View Full Version : hammock skins
I'm getting ready to make some skins for my new homemade hammock. Do you make them big enough so that you can use them with your sleeping bag inside for around camp use or just big enough for the hammock only?
For the hammock only they would only need to be a few inches in diameter?
I'm getting ready to make some skins for my new homemade hammock. Do you make them big enough so that you can use them with your sleeping bag inside for around camp use or just big enough for the hammock only?
For the hammock only they would only need to be a few inches in diameter?
The choice is yours. I have two sets. One is big enough to fit my hammock and underquilt in and the other is just for my hammock.
The problem I think you will run into if you try and do it with a sleeping bag is trying to keep the sleeping bag stretched out when you are trying to roll the hammock up and pull the skins over it. The other issue is that it would have to be a fairly good compressible bag.
Just Jeff
06-04-2006, 14:28
I use a small set made of mesh for my tarp and a large set for my hammock+underquilt. Like attroll said, the choice is yours.
I have been thinking of trying the skins although haven't gotten any yet. How hard are they to make? Do they take up a bunch of extra room? I find it pretty easy to just put my hammock in the stuff sack...would the hammock last longer if put in the skins?
Just Jeff
06-07-2006, 11:34
Doesn't take up much room, but it's much easier to set up b/c you can lay it on the ground between the trees to get the spacing right - it's waterproof so nothing gets wet. And you can leave the underquilt attached and pack it all up together so there's not need to connect and disconnect when packing and unpacking.
titanium_hiker
06-15-2006, 00:42
Skins make hammock set up and take down a breeze- the hammock always seemed to get knotted up and confused when I took it down and tried to roll it up and stuff it into something. The skins are so easy to sew as well- a straight seam and a little cone at the end, or sew diagonally. See Jeff's site- he's got a good howto for skins.
titanium_hiker
Just Jeff
06-15-2006, 01:59
I'd check the one at www.jacksrbetter.com (http://www.jacksrbetter.com) instead of mine. Mine creates a little bit of buncing at the end, which was fine with the mesh b/c it stretches, and that design saved me a bit of material. But for regular skins, I'd use JRB's design. I think I'm gonna make my next set quite a bit wider, though.
I made the skins and they turned out nice. I'm assuming that since I tied on a ridge line that it makes more sense to leave it outside of the skins since it helps me to establish the correct sag on set-up?
Just Jeff
06-16-2006, 03:48
If you're using a ridgeline, the hammock should set up correctly regardless.
It is easier to stuff the hammock/underquilt in the skins if you leave the ridgeline outside the skins, though. But that means you have another cord to hassle with when you're packing.