The ultimate homemade underblanket for less than £12

[Ogri the trog]

Nice project Woodsmoke,
I might just have a bash at one to compliment my Ogripod which is a tad on the bulky side.

ATB

Ogri the trog

 

[Stew]

Sweet! I've thougth about making my own but was worried about making something far too bulky. That looks good!

 

[Galemys]

Good thread!

I use my army poncho as a windbreaker under & around (using the press studs) my hammock in winter. I intend to make an improvement on mine that will reduce some material and weight (and possibly reduce some draft).
As the head- and footend of a hammock are narrower than the middle bit when you are lying in it you can cut an inverted V out of either side and stitching/glueing both sides together. This will leave you with a more banana- or hammock-shaped figure for the underblanket (a sloping V will result in a better curvature).
I hope this makes sense without a schematic picture!

Shaping the poncho like this will reduce the versatility of the poncho though but I never use my poncho as tarp or raingear.

I'll post some pictures when I'm ready

Cheers,

Tom

 

[w00dsmoke]

I like that idea. My intention was to make the ultimate cheap poncho liner/underblanket with the idea that it would be multifunctional as-well as being modular in each role. If in the underblanket role, someone found it a bit too cold, then they could add another layer of pile or other insulation in if they wanted to, or if out and about, it could be spare clothes.

I like your idea of cutting a v out, but then you wouldn't have a poncho and poncho liner, it would be a singular use item. I love my poncho around camp, especially with a liner of some kind. but hey you have given me an idea for another project!

 

[Ogri the trog]

As the head- and footend of a hammock are narrower than the middle ...... cut an inverted V ........
I hope this makes sense without a schematic picture!

Tom

Hey Tom,
Have you tried folding each end of your poncho into three and then securing it to the ends of your hammock. You could even place ties like Woodsmoke at the places where teh poncho folds - so that they align with an eyelet at the corner - so it'll hold as a triple fold. That way you wouldn't loose the functionality of the poncho.

ATB

Ogri the trog

 

[Galemys]

Hey Tom,
Have you tried folding each end of your poncho into three and then securing it to the ends of your hammock. You could even place ties like Woodsmoke at the places where teh poncho folds - so that they align with an eyelet at the corner - so it'll hold as a triple fold. That way you wouldn't loose the functionality of the poncho.

ATB

Ogri the trog

I tried rubber bands, shoe laces...and finally using a drawstring through the eyelets but theres too few of them to make it work. I like your idea though, clever.
I want to try out scooping dry leaf litter into the poncho as insulation material but last weekend (Dutch bushcraft meeting) was just too wet. It´ll probably just sink in one place and not be very effective but I´ll have to test it sometime.

Cheers,

Tom

 

[w00dsmoke]

All you need to do then to fold sides in is to add a couple of more eyelets to the poncho...or sew on a couple of loops to it, problem solved.

 

[tyfy]

Looks a lot more compact than my £5.99 sleeping bag and velcro jobbie.
I'll keep an eye out for one of those blankets, unfortunately we don't have a dunelm 'round these parts.

I was in our local one yesterday and the King Size are £9.99 and available to order online. Not sure what the postage is though.

Richard

 

[Tengu]

This material is very warm; I have a jumper made from it.

 

[moccasintracks]

can you tell me if these are available in the USA?

I live in The south in alabama and we don't have anything like this, but I would like to get a synthetic fleece wool thing for cheap to try the same as you.

Also to maybe line a "great coat" concept I have in mind that will sort of be a heavy version of the Jedi type cloak on the star wars series.

Thanks in advance

Jim

 

[w00dsmoke]

Hey thanks for the comments folks, much appreciated.:You_Rock_

As for a wee tip...I sewed elastic loops onto my hammock all along the edges, and I use very thin elastic shock cord on the end of the poncho to tie it onto the hammock, it seems to work.

As for availability in the states, er I don't know, try searching for what we call a "mattress topper", it seems crazy getting one and sending it to you as I'm sure they will be available over there somewhere. If you are really stuck and really can't find them, pm me and I'll try n help you out.

w00dsmoke

 

[Sisyphus]

This is a cool idea. I have the DD travel hammock and have been wondering wether I should buy a thermarest or an underblanket.

Could I forgo both and just stick one of those matress toppers in the base layer of the hammock? Or perhaps even install it (semi)permanently using double sided tape? I guess it probably wouldnt fit in the stuff-sack anymore but I'd probably be better off keeping it in a drybag anyway...

There is the added advantage that the stuff is probably bloody good tinder aswell

 

[Chaffinch]

Me too. i have just bought the same hammock. tried it out last week on the west highland way. Great night sleep but my back got a bit chilly. I thought the snugpak option at DD was a bit expensive at £60+ so this is brilliant. i even managed to talk the wife into making me one!!!

 

[lamper]

Guys,

After seeing this I thought I would give one of these a try -

It basically a tarp on one side and space blanket on the other.

As I wanted something to sit on as well I hoping this will solve both problems.

I'll post and let you know....

 

[Neumo]

I have seen those tarp/spcae blanket things in a Ron Hood DVD and they look like a great idea. They are supposed to be good under bivvy bags or as something to sit on, as you dont loose so much heat to the ground

 

[w00dsmoke]

Guys,

After seeing this I thought I would give one of these a try -

It basically a tarp on one side and space blanket on the other.

As I wanted something to sit on as well I hoping this will solve both problems.

I'll post and let you know....

As an underblanket you'll get problems with not enough insulation aswell as condensation when using a spaceblanket like this as an underblanket. Hence my use of the poncho with the hood to allow ventilation underneath and the pile mattress topper gives you a barrier between the outer poncho and the hammock so if there is a little condensation then you won't feel it and get damp.

 

[BushEd]

This is a brilliant idea that im gonna try my hand at. Wondering though in terms of cutting that V into the thing to make it more hammock suited; is it fine to just sew through the poncho with a machine? Or would this mess it up in strange ways?