you have a good dozen or so folks jumping in here who are playing with ideas and tinkering away on the DIY side of things.

[Intimidator]

Peppy is about a day away from getting another new design to test, and the recessed bar models I produce are a few years into it but still fairly new.

So question is... what are you looking for?

Personally I find the hybrid tent combos to be more gimmick than useful gear.
If you were to put a truly waterproof floor onto a hammock; you'd have a pretty clammy hammock. You also have weight, cost, and complications without much value.

With a hammock system you already are carrying a pretty generous sized tarp system (by ground standards).
If you happen to also use trekking poles then you don't need trees to pitch that tarp, so half the battle is won.

Shug has a good video or two of how to 'go to ground' and generally speaking I feel that most who elect to use a hammock are doing so specifically to avoid going to ground. They've already chosen to carry a little more weight to enjoy a better nights sleep... so why ask them to carry more to do something they don't really want to do? My general philosophy on outdoors gear is governed by the 80% rule. If you gear works perfectly for the trips you take 80% of the time then it's a good choice. 15% of the time it will be adequate and 5% of the time you may run into a problem... but you'll live. Since you'll likely spend 95% of the time doing what you planned to do, don't overburden yourself 95% of the time just to cover that 5%.

Point being...
One reason I got into bridges is that they work well with pads. Are Underquilts better... 80% of the time yes. But if you know you're going to an area where you may want or need to sleep on the ground then an UQ really sucks. With a bridge you can easily leave the UQ at home for that trip and carry a pad. With the addition of a polycro ground cloth then you can readily go to ground with a fairly comfortable pad. If you use a bottom entry bug net rather than an integrated net... you can easily hang that net under your tarp much like a net tent inner and have a good solid ground setup without disrupting or compromising your primary piece of gear (hammock).

Personally, I prefer an open bridge and a headnet. Coming from a more minimalist backpacking background I'd rather use the 1 ounce headnet I have than add 8-16 of nets and zippers.

Overall, bridges are growing right along with hammocks.
As mentioned, JRB is looking at a refresh with a lighter weight model.
The Ridgerunner remains a good bridge for many, and 'off the shelf' probably fits easily into the go to ground idea without adding crap you don't need. Get a double layer, slip in a pad and hang it. Add a poly cro sheet to your kit and you just need to lay that down and use the RR body if you need a bug bivy... or just sleep under your tarp.

I build 'premium' bridges at the moment to meet the needs of folks who have found no joy elsewhere. Either people too big for other models, folks with injuries, or who simply want more room/comfort. I also build the lightest bridges in the world and some of the lightest you can buy commercially. However most of those premium models run in the $300- $400 range.

I'm working on some simpler bridges to chase both weight and wallet.
Peppy is about to receive an 11 7/8 ounce bridge (poles included) which is a full sized model (as opposed the 10.25 ounce micro which is barely a sleeping pad size).
Were you to use my trekking pole system, you could cut another few ounces out of that system too.
The general long standing argument against a bridge is that it is heavier than a gathered end... while still generally true...
An 11' wide bodied hammock in roughly 1.7 ounce fabric is a decent benchmark to compare to... which comes in at about 12.25 ounces so I'm getting closer and closer to addressing that issue more directly.

On the Wallet side: I made up 10 versions of this model that I hope to get into the $160-$200 range and even the 'heavy' models in this series are roughly 19 ounces.
These models are more in line with my 'medium' size bridges with a bedspace about the size of a large sleeping pad.

Right now (tonight) I'm finishing something similar to these but in a larger size that will fall in between my medium and large bridges. Also lower weights and hopefully lower costs for the customer.

I'm also going to tinker with a recessed version of these designs as a potentially lower cost version of my premium bridges.

So that would put me at four models in production (Happy Medium, Happy Medium UL, Luxury, and Big Guy).
And three models in testing (Just a Bridge, Just a Bigger Bridge, Mountain Hanger).
With about two or three in the pipeline.
I'll also hopefully be working on some integrated net models for some of my southern customers... While the integrated net doesn't work great for my UL philosophy... it does make a lot of sense for those in warmer climates who need the breeze to flow freely underneath and want more coverage than a headnet.

