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·YouTLDR

How to Splice an Adjustable Ridgeline for Hammock Suspension

20:341,070 summary words · ~5 min readEnglishBy Hanging High HammocksTranscribed Jul 17, 2026
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Summary

You can build a lightweight, adjustable hammock ridgeline from two Amsteel pieces (40-inch and 140-inch) using lock brummels and buried splices instead of knots or whoopie slings.

A proper splice preserves Amsteel's working load and shaves pack weight versus doubled suspension systems, directly affecting hammock safety and comfort on the trail.

Section summaries

0:04-1:04

Intro and Ridgeline Overview

watch

Trevor opens by introducing Hanging High Hammocks and states the video will splice adjustable ridgelines spanning 30 to 133 inches using lock brummels on each hammock end. He describes the two-piece build: a 40-inch Lark's head side with berry and a 140-inch adjustable side, noting it can replace whoopie slings because it avoids doubling material and is lighter. He closes the intro telling viewers to stay for the splice.

  • Adjustable ridgeline length range is 30 to 133 inches.
  • Two-piece design uses 40-inch and 140-inch Amsteel sections.
  • System is lighter than whoopie slings by not doubling rope.

Sets the goal and explains why the build is useful.

1:07-2:10

Tools and Setup

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Before splicing, Trevor lists the DIY kit tools: a hobby knife, latch hook with closing latch for pulling Amsteel back through itself, and a 5.5mm knitting needle used as a fid. He says expensive fids are optional and the knitting needle has worked for years. A cutting mat with measurements and a ruler complete the setup, after which he moves to splicing.

  • Latch hook and knitting needle replace costly fids.
  • Cutting mat with ruler measures Amsteel accurately.
  • DIY kit supplies the three core tools needed.

Defines the exact tools required to follow along.

2:12-4:43

Cut and Taper 40-inch Piece

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He measures a 40-inch Amsteel piece, marks it, and cuts. To taper, he marks half an inch, opens the rope with the knitting needle into four and four strands, then cuts four strands off each side for a clean taper. Trevor explains the taper lets the end bury without an abrupt edge that could cause early failure and reduce working load. The section ends with both ends tapered and ready for a lock brummel.

  • Half-inch taper with 4-strand removal prevents internal edge failure.
  • Thumbnail indentations mark measurements during work.
  • Tapered end feeds and buries easier inside the rope.

Shows the foundational tapering step used on every end.

4:43-8:38

First Lock Brummel and Burial

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At the 10-inch and 4-inch marks he opens four/four strands, uses the latch hook to pull the tapered end through the 10-inch hole then the 4-inch hole, forming a lock brummel. He buries the tail one and a half to two inches past the exit, twisting the hook to separate strands without fraying a single strand, then milks the rope so Amsteel hides inside. This completes the larger loop end of the short piece.

  • Lock brummel formed by crossing 4-inch and 10-inch openings.
  • Twist latch hook to avoid fraying single strands on burial.
  • Milking the splice hides the tapered end completely.

Core splice technique repeated throughout the build.

8:38-11:45

Small Loop Lock Brummel

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On the opposite end of the 40-inch piece he marks 4 and 6 inches, opens four/four strands, and makes a smaller lock brummel whose loop ends about half to three-quarters inch. He buries it into the long part, measuring one and a half to two inches past, but shows a mistake where the latch hook went too far and he restarted. The first part of the ridgeline is then finished.

  • Smaller loop uses 4-inch and 6-inch marks instead of 10.
  • Over-pushing the latch hook requires restarting the bury.
  • Finished short piece has one large and one small loop.

Completes the short component and shows a real error to avoid.

11:53-15:22

140-inch Piece and Splice Prep

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Trevor measures and cuts a 140-inch Amsteel, tapers both ends identically to the first piece, and builds a single lock brummel at its 4 and 10 inch marks before burying the end. He sets this long piece aside, then returns to the first 40-inch piece to join them. The section establishes the two separate finished components ready for connection.

  • Long piece follows same taper and brummel as short piece.
  • Single lock brummel on 140-inch end is complete before joining.
  • Join happens at the larger brummel of the 40-inch part.

Produces the second half and transitions to assembly.

