Ray's Easy-Hammock 2.0

No one should be without a Hammock! This is why I came up with a simple, easy knot that you can use to make your own hammock cheap and easy.

I call it the No-Sew or the Easy-Hammock because you don't even need to sew one stitch.

You may already have all you need at home. So you can make your own Easy-Hammock with almost no money at all.

Note: After experimenting for a while, I came up with this sheet bend variation using a loop of rope. I came up with this knot on my own, but I probably didn't invent anything. Every time I come up with something I later find out that someone else had already thought about it. If you have proof that anyone else invented this particular way to make an easy and cheap hammock, please let me know so I can give him credit here. Click here to see my Knots Tutorial.

Always use good quality Climbing Rope and equipment for any application that will hold a person's weight. -- BE CAREFUL and USE COMMON SENSE.

But on the other hand -- Common Sense ain't so common, so I'm sure some people will always find a way to get hurt...

List of Materials:

1. Any size Flat Bed-Sheet. The bigger the better. You have some at home already that you can take if your mother or your wife doesn't catch you.

2. Rope. -- Has to be strong enough to support the weight. Becayuse of technical reasons, the load on the ropes (and the anchors) is multiplied exponentially so you should use Rock Climbing Rope.

3. Study the following video: ( Note: Right-Click on the image and select "Save-As" to run the video from your Hard Drive)

DISCLAIMER:

The instructions for the Easy-Hammock given here are for educational purposes only.

No warranty is expressed nor implied.

I will not be held responsible for you messing up and falling on your butt. You can make your own hammock at your own risk.

Use commons sense.

Follow these links to learn more about Hammock Camping:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/hammockcamping/

Ed Speer's Hammock Camping Page -- http://www.hammockcamping.com/

Risk's UltraLight Hiking -- http://www.imrisk.com/

Just Jeff's Hiking Page -- http://www.tothewoods.net/JeffsHikingPage.html

The Place With No Name -- http://www.theplacewithnoname.com/hiking/sections/gear/shelter/hknot.htm

Knots Tutorial

These knots may look complicated at first but they are shown here in a logical order of difficulty and usefulness.

I recommend that you learn them in this order so that each knot will help you learn the next one on the list.

Note: Right-Click on the image and select "Save-As" to run the video from your Hard Drive.

	Double Overhand Knot - We will use this knot over and over. It's great as a stopper and a backup knot. You will see me use this knot as a backup on almost every knot here.
	Double Fisherman's Bend - (A Bend is a knot that joins two ropes together). This is the preferred knot because it will not untie itself. It'll actually hold tighter as you pull on it and it does not weaken the ropes as much as other knots. This is the perfect knot to form the loop at the end of a hammock.
	Double Fisherman's Loop - This is a great way to attach a rope to your hammock. The idea here is to use only one piece of rope on each side of your hammock. You use a loop to attach the rope to the hammock and the other end of the rope to tie it to the tree, tree-hugger webbing, or whatever.
	Albright Bend (Variation) - This is a Fisherman's knot that I've adapted to use for hanging a Hammock from it's tie-in loop and it's the best knot I've found for this purpose. It is used by fishermen to join two fishing lines of different thickness. The original knot uses many more loops than this one, but two or three loops are enough for our purposes. Use this to attach a rope to a hammock that has an existing hang loop.
	Girth Hitch - This is a very useful knot. Although I always use the Clove Hitch instead of this one. I show it here for educational purposes. This know will not hold without the backup knot shown here. (See the Clove Hitch below. Note: I use a metal pestle for this one so I can flip it around and show you the back side of the knot.
	Clove Hitch - This is one very useful knot. It has unlimited uses once you learn to tie it and learn to trust it. I promise that if you learn to tie this knot well, you will find many, many uses for it and you'll love it as much as I do.
	Clove Hitch on a Carabiner - You can use a Carabiner to connect the rope on your hammock to a webbing or rope.
	Quick Clove Hitch - Here's a quick way to make a Clove Hitch. You can only use it if you can slip it over a pole or clip a Carabiner to it. You'll see why when you look at the video. It may take you a few tries to get it right, but it pays off because in the end you'll know a quick and easy way to use a Clove Hitch in a second.
	Quick Hitch on a Carabiner - This is the right way to tie a Clove Hitch on a Carabiner. I showed you the long way before to prepare you for this one. Note: I let you see me fumbling a bit with knot so you can see how to fix it if it happens to you.
	Bowline - I don't really use this knot too much. I'd rather use the Double Fisherman's Loop above. -- It's a very popular knot so I could not leave it out.
	Bowline Backup - You can back up a Bow Line to make it even safer. You can do it with an Overhand Knot like in this video or with a Double Overhand Knot shown above.
	Slip Bowline - The problem with the bowline is that it can tighten up pretty bad. You can save your fingers by tying a Slip Bowline instead. Just pull to release the knot.
	Double Bowline - The Double Bowline is said to have the same strength as a Figure Eight, but it's easier to untie after loaded.
	Double Bowline (Variation) - Add one more step to the knot to make it even more secure and easier to tie. I always use this one instead of a Figure Eight.
	Hammock-Hanging Knots - This is my favorite way to hang a hammock, because it makes it so easy to adjust your hanging height. The whipping around the tree will not slip if tied corerctly. WARNING: Make sure you tie the SECOND HALF HITCH or the knot may SLIP and come loose. As with all knots, use your own discression and be safe.