Small body MOD

[Just Bill]

I looked a bit, but other than Asym's ala hennesey I couldn't find anything on this and before I give it a go I thought I'd ask.
short body idea.png

What happens when you sew this shape into a 4'x9' gathered end channel hammock?
The small extensions are 6" to zero, and opposing as shown. The channel would simply be sewn and strung as normal. You would be committed to laying to one side, but that seems to be a very minor concern/non-issue.

The thought is that in the 4x9 small body hammock that this little extra would allow a little more room in the slight diagonal lay I have found comfy in these. I am thinking with the extra fabric added asymmetrically that the slack would bottom out the head and foot sides of the hammock a bit and give you a flatter lay for the least fabric. In theory, the extra fabric should end up where needed. An inverse of the knotty style technique used on bigger bodied hammocks where too much fabric is the issue. My thought is that this does more for you than a mini-spreader or sewn on footbox would- with the benefit of using less fabric and not having to add weight or stress to UL fabrics in the 1oz/yd range.

This could even be combined with the "slip in webbing" trick to help spread the gather a bit as well that I noted in the MSB thread.

So before I stich up something useless or previously attempted- any thoughts?

[WV]

There are some very comfortable hammocks that use a similar parallelogram. I don't know if it will make a 9' hammock comfortable for tall people, but it might. I think I once made a similar (but longer) hammock and was surprised to find that it was more comfortable if I lay on the short diagonal instead of the longer one. But that was some time ago, and I may not be remembering correctly. Try it. Why not make it 10' long, test it, then shorten it by a foot for comparison?

[ShooTa]

and i came in here looking for a diet plan.

[bringerofgame]

and i came in here looking for a diet plan.

Diet plan is 15 miles a day while eating trail food 😋. Puts your body AND spirit to the proverbial grinder, trimming any excess it can find. Rinse and repeat as necessary.

[Jayson]

Interesting idea. Keep us updated.

[hutzelbein]

If I'm not mistaken, you're suggesting a "parallelogram hammock". There was a pretty long thread on the topic that might be of interest to you.

Personally, I have tried the parallelogram idea but didn't really notice a difference to a rectangular hammock. My guess is, that other factors like length-to-width ratio as well as the angle (the steeper, the more noticeable) might be a factor. I used a very wide piece of fabric (~75"), which might have been a major reason for me not feeling anything (since I only use a fraction of the width when lying in the hammock).

BTW, afaik Hennessy Hammocks are called "assym" because the bug net is cut assymetrical. The hammock body is a normal rectangle. Have a look at the pictures wilsonbmw took of his disassembled Hennessy, then you understand what I'm talking about.

There are some very comfortable hammocks that use a similar parallelogram.

Commercially available hammocks? Which ones?

[TZBrown]

If I'm not mistaken, you're suggesting a "parallelogram hammock". Commercially available hammocks? Which ones?

The Switchback hammocks from Tree to Tree Trail Gear are cut that way I believe.

[Just Bill]

Okay- so I read the referenced thread, and then the thread referenced there, and then another thread. Then got back to TZ's thread and read that again and thought I had it sorted out but then the parallelogram turned into a trapezoid somehow at the end and Xtrekker's version final version was never shared and some gooey grey substance leaked out of my ear. So after that cranial malfunction I think I have some thoughtful follow up-

Parallelogram is much more accurate- so what is an asym cut exactly if there is a clear thread on that? I see the bug net photo and it mystifies me a bit as I ended up looking at Tom's patent a bit and it seemed like the body achieved this shape somehow.

TZ's design- the footbox adds a complication, it seems as if this design mainly does two things-
Accounts (adjusts) for the loss of side length in the body due to the footbox? This would support the trapezoid idea and leave you with a squarish shape with a foot area depression if I understand correctly?
How the drawing of a parallelogram (even a slightly less than parallel one) turns into a trapezoid remains a mystery or is accomplished via some whipping magic?

It seems that efforts thus far were to simulate a longer body hammock in a short package- basically taking that 5x10 and trimming out some "waste". If that is correct it's an idea I applaud, but not what I was going for.

My goal was to use a 4'x9' body and use the material to simulate a little WIDTH, or basically create a little extra depression in the shoulder and foot area across the ridge to achieve a flatter lay in the narrow body. I'm good with the 9' length, I am trying to achieve a little flatter lay on a shallow angle relative to the ridgeline. When I cram my thermarest in there it achieves this goal, looking to ditch the thermarest but get the same benefit.

In reading the other thread an idea was mentioned but not pursued that is closer to the original shape I thought might work-
short body idea 2.png

This shows two possible cuts, each with 6" of material on the side, but spread out on different arcs. The only issue with this is getting the sewn channel to work properly- hence the various curves to spread/flatten that curve- which leads to the simplest version- a parallelogram in my first post.

A question/observation that others seemed to be trying to make or show- In whipping the end, don't you simply flatten out or whip out this shape as some were suggesting? However what I didn't see or missed was sticking with a sewn channel ONLY to preserve the cut shape.

Some other observations-
I want to stick with a sewn channel- for my goal's construction is easy and little fabric is wasted.
It seems to me that the sewn channel spreads the load most effectively/evenly, especially in the UL fabrics I am using.
Happy to hear though if I am incorrect on that.

It seemed that the added side length was fairly dramatic, did anyone else try more subtle additions like the 6" I am proposing?
Not knowing much about gathered/folded design is this simply the opposite of some folds I have seen where the ends are pulled past, or even left with a flap? Is what I am proposing simply a sewn version of some magic fold that my newbie goggles prevent me from seeing?

In checking diagonals on the 6" extension I end up with 10'9" and 9'10"- a pretty good difference even in that small adjustment. When weighted, my thought is that the arc lengths will even out as suggested in the other thread, basically it would still lay like a rectangle. Unlike a rectangle though the added fabric should bottom out on each side asymmetrically since the side is longer at opposing ends compared to the rectangle weighted. Basically a bit like some of the asymmetrically staked out hammocks some use? A deformed rectangle?

Pictures are worth a thousand words though-
Here's a rough sketch of my hammock with my pad- two angles(views)
Then a rough sketch (using some questionable sketch-up magic) showing the shape softened into a hammock (mostly)
Some is a bit of Sketch up magic- but somewhere in there is the right shape I think.

[WV]

Bill,
You're right - the term "trapezoid" was thrown onto the forum a while back, used incorrectly I think.
Your sketchup art is wonderful. Looks just like a real hammock - i.e. I can't tell what shape it is.
David

[Just Bill]

Bill,
You're right - the term "trapezoid" was thrown onto the forum a while back, used incorrectly I think.
Your sketchup art is wonderful. Looks just like a real hammock - i.e. I can't tell what shape it is.
David

I wouldn't have thought so when I first started playing with hammocks, but in many ways the bridge is a simple compared to all the mysterious things a hunk of fabric can do when strung up and laid upon.