15:23-19:18

Join Parts and Create Tail

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He marks 7.5 and 10 inches from the larger brummel to form the berry, feeds the long piece through it keeping entry and exit on the same side, loops the free long end through the small loop twice, then through the berry. A 2.5-inch tail is folded and buried back into itself so it cannot pull through, using the latch hook to the bend and melting the berry. This locks the adjustment and stops dangling.

  • Berry section at 7.5 to 10 inches enables adjustment.
  • Double loop through small end secures the sliding connection.
  • 2.5-inch folded tail blocks reverse pull-through.

Final assembly step that makes the ridgeline functional.

19:18-20:29

Demo and Sign-off

optional

Trevor pulls the joined line to show the adjustment sliding and says one end goes to each hammock side while the berry gives length change. He demonstrates shortening the ridgeline, then asks viewers to comment, subscribe, like, and follow on Facebook, Instagram, and newsletter at hanginghighhammocks.com for discounts and new videos before closing.

  • Adjustment is made at the berry by sliding the long piece.
  • Each spliced end attaches to opposite hammock sides.
  • Channel and site links offered for updates and discounts.

Shows result but is mostly calls to action.

Key points

  • Two-piece adjustable ridgeline design — The ridgeline uses a 40-inch Lark's head section with a lock brummel and a 140-inch adjustable piece, joined so length can span 30 to 133 inches for a consistent hang.
  • Lock brummel is the core splice — A lock brummel is a spliced loop made by feeding a tapered Amsteel end through a 4-inch and 10-inch opening using a latch hook, locking the rope into itself without hardware.
  • Tapering prevents early failure — Ends are split into four-plus-four strands and half an inch of one side is cut away so the rope buries cleanly instead of leaving an abrupt edge inside.
  • Burial depth controls strength — Each splice end is buried one and a half to two inches past its exit point, and the final tail is two and a half inches folded back into itself to block pull-through.
it's going to use less material and therefore be a little more lightweight Trevor
leaving this edge like that inside of it can cause it to fail early Trevor

AI-generated from the transcript. May contain errors.

0:04

hey guys trevor here with hanging high

0:05

hammocks and today we are splicing

0:08

adjustable ridge lines uh these ridge

0:11

lines can

0:12

span anywhere from 133

0:15

down to 30 30 inches in length um

0:19

the way these work they have a lock

0:21

rumble on either end

0:23

uh so you'll have two lock brews that go

0:25

on each end of your hammock

0:27

and then this will go in between those

0:29

ends and gives you a consistent hang

0:32

every hang

0:33

this is a two-piece uh

0:36

part it has a 40 inch

0:40

lark's head on one side with the berry

0:42

and then the long adjustable part which

0:45

is going to be 140 inches in length

0:49

this can also be used as a replacement

0:52

for whoopi slings

0:53

because you're not doubling the sling

0:56

over or the the ridgeline over

0:58

it's going to use less material and

1:00

therefore be a little more lightweight

1:04

so stay tuned and we will get splicing

1:07

so before we begin splicing uh you will

1:09

need some tools if you order our diy kit

1:12

it will come with these three tools here

1:15

it comes with a hobby knife yours will

1:17

look a little different than ours you it

1:19

will come with a latch hook

1:21

and a knitting needle

1:24

you can use other materials these are

1:26

just what i find to be the easiest to

1:28

splice with um the latch hook here if

1:31

you can see has a latch on one end or

1:35

behind the hook and then the hook there

1:37

that's what allows you to splice and

1:39

pull the am steel back through itself

1:41

and then a 5.5 millimeter knitting

1:44

needle um you can buy more expensive

1:47

fids

1:48

but i find this works well and i've been

1:50

using this for several years now with no

1:53

issues

1:54

you also will need a cutting mat or

1:56

cutting board of some sort and then you

1:58

also need a way to measure the am steel

2:00

on where you're splicing a ruler or if

2:03

you do have a cutting mat with

2:05

measurements already on it you are all

2:07

set

2:08

um so once you have that out of the way

2:10

we will begin splicing

2:12

okay so to begin your adjustable ridge

2:15

line or utility constrictor rope you

2:17

will need to start with a 40 inch piece

2:19

of amp steel

2:20

so i'm going to do 220s because i do not

2:23

have

2:24

40 inches on this measuring board here

2:31

so once you get that

2:33

40 inches you will mark it at 40.

