Welcome to the forum, Twistytee!
I'd like to offer one alternative approach to your thinking. Forget the hammock!
(I can almost hear the audible gasp from across the forum. Blasphemy! Naysayer! Kick him out!)
What I mean to say is that given that you're a backpacker, and given that you're planning to build from scratch, and given that you're going to piecemeal your purchases, your first priority pricey purchase consideration should not be your hammock. For most hammock backpackers, their most expensive from-scratch purchases (in cost order, more or less) will be Underquilt, Topquilt, Pack, Footwear, and Tarp. The hammock doesn't make the top five for a lot of folks. There are exceptions, of course, but the fact of the matter is that you can get a decent (not great, but decent) hammock from Amazon for next to nothing. Even Dutch sells a hammock/bug net combo for fifty bucks. And the only significant distinctions between most GE hammocks are material and features. (I can't wait to read the backlash on THAT comment!)
My point is that it can be a lot less expensive to buy-and-try hammocks than the other items. I've tried at least a half dozen different hammocks, and though there are definitely differences between them, my comfort level didn't improve nearly as dramatically as it did when I switched from a pad to an underquilt. Here's another way of looking at it: I had trouble really getting comfortable no matter what hammock I tried when I was using my pad. I even debated going back to ground. But with an UQ, I can usually get reasonably comfortable in even my cheapest hammocks. Your mileage may vary, of course, and no two people are the same, but that's been my experience.
I would argue that you should start with an inexpensive 11' GE hammock and make a quality underquilt the focus of your first major expensive purchase. Trust a fellow backpacker when I say that the weight-to-comfort ratio is significantly more relevant with your UQ than with your hammock.
But please don't take my word for it. Mine is just one viewpoint among hundreds. There are several other threads on the forum that discuss what to buy first. HF is unlike any other forum I'm on in that the members are helpful and insightful and welcoming almost without exception. There is a wealth of information here and a few hours spent searching, reading, asking questions, and learning from those with years of experience will almost certainly save you time, pain, and (perhaps most importantly) money.
Welcome to life above the ground. And as Shug says: Enjoy the journey!
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