I haven't read many reviews and there are almost no videos on youtube of it. I owned a BB and loved it but it was a little too small for me. If you own one, what do you think?
I haven't read many reviews and there are almost no videos on youtube of it. I owned a BB and loved it but it was a little too small for me. If you own one, what do you think?
I would like to see a some more reviews as well, a shug video review would be sweet........
I just purchased an xlc and love it. keep in mind i'm a noob and dont have as much hanging experience as you guys im sure. The only negatives for me are the visibility inside the hammock i would like to be able to lounge with a good view and thats really it. the foot box is awesome i just slide in to the sweet spot. of course this is 11 feet and i find that to be very roomy ( i'm 6ft)
Love mine and I have both. I am 6 foot and the XLC fits me so much better. The slightly higher position of the foot box moves you into the sweet spot making it easier to find for me.
Where ever you go,
There you are.
I've tried 2 different XLC's in the past week; a 1.7 single and a 1.1 dbl. I have to say that I kinda prefer the 1.7 single. I checked the website and it appears the 1.7 is an ounce lighter so there's another reason to like. The first time off and on with the bugnet and top cover I found the zipper a bit stiff negotiating the sharp hairpin turn at the gathered ends but it loosens up and works easier after a time or two. I immediately swapped out the stock suspension for whoopies and that was so easy, I literally did one of them while sitting around the campfire.
I do a fair bit of winter camping and didn't imagine really needing the top cover but after seeing it and fiddling around with it I can't imagine buying and XLC without a top cover and I'm actually looking forward to trying it out this winter.
Now the weight is a penalty but my initial impressions are that it is well worth it for me in terms of comfort. Finally a hammock that I can get a comfortable side lay in. I won't say the calf ridge is completely gone but it's far less than the std blackbird and there is so much more leg room in the XLC that the very slight ridge is even less of a factor. While I still like my std blackbird, I'm definitely now sold on 11' from here out. My reasoning is that if I'm hiking, the weight penalty is worth the quality of sleep I get.
I thought Brandon did a very nice job integrating the pull outs into the removable bugnet and top cover and he added mitten clips to the tie outs to make them easy to change. The trademark shelf is still very much there and seems about the same size if not maybe a bit bigger. Additionally the shape of the XLC allows better visibility, for instance if you roll onto your left side you can still see out of the hammock just fine, this is different from the original BB.
One slight annoyance is the bugnet, the opening at the head end of the XLC only goes to about 18" from the gathered end so it doesn't roll back out of the way as cleanly as the original BB. However this is no deal breaker, I'm sure I'll get used to quickly. One thing that make it work better is rolling the netting back to tie it rather than just gathering it.
That's about all I got for now, looking forward to a night out with the Ohio gang this evening at Mohican.
Take care,
David
Last edited by Bannerstone; 05-04-2013 at 05:54.
The latter pages of this thread have several reviews and first impressions from new XLC owners
https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...ad.php?t=67279
- Loki my videos
"Climb the mountains and get their good tidings.
Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees.
The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy,
while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn." — John Muir
Anyone looking to upgrade to XLC, I will gladly buy WBBB Double 1.7!
I did a video review today for my XLC.
https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...ls&videoid=894
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