Canoe Shaped Pad/Pullouts with a pad or underquilt

**Mule** · 03-25-2008, 16:47

Sorry for the long winded question, I would just like to have your opinions of using pullouts
Explanation: I have a couple of under quilts that I paid an arm and a leg for and really feel they are worth it, but I do miss the extra roominess that a pad and pullouts give you in a hammock. I searched the forum for the pad/underquilt debate, and of course just noticed it is personal choice that makes on shine over another.
But here I have made a pad that takes the shape of a canoe and holds my Claytor to a width of nearly 3 1/2 feet. When I put this pad along with another rectangular army pad beneath that I got almost 4 1/2 feet wide in my DIY 5 1/2 foot wide hammock.
The hammock has three layers, all DWR and allows me to shift the pads with ease while in the hammock. The slickness of the DWR allows for this, yet the pads stay in place when I just relax on them.
One of the pictures is of that hammock with only an underquilt and pullouts and sporting the upper weather cover. Though is seems to work just fine, especially using the SSF, I don't think it will be as warm as the pads because of the flatness of the hammock with the pullouts will allow air to more easily get between the quilt and the hammock.
Another of the pictures show only the pads in my Claytor with a weather cover over everything
Part of me would like to quit using the underquilts for the safety and reliability of CCF.
Your comments will be appreciated.
Mule

**warbonnetguy** · 03-25-2008, 18:05

cool pad, does it still buckle on the sides? looks like it might not, i have played around with cutting ccf a little, you can definately make them more comfortable by doing it. i have an 1/8" pad that i sewed ripstop to both sides of, i use it under my legs for a torso uq and it is much easier to adjust and more comfortable than when it was bare. i guess if it's double (or triple) it wouldn't matter. anyway, i like the canoe pad, but, it is still a pad, my biggest problem with them has always been bulk, a rolled pad is just enormous.

one thing to consider is, if you need more security as far as the uq goes, you could always carry a larger tarp or even a closeable tarp.

**Rat** · 03-25-2008, 18:10

Since I use pads now my response may not surprise anyone. However...

I don't use pullouts. One, the roominess factor (or lack thereof) doesn't bother me at all. I climb in, I go to sleep, simple enough. Two, I like to swing and pullouts dampen the swing, not cool.

Of course I like pads for the simplicity as well; throw pad in, flop into hammock go to sleep, easy enough.

The sublime comfort of qults isn't lost on me, I loved my quilts, I just love the simplicity of pads more. All else being equal I think you could get the quilts to seal up nicely to your hammock and be just as warm as the pads; plenty of Hennessey users do it all the time.

So I say cut the pullouts, loose the quilts and use the pads. Of course it really is a personal preference thing...

**Mule** · 03-25-2008, 18:40

One thing I lose sight of sometimes is just how trivial my one or two day trips are. I love them and appreciate them very much, but I tend to look at my gear sometimes as if I am going to have to depend on it for weeks on end. With the 1 to four day trips I take, I could take about anything and be fine.
I like the room the pads make because it gives me a place to read in my hammock especially when the weather is bad, turn on my side and lean my head against my hand and read a while, then move around and read some more.
Thanks for your opinions. Looks like I am going to do it a little different every time, and that's cool too. Mule