Cost to go UL

[jdeering]

This a rabbit hole if ever there was one..

I have hammocks that range from 9oz (Half Wit Clone in Robic 1.2) to nearly 30oz (DL DH Raven with bug net).

Tarps that are 7oz on the low end and over 20oz on the upper end.

Quilts that range from 12oz to mid 20's.

'It's just lighter on the ground' is like saying red cars are faster.

“Red cars are faster”

No, it’s just reality. Show me your lightest hammock set up and I will show you a lighter ground set up. Hammocks require load bearing materials, and more of them.

Polycryo ground cloth - 1.6oz
1/8” torso length CSF pad 3oz
Cuben poncho tarp 4.2oz

Total: 8.8oz

With that said, I almost feel like I proved my initial point of UL hammock setups not being more expensive, wrong. Since hammocks are inherently heavier than ground camping, you can get equally light ground gear (silnylon materials) for less $. I stand corrected!





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[SilvrSurfr]

Tent vs. hammock - to me it is like comparing sleeping on the floor versus sleeping on a bed. Of course, sleeping on the floor is painful, but it sure is lighter than sleeping on a bed!

[cmoulder]

IMHO it isn't apples-to-apples to compare a SUL (with the S in this case standing for something other than "super" ) ultra-minimalist kit that virtually nobody is going to use, with either ground or hammock setups that could reasonably be used in the long term for multi-day, section or thru.

My lightest ground setup that is acceptably comfortable and weather/bug resistant:

Z Hex solo with guys/stakes: 9.64oz
Klymit inertia Xlite (barely acceptable!): 6.22oz ..........(far better is old style, cut-down 25" width Neoair 47": 10.41 oz)
DIY (made by my friend Jimmy Bishop) Z Splash bivy clone: 6.46oz

So that's 22.32oz... or 26.51oz for something I could actually sleep on every night... although at this point I'd have to re-train myself.

My lightest current hammock setup:

Half wit hammock with Kevlar straps: 12.31oz
HG Hex with guylines/stakes: 6.85oz
EE Revolt UQ w/plastic S-biners: 10.67

....which is 29.83 oz, or 3.32oz more than my "UL-est" (comfortable) ground setup.

Anyway, this is where I'm coming from when I say the difference is ounces... literally 94 grams.

[MikekiM]

My point is... It's apples and oranges.

Not a pissing contest I care to participate in.

HYOH


Sent from somewhere east of Montauk...

[Trecker8]

It's not an either/or. Hammocks are good sometimes, and tents are better other times. Neither one is "better" than the the other. Let's all just enjoy getting out there in God's great outdoors under the stars, and stop the gear fetish.

[Forbin]

My hammock set up is not the lightest available but it’s pretty close to the same weight as my BA copper spur UL1. And a hell of a lot more comfortable.

Add up everything, including quilts and tarp vs tent and pad and it’s about the same price too.

[Forbin]

Well done, they are NOT mutually exclusive.... you can have a UL setup with a hammock, it’s just lighter on the ground.


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That’s a nice looking kit.

It’s also worth over $1000. Which is cool, I’m kinda jealous but to get that light you have pay.

[cmoulder]

That’s a nice looking kit.

It’s also worth over $1000. Which is cool, I’m kinda jealous but to get that light you have pay.

Pretty cheap compared to many hobbies.

One of my relatives said something similar. Although he's okay with paying $16,000 for a UTV to go hunting, he balks at $275 for a tarp.

[Forbin]

Ain’t that the truth. Hammocks and backpacking gear is nothing compared to some of my buddies hobbies...dirt bikes, snowmobiles,mountain bikes etc...

[cmoulder]

It's not an either/or. Hammocks are good sometimes, and tents are better other times. Neither one is "better" than the the other. Let's all just enjoy getting out there in God's great outdoors under the stars, and stop the gear fetish.

The nice thing about HF is that you don't have to participate in discussions (many of which involve gear!) if they don't interest you.

I see topics all the time that I'm not interested in so I simply bypass them. But that's me.