A case for narrow hammocks

[SGT Rock]

I did not go thru this whole thread. But from the first video I can tell the theory is terribly flawed. This is why science requires further proof to substantiate results. Of course if your butt stays in the same spot and you only move your feet, you will find this observation to be true. The constant being where your butt is. Thinking only of physics, unless in a bridge hammock, you are always going to be in a bowl. In this case a loose fitting bowl. Because this bowl is affixed by 2 points you will always have the bell curve from center to edge. You will also always have about the same point of high and low from center to edge regardless of the material length because the fixed points have not changed.

The wider hammock allow you to offset the fixed points resulting in a flatter approach. This is something you are unable to do in a narrow hammock because it would result in hanging your feet off, or head. This is why you require the added material for the tq. Now I am not saying there are not diminished results. I am also not saying that anything someone finds to be comfortable is wrong. I don't care if you are using a 8" wide hammock if you like it. I am just saying that butt position, head end lower, wider hammock, longer hammock, rl length (I am sure other variables) all provide more options for finding a flatter angle. I have made hundreds of hammocks and in doing so tested many. I am not even saying all this provides any proof I am correct. I just think the original theory is flawed for these reasons. Because individual comfort, material used, height, weight, body dimensions like distance from butt to heal or butt to head, all this doesn't mean narrow gets it done. I know mad777 is just pointing out his observations and I am sure many agree, but I wonder how many of those who find a narrow hammock comfortable, haven't utilized all variables.

Like I said I have made many for many people. As long as you are using them I don't care, the more the better. Hammocks make the woods a better place. or your home or wherever you hang one. I just feel if your going to try and show a theory about narrow or wide, you need more variables and observations to solidify the theory.

I apologize if some of this was covered. I also don't understand why it would matter summer or winter. I also would think folding a hammock, adding the additional layer would make it hotter. I personally would think the opposite for summer and winter. If you add a pea pod to the mix you would be narrower in the winter and in this case not need the extra material.

I don't know about the theory in general. But I know for me narrow hammocks, or rather narrow compared to what is apparently considered "normal", is more about efficiency.

Let me define what I mean. When a hiker cuts off extra lengths of his shoulder straps because they are too long and chances that he will suddenly grow 2' is pretty slim, it is for weight efficiency and because those straps are probably more annoying than is necessary when donning or doffing the pack. Using a pot sized for one person instead of a 2 liter pot is space efficient and weight efficient. Cutting off the handle of your tooth brush may be slightly weight efficient but may have more to do with getting all your hygiene items in the small bag you chose for it. Carrying a roll of TP without the tube is not much in the way of weight efficient, but can greatly reduce the bulk and make it space efficient for backpacking.

So in the case of hammocks. If I were making hammocks and didn't want to make every one of them extremely customized but hit the greatest band of possible users and had the largest possible sweet spot in order to let even novice hammockers get instant satisfaction, then it only makes good sense for the efficiency of business and construction to make larger hammock bodies. But in my case I only make hammocks for one person. I know what positions I like to sleep in and know what insulation I plan to use, and I want to eliminate carrying extra bulk and weight whenever possible. I make my hammocks that meet the specs I need and eliminate as much excess as possible. Does making them smaller make them more comfortable, probably not. But making them no bigger than I need satisfies me.

That said, there are ways to work with a smaller hammock body to make them more comfortable. As has been stated about changing ridge line length, material stretch, or adding foot box side options can help those that want to go smaller on the hammock body avoid losing the comfort of a larger hammock.

[BillyBob58]

Good to know about the narrow hammock. Thanks. Just for my own curiosity, how tall are you guys? I'm reading that the taller people like the longer hammocks for comfort. If you are tall then that could explain the need for a tighter, less sag hang. Does that make sense? In my mind that makes for a flatter lay, but you're cocooned in that hammock, I'm guessing.

I am a smidgeon over 6"1", with a weight up and down from 205-220 during my 9 years as a hanger. I repeat that my widest and longest(by far) hammock, the No Net safari, is probably my most over all comfy non-bridge(I have been saying this for years) hammock. However, like i said earlier, it is only (very)marginally more comfy than my much shorter and more narrow Claytor and TTTG SB. I could not tell you why. I am sure my wider hammocks allow me to get more diagonal. But the only reason I might desire to get more diagonal is to avoid either knee extension or waist twist/torque when side sleeping especially with legs straight. With the Claytor or SB, at whatever amount of diagonal they allow me(not all that much I guess) I have little to no knee extension or waist twist while side sleeping even with legs fully extended. Both are also just fine with fetal. No surprise there, since other hammocks I have are just fine in fetal, but are not so good on my side with legs straight or for my knees flat on my back unless I add a pillow under my knees. IOW, side with legs straight- or knee comfort flat on my back- are the usual big challenge for me. I can do fetal OK in most of my hammocks.

