1.2 Robic XL Hybrid is HERE! We Promise.

[Just Bill]

Sewed up my first 20 yards into 5 11' GE.
Didn't need to; spreads, cuts, handles and sews up just as easily as the 1.7 Hybrid.
If nothing else, the Hybrid line should be your first GE sewing project as it's easier than Hex70 even to sew.
Should be able to hang them this weekend and have a few extra bodies handy to get extra opinions.
IMG_4705.jpg

I'm warming up to the foliage and 'in action' they do have that sweet shimmer that I didn't quite see on my first impression of the folded fabric. The coyote in particular takes on a copper like shimmer that is neat in the 1.2.

[ripstopbytheroll]

Sewed up my first 20 yards into 5 11' GE.
Didn't need to; spreads, cuts, handles and sews up just as easily as the 1.7 Hybrid.
If nothing else, the Hybrid line should be your first GE sewing project as it's easier than Hex70 even to sew.
Should be able to hang them this weekend and have a few extra bodies handy to get extra opinions.
IMG_4705.jpg

I'm warming up to the foliage and 'in action' they do have that sweet shimmer that I didn't quite see on my first impression of the folded fabric. The coyote in particular takes on a copper like shimmer that is neat in the 1.2.

ROBIC yarn is what's called a "bright" yarn and that's what gives it the luster. The raised hybrid grid contributes the shimmer as well.

I should point out that "Coyote" and "Coyote Brown" are intentionally different colors. The "Coyote" in the 1.2 like you said is more of a copper color (less brown, more low level orange/red) compared to "Coyote Brown".

Everyone that sees the foliage in person seems to love it. It's essentially charcoal gray with a drop of muted green.

[sqidmark]

My order arrived Sat afternoon. Later that night I had a 132x60 finished size GE in foliage. With 7/64 CL's and 110" zingit RL, it weighs exactly 8oz.

From the drop, I also made a matching bishop sack about 7.25 x 19. It'll be large enough to accomodate an integral bugnet, organizer etc and allow "flowing" into the pack.

When first taken out of the package my wife and I were trying to figure out exactly what color "foliage" was. Definitely gray but....it hints at something else, yeah the touch of green sounds about right.

I was only able to spend one night in it so far, so I don't have a qualified opinion, but if I had to describe the fabric in a single word at this point it would be "springy". And no it's not my suspension. This is the only hammock/fabric that I've experienced this quality. Neither pro nor con to me at this point, just an observation.

For me, both of the robic hybrid fabrics have a unique ability to be firm and supportive yet conform to cradle the lumbar area of my back, which is very important to me. So thanks for these great fabrics Kyle and crew!

Definitely worth a try for those who are on the fence, go ahead and take advantage of the discount.

[QFT]

if I had to describe the fabric in a single word at this point it would be "springy". And no it's not my suspension. This is the only hammock/fabric that I've experienced this quality. Neither pro nor con to me at this point, just an observation.

For me, both of the robic hybrid fabrics have a unique ability to be firm and supportive yet conform to cradle the lumbar area of my back, which is very important to me.

So, it's the "latex mattress" of the hammock world. Cool.

[DuctTapeMessiah]

When first taken out of the package my wife and I were trying to figure out exactly what color "foliage" was. Definitely gray but....it hints at something else, yeah the touch of green sounds about right.

Whatever it is, I like it! Someone on another post said that it looks like charcoal gray and dark olive had a baby. I think that is pretty accurate from what I can see in the pictures.



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[sqidmark]

Sounds about right. We were looking at it only indoors under tungsten/flourescent/led lighting, so I suppose outside it may be easier to tell. We weren't sure if the secondary color was brownish or greenish, or a bit of both. Though it's predominently gray, it's quite unusual. I think that sheen makes it bit more difficult to nail down as well.

[Just Bill]

ROBIC yarn is what's called a "bright" yarn and that's what gives it the luster. The raised hybrid grid contributes the shimmer as well.

I should point out that "Coyote" and "Coyote Brown" are intentionally different colors. The "Coyote" in the 1.2 like you said is more of a copper color (less brown, more low level orange/red) compared to "Coyote Brown".

