I'm new to hammocks, and as a knot enthusiast, I looked forward to combining a new hobby with an existing one. Most of my previous knot tying and splicing came from sailing years ago, before the modern Spectra type line became common.

I've enjoyed learning about Amsteel, Zing-It, and Dynaglide, and have, thanks to the great tutorials from Opie and others, made my own whoopies, continuous loops, etc. I've also bought some of Dutch's great hardware. This stuff is amazing--no surprise that it's so popular--and it is fun to splice.

But deep down, I'm still a knot guy. I'm wondering what rope other hammock + knot enthusiasts use. I'll probably stick with spliced Amsteel 7/64" for hammock suspension, but I'd like to try some other options for my tarp guylines, tie-outs, and ridgeline. I've used Zing-It with slipped buntlines, water bowlines, and other knots relatively suited to slippery line. But the stuff is just too small for me to enjoy working, especially in the cold when my fingers stiffen up. So I'm looking for something that's got a larger diameter, that's fairly easy to work, and that holds knots well. I know I'll pay a significant weight penalty, and the stretch characteristics may not be as good, but that's ok. I can always go back to Zing-It if I'm doing an extended trip where weight/bulk become more important.

Any suggestions?