So, regardless of size, if these hammocks are great in those ways, then that pretty much covers it. What else is there to consider, even if I don't know why these smaller hammocks are that comfy? Now true, my gargantuan Safari is even more comfy(very slightly), but weighs more, packs larger and has fewer insulation options. For one thing, I have often been a PeaPod user, and I infinitely prefer either the Claytor or Switchback with a pod. In recent years, insulation has always ended up being the determining factor for what I choose to take on a multi-day wilderness hike. I have mostly chosen the Claytor(SB is fairly new for me) used with a pod, with some wonderful results. If not that, I choose my JRB bridge hammocks with a JRB MW UQ. And sometimes( way less often though I am not sure why) I choose my HH UL Explorer because I want to use my HHSS for old times sake.

You might wonder about shoulder squeeze with narrow hammocks. Seems like that would be a problem. But it is not for me, and I fill up men's XL shirts. And I have heard of folks having shoulder squeeze with wider hammocks. I never really do, it is just a matter of hanging with correct suspension tension and getting diagonal. Here is what I have observed. With a wider hammock, I usually tend to sink down into it, and the sides come up around and above my shoulders. No matter how wide the hammock is, it's edges are not going to be very far from my shoulders width wise. The edges would be wider than my shoulders if I was on the ground, but not when I sink into the hammock. Then, a wider hammock is pretty much just higher above my body. Am I making any sense? Hard to describe.

Now, if that hammock is pitched too tight, those side edges try to come together in the middle, giving me a squeeze I can definitely feel. The trick of course is to use the correct suspension tension.

But picture this: what if the hammock was the exact width of your body and not one bit more? True, it might be quite tricky to stay in that hammock or to keep your quilts inside. But, I don't think you would be able to sink down into that hammock. And there would be no wide edges that not only could be way up above you(wasted material) but try to come together and squeeze your shoulders if the pitch is too tight or flop in my face if pitched too loose. (side note: another reason why I usually find my pods work much more efficiently for top warmth with narrow hammocks: no bunch of excess side material which tries to raise the pod up off of my body) This may also be why my narrower hammocks are also quite forgiving of how tight I adjust them, or how loose. So much so that I have never yet bothered with a ridge line for either the Claytor or SB, yet I am very likely to be comfy enough on 1st try.

Most likely, width wise, there is an optimal middle ground for any given individual. Plus I can see that if there is a need to get more diagonal, that wider would make this easier. But since I can get as diagonal as I seem to need for comfort(in all ways) in either of these hammocks(which really is only slightly off the mid-line), and since both of these are at least as lacking in calf pressure as any non-bridge I have tried(big deal for me) I see no need for wider. And if I go back to using a pod (especially without a booster/light TQ), which is likely, I don't want any wider at all.

[MAD777]

I don't think I mentioned it in the video, but I'm 6'-1" at 200 pounds. Like BillyBob, I just don't seem to get any added benefit from a hammock wider then 54".

[AyeJay]

But the hammock that comes in at least in 2nd place to that is my most narrow hammock, the Claytor No Net, at a whopping 48" wide!

Hi Bob! I'm wondering what is the length on your 48" Claytor No Net? I'm in the market for my first hammock and just trying to get a feel for things.

[P-Dub]

...the Claytor No Net... This hammock is 10 ft by a whopping 48"! Now, that is pretty dang narrow.

This is from post # 46 on the previous page

[AyeJay]

This is from post # 46 on the previous page

Ah thanks a lot, I missed it.

[Cory Hess]

I'm posting here because I almost didn't get a wide hammock because of this thread. I had been using a Chameleon in the standard 58" width and I was having knee trouble. I tried different positions, but would inevitably end up with hyper-extension in one knee or the other. The only way to avoid it was to bring a pillow along just for my knees. A stuff sack full of clothes wasn't quite big enough, so I'd have to bring something extra that was only used for this purpose. I was honestly considering going back to tents because the hammock setup was more weight and wasn't any more comfortable. I was just trading back pain for knee pain.

My initial thought was to get a wide hammock. The Chameleon didn't allow me to hang at as great an angle as people I was seeing in YouTube videos and pictures here. I figured that that might be contributing to my problems and that a wider hammock would naturally allow a greater angle which would solve my problems. Then I found this thread and got discouraged, thinking that a wider hammock would be no better for me than the Chameleon was. I had read that a longer hammock would solve my problems, but that means a longer tarp and even more weight and bulk and expense and I still might end up with the same problems.

I decided that my options were to try a wider hammock or go back to tenting and sell off my hammock gear. I got in touch with Jared at Simply Light Designs and he made me a Tree Runner in 1.7 Robic XL which comes out to around 66" wide. I went this route because it allowed me to get my hammock very quickly and without investing too much more money in my hammocking experiment.

