HEX rainfly, Sym or Asym with Expedition?

[jdripley]

I have been reading this forum for a couple of days now and I thought the HH was a pretty good buy. What would you recommend if not the HH for around the same price?

I did extensive research prior to making my first hammock purchase, and I too chose the HH Expedition. It seemed an ideal balance of weight, utility and price. You can get cheaper... But not with the bug net and tarp and suspension included. You can get lighter... For triple the cost... Not to mention that hodge podging together a suspension from one company, a hammock from another, and a tarp from somewhere else introduces lots of fiddling that a new hanger may not appreciate

[sidneyhornblower]

I did extensive research prior to making my first hammock purchase, and I too chose the HH Expedition. It seemed an ideal balance of weight, utility and price. You can get cheaper... But not with the bug net and tarp and suspension included. You can get lighter... For triple the cost... Not to mention that hodge podging together a suspension from one company, a hammock from another, and a tarp from somewhere else introduces lots of fiddling that a new hanger may not appreciate

jdripley makes a very good point regarding the well integrated components of the Hennessey system. I've got the Expedition and have changed to whoopies for suspension and added a 2QZQ mod. The hex tarp non asym offers greater coverage than the stock Expedition tarp, but weighs more.

I switch back and forth from trip to trip. If rain is certain I lean towards the increased coverage of the hex. If I had to choose only one tarp from what I already own that hex would be it. If money were no issue, I'd probably get something lighter with similar coverage.

Speaking of which... I think that often the best choice in gear is to do nothing. We chase an elusive perfect solution before we really wring out the possibilities of what we already have. If you have a tarp now, use it a year and then see what presents itself. You'll be much better informed by your own experiences.

[Alpine Dad]

I have owned the HH Expedition Deluxe with the Hex Tarp for three years now and only two days past did I swop out the heavy and bulky rope suspension that Hennessy uses for whoopies*. Doing this also meant I could leave the 4 descending rings behind that I had added to make hanging this hammock easier. I was surprised by how much weight I saved. I also changed out the heavy cord Hennessy uses on their tarp tie-outs for some much lighter 2.2 mm cord I picked up at Mec.ca.

* I think swopping out the suspension may void the Hennessy one-year warranty. Not an issue for me as the warranty has long expired.