2:36

cut a 40 inch

2:38

piece of amp steel

2:41

and then we will taper

2:43

the ends

2:45

tapering the ends of the amsteel

2:47

allow you to

2:49

feed it back through itself to splice it

2:51

easier uh to bury it into itself and it

2:54

does not leave a abrupt edge inside of

2:57

the am steel after it has been sliced

3:00

leaving this edge like that inside of it

3:02

can cause it to fail early

3:05

and it you won't get the most working

3:07

load out of the am steel itself uh so to

3:10

taper these in what we're gonna do we'll

3:12

start with one

3:14

you're gonna measure uh half an inch

3:18

like so mark it half an inch

3:21

uh as you notice i do use my thumbnail

3:23

um to call to create an indentation um

3:26

in the am seal

3:28

that's what i use to market while i'm

3:30

working but for video purposes i'm going

3:33

to be using the marker today

3:35

so once you have your half an inch mark

3:38

you will open this up here

3:40

insert your knitting needle

3:43

and then pull down with this hand while

3:45

pushing up with this hand to cause it to

3:47

separate

3:48

and what you want is four strands on

3:50

this side and four strands on this side

3:53

we'll go ahead and repeat the process

3:59

so mark

4:00

half an inch

4:03

open it up

4:09

four strands four strands pull apart

4:13

next what we'll do is

4:16

cut off one side

4:19

so i just take the blade

4:21

push it in and then down

4:24

and that way you have a clean cut of

4:26

four strands there and then four strands

4:29

left on

4:31

again

4:33

cut four off leave four on

4:36

like so

4:39

and now we will do a locked brummel on

4:43

this end um so to do a lock bremmel we

4:45

will need to measure

4:47

four inches

4:49

we'll mark it at four

4:53

and then we will mark it at ten inches

4:56

as you notice i'm using i'm starting at

4:58

10 and going to 20 just because it's

5:00

more in the camera shot it's easier for

5:02

you to see

5:04

so again four inches

5:07

10 inches

5:09

and then we will

5:11

open it up

5:13

so at the 10 inch mark

5:15

it doesn't you can do the 10 inch or 4

5:17

inch first it doesn't matter but just

5:19

make sure that you have four strands

5:20

here

5:21

and then four strands there

5:23

if you do that one go ahead and do the

5:25

next one

5:29

look at it you got four

5:31

and four um these another easy way is

5:34

you'll have two strands going this

5:36

direction and then you'll have two

5:37

strands running that direction on either

5:40

side just an easier way to count

5:43

um if you do have five

5:45

on one side and three on the other it's

5:46

fairly easy to tell there's three and

5:49

there's five so just wanna make sure you

5:51

got an even number

5:54

so remove that from your fidd or

5:56

knitting needle

5:58

and we are creating a lock brummel so at

6:01

the 10 inch mark here we're going to

6:02

insert our latch hook

6:05

so the farther the farther hole from the

6:07

end insert your latch hook

6:11

grab the

6:12

end the tapered end there insert it into

6:15

the hook

6:16

where you cut the four strands off

6:19

slide this up

6:20

to the latch so it closes over the hook

6:24

and then pull the end through

6:26

kind of pinch your two fingers right

6:27

here

6:28

wiggle it and it'll slide right through

6:31

you want your four inch hole to come

6:33

through the ten inch hole

6:35

and then repeat the process insert your

6:37

latch hook

6:39

now grab the far end

6:43

insert that into your latch hook

6:45

slide this up to close your latch

6:48

and pull it through

6:52

so you'll have this

6:54

and now pull

6:56

all the way until it locks in on itself

6:59

like so

7:03

now what you want to do we're burying

7:05

this

7:06

end into

7:07

the long end

7:09

so measure

7:10

approximately where it's going to end

7:12

and then go an inch and a half to two

7:14

inches past

7:16

open it up

7:17

insert your latch hook

7:20

feed it through all the way

7:23

until you get heat up to here and you

7:25

want your latch hook as close as

7:27

possible to here without going all the

7:30

way through

7:31

so

7:32

get up there

7:34

twist your latch hook so it separates

7:37

the strands because you do not want your

7:39

latch hook to

7:40

separate the single strand and cause the

7:43

fibers to fray

7:45

so you want to

7:46

again

7:47

twist your latch hook

7:48

as you're pushing the head through of

7:50

the hook and it'll it will separate the

7:53

strands by itself

7:54

and then come out cleanly

7:56

take your tapered end

7:58

hook it into the hook like so

8:01

