Carabiners

[Chubbs]

I'm looking to buy a couple of carabiners for my hammock setup and I need a bit of help.

So that they don't buckle and snap under my weight, what size kilonewtons should I be looking for.

Cheers Neil

[ian c]

I would say any climbing grade screw gate carabiners.

[Tigger004]

Make a couple of soft shackles, just as good for hammocks and ultra light weight (Much cheaper too), I weigh 18 & 1/2 stone and they work great for me, if you're not sure google them (you can buy them but it's nice to make your own) a youtube instructional video exists,
hope this helps, Jeff

[Ehecatl]

, I weigh 18 & 1/2 stone and....

I apologise now if I've ever been rude to you :war-is-not-the-answ

[Silverback]

any climbing rated krabs will suffice i use bog standard oval/HMS screwgates with a closed gate strength of >20 Kn, Im circa 17 stone 4


should be able to see one in the pic below

6730

[paulthefish2009]

I'm just 12 stone :off-topic: Paul

[Scott]

These are the ones I use very lightweight http://www.needlesports.com/Catalogue/Rock-Climbing-Equipment/Karabiners/Standard-Karabiners/Needle-Sports-Prowire-Krab-DMM-PW#.UQIyt5PySI8

[suggy]

If you can get to a Decathalon sports store, these work out cheap, just take them to bits to get two load bearing carabiners. (postage £3.99 if you need one posting)
6737

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/rocky-quickdraw-id_8058344.html

Or there's DD hammocks' carabiners

http://www.ddhammocks.com/product/hammockkarabiners

:)

[Chubbs]

Thanks for the help guys, plenty of options to look at.

[jus_young]

The DD ones have put up with my kids using the hammocks as swings with no problems at all. The weight your talking about should be no problem at all. Screwgates will be overkill.

[Silverback]

The DD ones have put up with my kids using the hammocks as swings with no problems at all. The weight your talking about should be no problem at all. Screwgates will be overkill.

I use screw gates because I used to be able to get them for nothing at the end of their main use;)

[jus_young]

I use screw gates because I used to be able to get them for nothing at the end of their main use;)

Recycling at its best, never turn down a freebie like that.

[Silverback]

Recycling at its best, never turn down a freebie like that.

Im a yorkshireman......!!! NUFF SAID !!! Thats why I use dyneema slings as tree huggers too

[jus_young]

Im a yorkshireman......!!! NUFF SAID !!! Thats why I use dyneema slings as tree huggers too

;)

[Luke]

In relation to diverting water wicking down the webbing into the hammock, would the soft shackle defeat the purpose? Seems like it would also wick the water straight across the gap.

If not I'm in luck cause I have some am steel that I could make some with. Rather than buying new krabs!

[jus_young]

Use an aluminium or stainless steel ring between the webbing and the soft shackle. This then acts as the drip point. You could use a 'biner, it would do the same job.

[rawfish111]

The DD ones have put up with my kids using the hammocks as swings with no problems at all. The weight your talking about should be no problem at all. Screwgates will be overkill.

Spot on but I got some screwgates anyhow as they can then be used for other stuff if needed.

[Bob W]

Adrian did an update of his whoopie sling review, he's dispensed with the carabiners and says he's had no problems with water ingress into the hammock.

I'll be ordering a DD soon and wasn't going to bother with rings or carabiners. Just wondering if he's still happy without the carabs'??

[AdrianRose]

Adrian did an update of his whoopie sling review, he's dispensed with the carabiners and says he's had no problems with water ingress into the hammock.

I'll be ordering a DD soon and wasn't going to bother with rings or carabiners. Just wondering if he's still happy without the carabs'??

Hi Bob

Yep still happy with no carabiners in my set up mate.

If you put the rig into context, you have a marlin spike hitch which will act as a "break point" for the water to be diverted, you've also got the tail end of the tree hugger to wick away any water too.

Even if the rain gets past those two, the tensioning part of the whoopie sling that hangs down also provides a soak away for rain water before it gets anywhere near the hammock.

Hope this helps.

Ade.

[Bob W]

Hi Bob

Yep still happy with no carabiners in my set up mate.

If you put the rig into context, you have a marlin spike hitch which will act as a "break point" for the water to be diverted, you've also got the tail end of the tree hugger to wick away any water too.

Even if the rain gets past those two, the tensioning part of the whoopie sling that hangs down also provides a soak away for rain water before it gets anywhere near the hammock.

Hope this helps.

Ade.

Cheers Ade. A couple less things to order means a bit more in the hip flask :o

[FishyFolk]

Use an aluminium or stainless steel ring between the webbing and the soft shackle. This then acts as the drip point. You could use a 'biner, it would do the same job.

But what would be the point of using soft shackles if you end up having to use a steel ring or carabiners anyway to stop the water?

[Kernowek Scouser]

Just to be awkward :p

I don't currently use biners, storm rings, whoopee slings or tree huggers in my set up, just the webbing that came with the hammock.

This is not because I am some kind of hardcore hammock minimalist, just a consequence of winning my hammock and not having the spare cash at the time to compliment my prize with a shiny suspension system. I'm sure if I were to try various additional suspension options, I would be enthusing about them to anyone who would listen, but as hanging a hammock is not exactly rocket science and after a little practice can be put up in the less time than it takes to boil a kettle, I've not felt any great need alter my set up, so far.

As far as avoiding the ingress of water goes, my solution was also arrived at back when my wallet was suffering from anorexia. Knot some paracord around the webbing strands, a couple of inches in from the tarp edge and give each knot a thumb lengths tail. Repeat on your ridge line, right at the tarp edge, if your ridge line is not taut and you are feeling too lazy to deal with the sag. The knots divert water where ever the tail is pointing.

May sound daft, but it works.

Anyway, good luck, whatever you end up doing Neil.

Oh and for the record, 16 stone.
It is not just a case of what you have got, but also how much weight you can put behind it :D

[jus_young]

But what would be the point of using soft shackles if you end up having to use a steel ring or carabiners anyway to stop the water?

To be honest, I can't see the point :D

I would only really use a soft shackle as a means of bunching up the end of the hammock, threaded through the sewn channel on the end. Then I would have the metal ring on this with the structural ridgeline and whoopie sling attached. I know the free end of the whoopie would redirect water, and I have now made some toggles to use the marlin spike hitch method which I have not done before, all of which should stop water coming down where not wanted. I suppose it was just the method I came up with early on my experiments and stuck with it.

But now its got me thinking...

[FishyFolk]

Those soft shackles are a bot thin. I am not scared that the shackles wont hold. But worried they may rip trough the hammock material if threaded trough that sewn channel. The original webbing is a lot wider in comparison. So I chopped most of it off today, leaving just a ring of webbing to gather the hammoch, and a steel ring attached to that, to connect to the carabinier, then onto the whoopie slings, and then via a marlin spike and togle on the tree hugger.

Wow that sounds complicated but it's all attahced already. So I just hang up the tree huggers on the marlin spike knot, and then connect it to the ring. And that side is done.

[Tigger004]

I use amsteel whoopie slings straight to the hammock attachment knot and despite amsteel being waterproof and therefore non wicking, in heavy rain it will find it's way down to the end of my hammock by dribbling down,
a small non waterproof string tied round and left dangling seems to prevent this though,

Give it a try, it's fun keep experimenting and makes us all unique, have fun Jeff