I can't guarantee that the wider hammock is what helped me. I've only ever had the two hammocks, and it's possible that going from Hexon 2.4 to Robic 1.7 made the difference. It might be the lack of a zipper. It's possible that Jared knows some secret voodoo that allows his hammocks to be significantly more comfortable. I don't know. What I do know is that after spending three nights in the Tree Runner I have absolutely no knee pain. I sleep like a baby, and I feel like I'm now getting the experience I was hoping for when I initially made the decision to switch to a hammock.

I didn't write this thread to disagree with anything that's been written before. I fully believe that narrower hammocks work great for the people that are making those claims. All I know is that for me a wider hammock solved many problems I was having with a standard width hammock. I wanted to post here so that others that are considering a wider hammock hear from somebody that did in fact find extra width beneficial. I'm sure most of it is personal preference or personal sleeping styles.

Thank you to all of those who posted in this thread, as it gave me a lot of food for thought and actually helped me to make another attempt at finding a comfortable hammock. I ended up on the opposite side of the coin, but that doesn't mean that I didn't find value in the experiences that were shared here.

[AyeJay]

I'm posting here because I almost didn't get a wide hammock because of this thread. I had been using a Chameleon in the standard 58" width and I was having knee trouble. I tried different positions, but would inevitably end up with hyper-extension in one knee or the other. The only way to avoid it was to bring a pillow along just for my knees. A stuff sack full of clothes wasn't quite big enough, so I'd have to bring something extra that was only used for this purpose. I was honestly considering going back to tents because the hammock setup was more weight and wasn't any more comfortable. I was just trading back pain for knee pain.

My initial thought was to get a wide hammock. The Chameleon didn't allow me to hang at as great an angle as people I was seeing in YouTube videos and pictures here. I figured that that might be contributing to my problems and that a wider hammock would naturally allow a greater angle which would solve my problems. Then I found this thread and got discouraged, thinking that a wider hammock would be no better for me than the Chameleon was. I had read that a longer hammock would solve my problems, but that means a longer tarp and even more weight and bulk and expense and I still might end up with the same problems.

I decided that my options were to try a wider hammock or go back to tenting and sell off my hammock gear. I got in touch with Jared at Simply Light Designs and he made me a Tree Runner in 1.7 Robic XL which comes out to around 66" wide. I went this route because it allowed me to get my hammock very quickly and without investing too much more money in my hammocking experiment.

I can't guarantee that the wider hammock is what helped me. I've only ever had the two hammocks, and it's possible that going from Hexon 2.4 to Robic 1.7 made the difference. It might be the lack of a zipper. It's possible that Jared knows some secret voodoo that allows his hammocks to be significantly more comfortable. I don't know. What I do know is that after spending three nights in the Tree Runner I have absolutely no knee pain. I sleep like a baby, and I feel like I'm now getting the experience I was hoping for when I initially made the decision to switch to a hammock.

I didn't write this thread to disagree with anything that's been written before. I fully believe that narrower hammocks work great for the people that are making those claims. All I know is that for me a wider hammock solved many problems I was having with a standard width hammock. I wanted to post here so that others that are considering a wider hammock hear from somebody that did in fact find extra width beneficial. I'm sure most of it is personal preference or personal sleeping styles.

Thank you to all of those who posted in this thread, as it gave me a lot of food for thought and actually helped me to make another attempt at finding a comfortable hammock. I ended up on the opposite side of the coin, but that doesn't mean that I didn't find value in the experiences that were shared here.

Hi Corey. What was the length of your Chamelon, and what is the length of your current 66 inch-wide hammock, and your height? I have some arthritis in my knees so I have to be careful about that hyperextension as well. Even with straight flat legs I can get problems.

[Cory Hess]

Hi Corey. What was the length of your Chamelon, and what is the length of your current 66 inch-wide hammock? I have some arthritis in my knees so I have to be careful about that hyperextension as well. Even with straight flat legs I can get problems.

They're both 11 footers. The only differences that I can see are the fabric, the width, and that the Chameleon has a zipper where as the SLD does not. The length, ridgeline, and suspension are the same. I've hung both from the same hooks in my basement off of the same whoopies to try to isolate the effect to just the difference in hammocks.

I have one bad knee due to a past injury that tore my ACL, MCL, and meniscus. I tend to favor that knee, which gives the other knee problems. The Chameleon is a great hammock, and I don't mean to cast any shade at all on it. However, with my knee issues the wider SLD is much easier on my knees.

[AyeJay]

They're both 11 footers. The only differences that I can see are the fabric, the width, and that the Chameleon has a zipper where as the SLD does not. The length, ridgeline, and suspension are the same. I've hung both from the same hooks in my basement off of the same whoopies to try to isolate the effect to just the difference in hammocks.

I have one bad knee due to a past injury that tore my ACL, MCL, and meniscus. I tend to favor that knee, which gives the other knee problems. The Chameleon is a great hammock, and I don't mean to cast any shade at all on it. However, with my knee issues the wider SLD is much easier on my knees.

Thank you, that helps a lot. Did you find the zipper made a difference. Can I also ask what your own height is as I need that for context to the size of your hammock. Thank you!