push this up to close your latch

8:05

and then

8:07

work it through

8:08

you can use this hand here

8:10

to help feed as you pull

8:14

now

8:15

once you have it through you'll grab

8:17

this end and then pull and the uh loop

8:21

here will move this direction showing

8:22

that it's it's tight right in the the

8:25

brummel so pull

8:27

it's tight

8:28

and now milk

8:29

this part here so pinch here

8:32

and then pull

8:35

and your amp still is now hidden

8:38

so now what we're doing on the opposite

8:40

end is a lock bremmel but it's going to

8:43

be a little bit smaller um so

8:45

what we're what we'll do is at

8:48

0 or 10 in my case um you will mark have

8:52

a mark at 4 inches

8:54

mark at four and then another mark

8:57

at six

8:59

so so you can see it

9:01

market four

9:05

market

9:06

six and you are set so

9:10

open this up

9:13

again four strands on one side four

9:15

strands on the other

9:17

open this one up here as well

9:22

four and four

9:24

all looks good

9:26

and this is as big as your loop will be

9:28

on this end and then so we'll just go

9:30

ahead and create a lock promo

9:35

so through the six inch hole

9:38

just insert your latch hook

9:40

grab the tapered end

9:45

hook it on

9:46

close your latch

9:47

feed it through

9:49

bring your forehand or your four inch

9:51

hole through the six inch hole

9:53

open it back up

9:55

insert your latch hook

9:57

and then grab the lock brew that you

9:59

just completed

10:01

and you have to feed it through this the

10:04

four inch hole so what you want to do is

10:06

pinch here

10:08

and then with this finger push up on the

10:11

latch hook as you pull down

10:14

so it locks locks into the hook as well

10:17

or as good as possible um slide this up

10:20

to close your latch hook

10:21

or your latch over your hook and then

10:24

work the lock brummel through you want a

10:27

twisting motion this hand and then a

10:29

pull on this

10:31

and it'll just slide right through

10:39

all right

10:40

and then work this up so you'll have a

10:42

small loop there

10:46

that's all you need uh it's probably

10:47

it's going to be

10:49

about three quarters of an inch to half

10:51

an inch uh loop there

10:52

and then you will

10:54

bury this into the long part

10:58

so we will

11:00

measure it inch and a half two inches

11:02

past

11:04

open it up

11:08

and i went too far

11:12

let me

11:13

start over

11:15

so what i just did is i pushed the latch

11:17

hook too far through

11:19

um so i just had to start over

11:25

feed it through get as close to here as

11:27

possible

11:30

a twisting motion to separate the

11:32

strands and push it through

11:35

and then just bury this

11:39

into itself

11:43

pull that

11:45

and there you have completed the first

11:48

part of the adjustable ridge on

11:53

next we will need a 140 inch piece of

11:57

amp steel

11:59

so just give me one second and i'm gonna

12:00

go ahead and get that measured

12:14

all right

12:15

so now once you have your

12:17

140 inches measured

12:20

you will just

12:22

cut it

12:23

or if you already have it pre

12:25

pre-cut pieces

12:27

we will just go ahead and start the

12:29

tapering

12:34

so it's going to be the same as we just

12:36

did on the other side

12:41

put a mark at half an inch

12:45

there

12:46

mark it half an inch

12:49

and separate four strands

12:53

open

12:55

and pull

13:00

insert open

13:02

pull

13:04

and then cut cut four strands off on

13:07

this side

13:09

four strands off on this side

13:14

and now we are ready to create our

13:17

locked brummel

13:20

so for this one where it's the same

13:22

process at

13:24

zero

13:26

from go four inches

13:32

to 10 inches

13:36

and mark

13:37

like so

13:39

open it up with your fid

13:43

again you want four strands on one side

13:46

four strands on the other

13:48

looks good

13:53

four and four

13:55

yep

13:57

like so and we will create the locked

13:59

rumble

14:02

your ten inch hole

14:03

insert your latch hook

14:05

pull your tapered end through

14:08

pull your four inch hole

14:10

through your ten inch hole there open it

14:12

back up and then

14:14

you have to go to the far side

14:17

and pull the far side through

14:26

pull that through there

14:28

feed it all the way

14:34

like so

14:36

tighten it down on itself

14:38

and then bury this end so go

14:41

inch and a half two inches open it up

14:54

get as close as possible twist the head

14:58

so it separates the strands and comes

15:00

out clean

15:04

and then feed it through

