Tape

[tommy the cat]

Well just got round to sorting my group buy hammock out and spotted some 20mm black tape in Homebase 15m for £5.99 no weight rating on it apart from 'not suitable for lifting...'
any thoughts on suitability? Im not very heavy bout 70k 101/2 stone.
Ta Dave

 

[Eric_Methven]

It's more than adequate. It's what i use (and many others on here).

Eric

 

[tommy the cat]

What about the price? Thought it was a damn site cheaper than climbing tape! What about stretch?
Ta Dave

 

[Eric_Methven]

What about the price? Thought it was a damn site cheaper than climbing tape! What about stretch?
Ta Dave

The price is reasonable, certainly cheaper than climbing tape. It only streches a little. I sort the stretch issue out by soaking the tape in cold water at home, fixing one end to a hook on the wall, clothes pole or whatever and hang the other end over the other clothes pole and hanging a bucket of rocks from it. That will stretch it to it's max. Allow it to air dry then take it down and it's ready to use. It won't stretch under load again.

Eric

 

[tommy the cat]

Thanks for that I will go buy some and use your method for stretching. Finally Eric what knot do you use? I was wandering if tape works the same as rope or do you have to apply different knots?
Many thanks for your time d

 

[Eric_Methven]

I use two different knots. One round the tree is the method used by RM. I don't know it's name, but it's a quick release knot where you hold the tape in one hand, wrap the standing part round your hand, flip the resulting loop over the other part and pull it through the loop. Then I daisy chain it a few times for security. That way it just comes free with a good tug, but won't release accidently. At the hammock ring end I use a quick release slip knot for fine adjustment so I can get the tension and level of the hammock right.

Eric

 

[mace242]

Evenk overhand I'm pretty sure is what he calls it. Now I feel like a RM groupie....

 

[decorum]

Have a look at this site - http://www-users.cs.york.ac.uk/~mjf/bushcraft/shelter.html

 

[pibbleb]

Thanks for the heads up on the tape!

As an alternative to the RM knots, Pablo has done a YouTube tutorial on how he sets up a hammock.

There is a thread on here with the link but I can't find it. But basically, from memory, he effectively ties a bow at shoulder height at one end and the same again at chest height at the other end.

I've not tried this method myself yet but I believe that it's worked for him for a long while and it seems a bit more straight forward than some of those knots.

Pib

 

[tommy the cat]

Thanks seen Pablo's knot but seems worryingly simple! Hey it works for him...its just this tape is a bit different.
Yea the tape in Homebase is 79p m or if you look to the right of it a coil for £5.99 15m and as I believe 10m is ideal it give me a bit extra.
As mentiones 20mm in black or red.
DAve