Everyone that sees the foliage in person seems to love it. It's essentially charcoal gray with a drop of muted green.

The shimmering quality has gotten lots of compliments and adds a lot of visual interest for sure. It's almost a metallic finish look and overall makes it 'move' and avoid that big flat slab of monotone fabric even though that's what it is. I know that yarn is in other fabrics but the hybrid denier really makes the effect pop even compared to Robic 1.0 or HyperD.

As you point it out and I work with it more the coyote is really popping copper and a hit with me.

The color swatch on my browser shows the foliage as more of a sage. It is a very nice color, just not what I expected. No complaints as a standalone color at all. More of my bridge minded desire to have a nice pallete of colors to build double layer combos.

IMG_0268.jpg
I was hoping for something a bit like the wall in the background on the foliage.
As a group... the grey,foliage, and dark olive sorta blend. This is more of a "round 2" thing than a real critique. The 1.7 has a nice blend of lights and darks so an olive yellow or sage green would really round it out for double layer combos on the 1.2 line. To be fair I haven't seen the grey but being charcoal I'm guessing it's fairly dark too?

Foxpoop nailed the foliage color description ..and I'd buy it again.
I was really thinking of a medium sage green with the shimmer making a very nice combo with dark olive and coyote. (And the current foliage too). Olive yellow with any of those too. I've really been liking the bright inner, earth toned outer combos. I do like burnt orange more and more but the spring green of the olive yellow and a medium sage type color would keep the earth tone combos going without getting too washed out or loud.

The glacier blue and foliage is an unexpectedly nice combo too.

So nitpicking mainly on my part as a whole...not on any individual color as they are all nice. The foliage and coyote are both winners on the new colors. Since I assume this will do well just putting in my votes fer round 2!

[Just Bill]

Sounds about right. We were looking at it only indoors under tungsten/flourescent/led lighting, so I suppose outside it may be easier to tell. We weren't sure if the secondary color was brownish or greenish, or a bit of both. Though it's predominently gray, it's quite unusual. I think that sheen makes it bit more difficult to nail down as well.

IMG_0274.jpg

They are not colors easy to nail down, lol.
The foliage takes on like a gunmetal type finish in the light...has that charcoal grey look when it's flat/dull and a light grey look against the light...but there is a green to it in there too which comes out stronger against something else. By itself I first thought they shipped me charcoal grey on accident but you can see it on a second look.

The coyote strikes you as crayola brown when looked at straight on with no shimmer but picks up from there to a new penny level of shiny copper.

But I really like them both against the 1.7 olive yellow as shown but pics don't do it justice.

[HoosierT]

Is it just me or is the foliage just like a graphite gray? I feel like the typical graphite has a green undertone.

[Just Bill]

Just getting back from four days at a lakehouse in WI with no internet but-

I really like the 1.2. By far my favorite of the hundreds of hammocks I've made. I weigh 230 but like a bit more stretch than some might. So I'd say I am outside the ideal weight for comfort by some standards. Of those under 200lbs they all preferred the 1.2 hybrid to the 1.7 hybrid for laying around or lounging.

That said we had roughly 12 people up there- most of them were not outdoor or hammock people and while the luxury bridge was the clear winner, the 11' GE Hybrid 1.2 was a surprising contender.
By the nap monster scale... 5 people lost the battle in the bridge when trying it, and two folks were taken by surprise in the 1.2 GE.
The 1.2 held up to the kid test- my 6 year old and three year old were both able to climb in and out freely, wrestle, and violently test. No issues with casual users climbing in with shoes or grinding sand into the hammock.
We didn't let the dogs in but I wouldn't recommend that for anything but Hex 70 anyway really.

I would echo squidmark's comment about it being slightly bouncy compared to other fabrics- but not in a negative way.

It was nice enough that I abandoned the bridge and chose to sleep in the 1.2 GE and had a great night. I did use a pad as it was way too hot for the GE UQ I brought. I was taken by the nap monster as well in the GE.

I am very excited by the prospect of revisiting my medium and even micro bridge in this fabric as the 1.0 Robic was never quite right and HyperD was too stretchy. Much like the 1.7 Hybrid I expect this 1.2 version to do very well in bridge applications.