So quite a bit going on with bridges from my perspective.
Plus you have a good dozen or so folks jumping in here who are playing with ideas and tinkering away on the DIY side of things.

Peppy gets all the good stuff. I was texting him yesterday trying to convince him to send me some

[warbonnetguy]

Bravo! Excellent

[Just Bill]

Right now (tonight) I'm finishing something similar to these but in a larger size that will fall in between my medium and large bridges.

Peppy gets all the good stuff. I was texting him yesterday trying to convince him to send me some

Provided they work as planned; one of those two I'm doing tonight is intended for you. I'll probably sleep in it for a few nights just to make sure there is nothing screwy going on.. but fairly optimistic that they will lay right.
These are the 'Just a Bigger Bridge' model... I picture these working better for those of us around 200 with large/XL shirt sizes and slightly broader shoulders. I can sleep in the medium size just fine, but it just kisses my shoulders on my back, so for an ounce or two more this bigger model may be just right.

That said; 'Just a Bridge' did take a round two to get the center to pop as planned. Though I may have overdone it and round three may occur after these 10 go to testing. I was trying to ensure you could belly sleep and the bridge inverted, but it may be a hair firm now.

We shall see... even if it's not perfect I may send it to you regardless since you already have the poles and otherwise the prototype is another in my long running series of bridges called 'just garbage'.

Besides; I can't even get you guys to lay in your own fabric and Peppy 'cheats'. He's got kids, grandkids, inlaws, churchmembers, and random people off the street that he takes out and hooks up with full setups. So he has snuck into 'Supertester' status as a result, lol. Having so many bodies around and having to sort out who gets what hammock and when Peppy is turning into an expert outfitter in his own right.

[Peppy]

Provided they work as planned; one of those two I'm doing tonight is intended for you. I'll probably sleep in it for a few nights just to make sure there is nothing screwy going on.. but fairly optimistic that they will lay right.
These are the 'Just a Bigger Bridge' model... I picture these working better for those of us around 200 with large/XL shirt sizes and slightly broader shoulders. I can sleep in the medium size just fine, but it just kisses my shoulders on my back, so for an ounce or two more this bigger model may be just right.

That said; 'Just a Bridge' did take a round two to get the center to pop as planned. Though I may have overdone it and round three may occur after these 10 go to testing. I was trying to ensure you could belly sleep and the bridge inverted, but it may be a hair firm now.

We shall see... even if it's not perfect I may send it to you regardless since you already have the poles and otherwise the prototype is another in my long running series of bridges called 'just garbage'.

Besides; I can't even get you guys to lay in your own fabric and Peppy 'cheats'. He's got kids, grandkids, inlaws, churchmembers, and random people off the street that he takes out and hooks up with full setups. So he has snuck into 'Supertester' status as a result, lol. Having so many bodies around and having to sort out who gets what hammock and when Peppy is turning into an expert outfitter in his own right.

Expert? Lol, I wish. I certainly enjoy getting folks out and showing them how comfortable you can be while still out ‘roughing’ it. Nothing like hiking in a few miles to get the weight of the world off your shoulders for a bit. Opens up a whole new world, and any new attitude that includes enjoying the outdoors is fine with me!

[Just Bill]

Bravo! Excellent

Right back at you... having a pretty innovative year yerself there fella.

[Just Bill]

Expert? Lol, I wish. I certainly enjoy getting folks out and showing them how comfortable you can be while still out ‘roughing’ it. Nothing like hiking in a few miles to get the weight of the world off your shoulders for a bit. Opens up a whole new world, and any new attitude that includes enjoying the outdoors is fine with me!

Anyone who gets folks out is an expert in my book. At the end of the day most of us who do this stuff care more about that than anything else... the rest is just details.