The magic of 7/64" amsteel...

[Phantom Grappler]

This reminds me of someone who was on Hammock Forums and he made a series of YouTube clips on ultralight hammocks and ultralight backpacking gear.
If I’m not mistaken, his trail name was Ssg Rock.
Somehow Ssg Rock had a dispute with either Hammock Forums, or various members, and or YouTube.
Ssg Rock quit Hammock Forums and also deleted all his YouTube videos!

Ssg Rock made some incredibly light hammock suspensions as well as ultralight hammocks.
I think he had some suspensions made with Zingit either 1.75 or 2.2

Ssg Rock had been an infantryman. His military days for over 20 years involved long marches with packs weighing 50 to 100 pounds!

After he retired from military, Ssg Rock opted for the lightest backpack known to hammock campers!

In his videos, he would show a hammock that he had made. And his suspension looked more like a spider web than rope!
Ssg Rock would carefully ease himself into his hammock. It’s lowest point was maybe three inches above ground when he stretched out in his latest creation.
He would say:
“You’re gonna die”

Some of our old timers might remember Ssg Rock and his amazing videos.
It’s good to experiment with gear, and push the envelope to discover new ways, improving gear incrementally.
You know I’m overly cautious with some of my suspensions having 1/8 inch amsteel! But I never begrudge anyone for making an effort to lighten their pack or make any improvements in their camping equipment.

[joe_guilbeau]

Ssg Rock would carefully ease himself into his hammock. It’s lowest point was maybe three inches above ground when he stretched out in his latest creation.
He would say: “You’re gonna die”.

Sgt. Rock would hang from silk spiderwebs... IMG03.JPG

A Tribute: http://hikinghq.net/sul.html

[joe_guilbeau]

@MrCrumbles:

I have a pair of 4-foot long Dutchware Kevlar 2-inch straps that I will be happy to donate to your quest for Ultralight hanging, hey are 17-grams each. yours for the asking.

UV Rays will degrade significantly if used extensively in the Southwest. Here in Texas, we have had over 54-days of temps over 100-degrees (and counting) and basically no clouds in sight.

[slugbait]

SGT Rock is also the fellow who camped in his hammock during the tail end of a hurricane.

[TominMN]

By fraying the surface you increase gripping surface and thus friction, that is the whole idea. Friction surface is probably a better term. Compare to common practice in painting, work over a coat of paint with abrasive paper, the surface for the next coat of paint to hold on to/grip is now multiplied by the power of a gazillion.

...

I 'd like to see the scientific test results of that.

Here's the deal: you have a desire to save a few bucks by using a acquiring some cordage that will fill the role of "one size fits all." Go for it. I happen to think it is an instance of false economy and, I believe many will agree with me.

It may well work for you. Great. It's just that it hasn't for quite a few folks.

[cmc4free]

I feel the same. HYOH and enjoy the process of putting together your system, regardless of what you decide that is. Don't expect things to fall into place and click immediately, but I know for me the enjoyment of the learning process matches the steepness of the curve.

Now, to make an apples to oranges comparison, if I could save money by purchasing just one material to make both my hammock and tarp, I would instead opt to pay a little bit more to have each item made of the material best suited for those rather different purposes. Likewise, hammock suspension and tarp suspension are two different applications, so it's unlikely any one material will be the best fit for both purposes. Any number of cordage types could be used for both purposes, but one or the other (if not both) is likely to be a compromise in this case.

Another option (don't know if already mentioned) is to skip spliceable cordage for your hammock. You could buy the cordage you think will suit you for your tarp, and then use lightweight tree straps that are long enough to connect to your hammock with the becket hitch.

[rodentface]

I get my 100ft roll for 20$ and make virtually all the lines needed. Cheaper and consistent over all kinds of lines, I see no drawback, right?

Why not save $5 and get the 1.3mm for $15?



Sent from my moto g 5G - 2023 using Tapatalk

[LowTech]

SGT Rock is also the fellow who camped in his hammock during the tail end of a hurricane.

Hell he's got nothing on us. My lady and I hammock camped in the Florida panhandle when a hurricane cut through from the gulf to the Atlantic 4 or 5 years ago while we were on a kayaking trip.
Some times the motion of the trees made it feel like the hammock was going to fling you into the air like a sling. Not much sleeping happened that night.

"Sent w/o me knowing"

[cmoulder]

I remember that hurricane, Michael...

With some friends at Dolly Sods (WV) and we got 50mph gusts in the pressure gradient as it exited. Thought my tarp was a goner for a while there. I can't even imagine what it was like directly in the path.

[peeeeetey]

Come to a winter hang at Grayson SP on a good wind year. 60 mph and cold. That will rattle a tarp or at least give it a good test!