More another time on the hybrid weave design but in discussing it with some others I think that the best explanation for why it works so well is:

Think of the heavy denier ripstop grid as a woven hammock. The high denier fibers are the structure and just like a rope hammock they can deform/conform to your body as needed and provide all the support you need. The softer body yarn simply fills in the gaps to provide a solid surface and extra support needed for the main structure.

Kyle is an engineer, I'm a carpenter and occasional writer. His tear strength video is a technical illustration but does little to tell the real story. I appreciate the specs- but I'm more concerned about how it behaves.

The hybrid weave is a truly unique fabric. You have a structural denier yarn several fabric weights above the finished weight of the finished material... so the finished weight of this product is not as relevant to the user. That heavy grid is providing a level of support and structure well beyond the 'facts' of it's engineering. In real life it is behaving very much more like a hybrid of woven yarn and fabric- so you're getting more than meets the eye. As a package the body yarn is just enough to prevent the woven grid from blowing apart.

To an extent you could almost think of this more like a cuben fiber... the ripstop grid is providing the structural integrity and strength much as the dyneema grid is doing in CF. The light denier 'filler' yarn is the same as the film in CF that holds it all in place. The softness of the hyperD yarn is still there as a result...and that's the 20d body yarns. But the ripstop grid is built with 80d yarn- Heavier than even Hex 70 or Hexon 2.4. I am fairly certain this is where the bouncy feeling is coming from as in the 1.2 at least... the heavier ripstop is almost trampoline like in it's support as it's loaded. However this bounce is only noticeable getting in and out- not in use once you settle in. The 1.7 doesn't have that bounce for me but if I was closer to 300 pounds I'm fairly sure I would notice a similar effect.

It's also why the Robic 1.0 felt too taut in my opinion and I did not enjoy it. Going pure Robic yarns of only 20d put the whole fabric at a high tension level, so while it was structurally capable of holding 200lbs or even more... it didn't have enough give remaining in it to conform well or have a nice hand under tension. As a result I found it a bit plastic feeling and tight. Even loaded in the 1.2 with my 230lbs I felt that I could still poke an elbow or hand and have some localized deflection... indicating to me that the fabric as a whole was not structurally at it's limit... indicating to the user who doesn't care- that the fabric can still work for you and deflect/conform to you're curves and shifting point loads generated by each individual body.

So for anyone on the fence- ignore the finished weight. For this unique fabric it is not really a great comparison. (IE- A hybrid 1.2 vs a Robic or other 1.0 is not a good one, nor does 1.7 hybrid compare well to 1.6, 1.9, or even hex 70)

Kyle does a great job of pushing and trying new things... in this case he has a line of fabrics that are truly NEW.
HyperD/Hexon or other Dutch vs. RSBR comparisons... to be blunt you could probably flip a coin. The different diamond oriented ripstop fabrics designed for hammocks are an improvement over plain ripstop for sure... the hybrid is the next level IMO.

It's easy to fanboy for one team or the other, I like using Kyle's fabrics personally. But looking at it objectively I really do feel this Hybrid Weave idea is a truly different material.
Much like I tell folks with my bridges... If you're happy with your current GE... then no need to deal with a bridge.
So if you're happy with your current favorite flavor of fabric for your GE hammock then congrats- go hang in it.
But if you were looking for something more, different, or never quite happy with what you have then I would strongly encourage you to try the Hybrid line.

If you like it a bit soft and squishy but not sloppy ... I think the 1.2 could easily be comfort rated into the 200-250 range.
But those this weekend in the 120-180 range were very happy and preferred it the 1.7 by a large margin so under 200 it's a no brainer on the 1.2 I think.

If you like it very firm- then 175 seems about right for the switch from 1.2 up to 1.7.

For those 200 plus then it might be better to start with the 1.7 hybrid. I can't speak to much higher than 250 as that's beyond the folks I have available to test stuff.

175-225 I think it's a tough call but for those of you who were pushing the 1.0 Robic in that range but weren't quite happy with it or didn't trust it then the 1.2 hybrid is big jump in comfort for a weight penalty under an ounce in even a wide 11' GE.

I can't yet comment on double layers but for those that prefer those I would think a double 1.2 hybrid would be a very nice option.