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  1. #1
    Senior Member Bug-Bait's Avatar
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    Blackbird vs. BMBH How flat can one lay??

    I've heard so many great things about the Blackbird that I'm just crazy enough to buy another hammock. I have a Speer and a Bear Mt Bridge. I lay really flat in the Bridge but I'd like to get another comfortable hammock "just in case" I can get my girlfriend to hang with me. How would one compare the Bridge to the Blackbird in terms of comfort, flat laying, etc.
    Thanks,
    Qpens

  2. #2
    Senior Member animalcontrol's Avatar
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    BillyBob58 is a lover of both the BMBH and the BB
    "Every day is a new day to a better future"
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    "What if I told you that you couldn't have anymore of anything... No more friends, no more money, no more anything, until you first got happy with what you have?"~ Mike Dooley
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  3. #3
    Senior Member BillyBob58's Avatar
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    I think there have been one or maybe two who have swapped from the BMBH to the WBBB, and I think at least one was for comfort reasons as well as other reasons. They will probably chime inhere shortly to clarify that.

    I have both, and it is tough for me to chose between them on an overall basis. There is just a lot to love about that BB and it's many features( like the excellent shelf!), but when it comes to overall comfort I still have to give the edge to the BMBH. It is definitely the flattest, as WBG would probably tell you. Therefore, it is for me clearly the most comfortable for most right and left side positions( right side has not yet been good for me in the BB for some reason), and at least as comfortable on the back, and maybe just a bit more. And it's major advantage when back sleeping is: zero center ridge to poke into my left calf, a problem I have to a more or less degree with ALL gathered end hammocks. And the BMBH is the best, IMO, for use with a pad if that is important to you. BB is good with a pad, BMBH is better.

    HOWEVER, I can think of two other comfort related factors that might switch the balance in favor of the BB for some. The most obvious is the shoulder issue that was debated so much here in the past. Personally, for me, this is now a non-issue, and I run between 205-210 lbs at 6'1", size 45 coat. If I have my hands behind my head or if I am just barely very slightly positioned on my side, I have all the shoulder room anyone could need.

    Or if I am positioned flat on my back and pretty much towards the head end of the hammock with my hands laying on my abdomen or chest, though my shoulders are put into a slightly rounded position by the shape of the hammock, well then yes- technically there is a lack of shoulder room. But it still does not qualify as a "squeeze" for me and is still overall extremely comfortable, still probably the "most" comfortable overall for me. But some folks might feel dif, especially if they are even more broad shouldered than I am. And the BB would be "roomier" in this position, so that might be important for some folks, no doubt.

    The other factor is: fetal position. If trying to go fetal on my left side, I would have to give the edge to the BB. Not because it is actually more ( or even as)comfortable as far as hip torque goes, but because it is basically impossible to get into full fetal position in the BMBH, at least without a wide pad. Though I can get there if I am only partially on my side. So, if sleeping this way( fetal position) is important to you, then the overall comfort advantage might shift back to the WBBB.

    Anyway, as you already have the BMBH, then you already know how shoulder and fetal position issues relate to you.

    So all I have compared here is my opinions on the relative comfort of two very comfortable hammocks. There are many non-comfort issues and difs that might be important to different folks with different personal prefs.

    EDIT: oops, AnimalControl, we clicked the send button about the same time, I did not see your post when I started replying! I should have just linked to that thread!

  4. #4
    Senior Member Bug-Bait's Avatar
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    I sleep on my right side and Brandon mentioned to me in an email that he could reverse the way he made the hammock to accommodate me.
    As we all know, buying another hammock is "not about need" lol.

  5. #5
    Senior Member FanaticFringer's Avatar
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    I love my BMBH but am itching to try a Blackbird. Seems like it would solve the issues of side sleeping I've had with other gathered end hammocks. Not to mention the tighter tarp options I could have. I cant see the Blackbird being flatter than the BMBH though. That baby is real flat. A wider BMBH that the Jacks have talked about making would open up the doors for more (bigger) folks to enjoy the bridge hammock.
    "Every day above ground is a good day"

  6. #6
    Senior Member BillyBob58's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by FanaticFringer View Post
    I love my BMBH but am itching to try a Blackbird. Seems like it would solve the issues of side sleeping I've had with other gathered end hammocks. Not to mention the tighter tarp options I could have. I cant see the Blackbird being flatter than the BMBH though. That baby is real flat. A wider BMBH that the Jacks have talked about making would open up the doors for more (bigger) folks to enjoy the bridge hammock.
    True about the wider BMBH. I was hoping for that one for a while after I returned my first one. I'm glad I didn't continue to wait and instead got another one and tried again. I'm sure the wider one would be even more comfortable, at least in the shoulder area. But, that would just lead to even more challenge regarding the spreader bars and tarp. I have managed to pretty much overcome the current challenge, but I don't need to be struggling with even wider bars contacting the tarp.

    As for side sleeping, did you ever have a Claytor No Net? I find that one and the BB to be very similar for side position, fetal or otherwise.

  7. #7
    Senior Member FanaticFringer's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by BillyBob58 View Post
    True about the wider BMBH. I was hoping for that one for a while after I returned my first one. I'm glad I didn't continue to wait and instead got another one and tried again. I'm sure the wider one would be even more comfortable, at least in the shoulder area. But, that would just lead to even more challenge regarding the spreader bars and tarp. I have managed to pretty much overcome the current challenge, but I don't need to be struggling with even wider bars contacting the tarp.

    As for side sleeping, did you ever have a Claytor No Net? I find that one and the BB to be very similar for side position, fetal or otherwise.
    Yep that wider bridge does have it's issues.
    I had a Claytor jungle with the net and found it uncomfortable.
    "Every day above ground is a good day"

  8. #8
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    yes, a bridge hammock will be flatter, but as many here can vouch for, a hammock doesn't have to be perfectly flat in order to be comfortable, and sometimes laying perfectly flat isn't comfortable (like in the case of a crappy mattress). it's a personal preference really, some like bridge designs, some like the end gathered hammocks. the bb is flat enough for me to lay on my side with my legs straight.
    Last edited by warbonnetguy; 02-20-2009 at 23:08.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by warbonnetguy View Post
    ... but as many here can vouch for, a hammock doesn't have to be perfectly flat in order to be comfortable, and sometimes laying perfectly flat isn't comfortable...
    True dat!

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