15:08

like so

15:09

pull

15:10

and not the berry

15:13

so that is completed there

15:15

now you have

15:17

completed this for now

15:19

so you'll set this off to the side and

15:21

you'll come back to the first piece that

15:22

you created this is where we are

15:23

splicing the two

15:25

separate pieces together

15:27

so on the larger locked brumble

15:30

what you want to do

15:33

is go

15:35

seven and a half inches from the end

15:37

ensure that it is seven and a half

15:39

inches mark it

15:43

and then go 10 inches from that

15:46

so

15:47

17 and a half

15:49

in my case it's 27 and a half

15:59

this right here is going to be the berry

16:01

um that makes this adjustable um you

16:04

will feed the long piece that we just

16:06

created the single lock rumble on

16:08

through here so what you want to do

16:10

is take your latch hook

16:12

from the end with the larger loop the

16:14

larger lock bremo

16:18

insert the latch hook here

16:21

feed it through

16:22

if this happens

16:24

just slide it back through

16:26

and then start over

16:33

now what you want to make sure or just

16:35

try to make sure is that you go in here

16:38

everything is straight and that you come

16:40

out

16:41

on the same side um it just it's a

16:44

cleaner splice

16:45

um versus having it this come out on

16:48

this side so you're feeding it in here

16:50

and it's coming out on the other side

16:51

you're feeding it on the top it's coming

16:53

out on the top

16:54

so from there

16:55

you can leave that right now

16:58

on your long piece here the end that you

17:01

have not done anything with

17:04

you'll want to make sure that is

17:06

straight and feed it through

17:09

the small loop

17:12

once

17:15

and then come back

17:16

and then feed it through twice

17:19

like so

17:21

so it's it's looped around that

17:24

and i'll show you what to do with that

17:25

in a second now you will take it

17:30

and then just feed it through

17:33

your bearing

17:37

like so

17:40

and now what we're going to do is create

17:42

a tail

17:44

um

17:45

on this so you cannot pull it back

17:46

through so this tail is gonna be two and

17:48

a half inches

17:50

so from zero

17:52

two and a half

17:53

mark it

17:57

now what we'll be doing is

17:59

you fold fold it in half here

18:04

and then you're going to bury this

18:07

inside you're going to bury this end

18:08

inside of this end here

18:10

to create a tail

18:13

so go about two inches past

18:16

open it up

18:19

insert your latch hook

18:21

all the way to the bend you want to come

18:23

out as close to that mark as possible

18:28

like so

18:30

and now

18:32

insert it into your hook

18:34

close the latch

18:36

and work it down through

18:39

just watch this once this

18:41

feeds back into itself

18:45

you want to stop there and then just

18:47

pull the tail through

18:49

what i do is once the tail starts to

18:50

expose itself i push

18:53

the latch hook this direction

18:56

pinch at the top so i'm not pulling

18:58

anymore back through and then just pull

19:00

the tail out like so

19:02

then you can grab there

19:05

make sure that your taper your cut

19:08

is at the end that way you don't have a

19:11

bunch up in there

19:13

pull that out and then just melt the

19:15

bearing

19:16

now you've created a tail

19:18

which will not pull back through here

19:21

now back to where you created the loop

19:23

all you want to do

19:25

is

19:26

what you just fed through grab it there

19:28

grab it on and then pull

19:30

and then

19:32

that just slides and then keeps this

19:35

from dangling down in your face

19:37

so this will go to one end of your

19:39

hammock

19:40

this would go to the other end of your

19:42

hammock the far side

19:43

and then this is where you get your

19:45

adjustment from

19:49

make a little bit shorter and see if i

19:50

can

19:51

show you what i'm talking about

19:58

like so

19:59

hammock hammock

20:01

and your adjustable ridge on

20:04

thanks for watching if you have any

20:05

questions please drop them below uh if

20:08

you like this and want to uh see when we

20:11

have more videos come out be sure to

20:12

subscribe if you found it helpful drop

20:15

us a like and you can follow us on

20:17

facebook instagram and you can subscribe

20:20

to our newsletter at our website

20:22

hanginghighhammocks.com

20:24

uh that way you can stay up to date on

20:25

discounts and when we do release new

20:28

videos

20:29

and until next time get hanging

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