Help with Ed Speers style hammock

**bjanzen** · 07-09-2014, 15:29

Years ago I read the Ed Speers book and made several hammocks and tarps. I have had two main issues...... Foot falls out and legs/knees hurt.

I made a standard full width gathered and whipped end hammock at the length recommended for my height. I have always had problems with my feet falling out of the foot pocket area during the night. I generally sleep in a quilt with a foot pocket which is slippery on its own but I don't know how to make more holding potential for the foot area.

The other problem has been my legs. I wake up with my knees feeling hyper extended as such and I have been able to fix this by keeping a rolled up jacket or something behind my knees but have to keep up with it when I shift around during the night. I know some suggest sleeping on an angle but I am not sure how that goes or if it would help.

Anyone care to assist me? Thanks

**inspectorguy** · 07-09-2014, 15:59

Originally Posted by bjanzen

Years ago I read the Ed Speers book and made several hammocks and tarps. I have had two main issues...... Foot falls out and legs/knees hurt.

I made a standard full width gathered and whipped end hammock at the length recommended for my height. I have always had problems with my feet falling out of the foot pocket area during the night. I generally sleep in a quilt with a foot pocket which is slippery on its own but I don't know how to make more holding potential for the foot area.

The other problem has been my legs. I wake up with my knees feeling hyper extended as such and I have been able to fix this by keeping a rolled up jacket or something behind my knees but have to keep up with it when I shift around during the night. I know some suggest sleeping on an angle but I am not sure how that goes or if it would help.

Anyone care to assist me? Thanks

Feet falling out.

Do you sleep with the foot end higher than the head end?

You can also add a "knotty" mod [just search] which is shockcord through the side channel to pucker up the side and that helps keep the feet in.

Knees hyperextended.

The ONLY thing I have found that works for me, and by doing this I can sleep in virtually ANY hammock, is to partially inflate an inflatable sleeping pad [the NeoAir Trekker works best for me] and fold it in half to completely support your legs from the lower thigh to the feet. It feels like sleeping in a recliner and I find it very comfortable.

**bjanzen** · 07-09-2014, 18:28

Okay..... Thanks for the suggestions.

I have always just tried to set up the hammock level. When I have tried feet higher it feels like I am falling over backwards. Maybe I have been sleeping feet lower and didn't realize it........ Lol. I do have to grab the head end and slide my head to the end.

I will look into the knotty mod..... Seems easy to do. Actually I am thinking of doing some fresh hangs and basically want to learn how to improve on what I have now.

I guess I am not crazy...... A pad under the knees seems normal now. Thanks for the confirmation that I wasn't doing something completely wrong.

**Rolloff** · 07-09-2014, 20:24

Width as well as length matters a ton. Depending on how tall you are, 10 or 11' long 56 to 60" in width will make all the difference.

Not sure what finished demensions you are currently working with, but Ed tends to run a bit short and narrow for many.

**bjanzen** · 07-09-2014, 20:37

Well....... I am getting my answers. I am happy I finally asked the questions.

I just took a tape to mine. It is 8'2" whip to whip and 58" finished wide. Maybe it's just too small for my 6'2" 200lb frame! Lol

**Rolloff** · 07-09-2014, 20:49

At your're specs I'd go for the 11' length. 58" should be wide enough, but 60" seems to provide a very flat lay. If you're too short it will still lay just as flat, but excess material might be a factor. Either way the Knotty mod will still come in handy, taming any loose material around the head end, and providing a much better foot box on the other.

**stevebo** · 07-10-2014, 05:33

My first hammock was a speer diy model--------I loved the simplicity of the design (brilliant, in a basic sort of way!) But...................at my height, (6'4")I never was able to get rid of the hyper extended knee/calf ridge problem. (and I tried just about everything! Lots of people have an issue with this--its just part of a gathered end hammock--some people are able to work around it, some cant) Whats interesting is, when my son was little, he slept in the speer and loved it. As he grew taller, he started to complain about it hurting his back. I moved on from there to a claytor no net hammock. Better for me, but still not great. Finally I bought a ridge runner bridge hammock--problem solved! Not saying it is the only solution (there are many fine hammocks out there) but it worked well for me! Good luck on your quest !

**hutzelbein** · 07-10-2014, 05:49

OK, here are my observations - but as always, yours might be different.

Feet falling out: even with a very wide hammock (~75") my feet tend to fall out of the hammock, although width helps somewhat. The Knotty mod will help to keep feet and quilt in the hammock. However, my feeling is that it seems to increase curvature somewhat, which will not help with your over-extended knees. I like my WB Blackbird footbox best, and am going to add one to my DIY no-net hammock after my vacation. Just be aware that it will increase the tension on the edge on the footbox-side.

Knee pain: as others said, your knees are probably overextended. Some hammocks are worse than others, but I believe it's also a matter of positioning yourself in the hammock. The more diagonal I go, the more I have problems with my knees. Going more inline helps me, but it can bring on the dreaded calf ridge. Lots of people simply use a pillow under their knees (which incidentally also helps with the calf ridge) to prevent over-extension. I cannot say the width helps. My widest hammock (11' x 75") has more curvature than my more narrow hammocks. I haven't figured out if it is width, though, or something else (like e.g. the whipping). I also found that length isn't all that it's cracked up to be. I think it's a combination of several factors in relation to user dimensions. Which makes it difficult to advise, unfortunately.

For what it's worth: the 10' Warbonnet hammocks have been the most comfortable to me. I get the flattest lay of all hammocks I ever tried, but they have a tendency to develop a calf ridge if not hung correctly (whatever that means for each user). The WB Traveler (which is a no-net hammock) had a very nice lay, but I also had my feet going over the edge constantly. I ended up selling this hammock. But now I'm pondering buying another one, and adding a footbox. This might just be the best no-net hammock for me. Your mileage may vary.

Maybe also have a look at the Ghost hammock.