hennessy vs Nite owl

[ggreaves]

As good and influential HH has been to the hanging community(they are what set me on this course)it is not only unproductive, but unfair to compare mass produced items, with that of any HF handmade cottage vendor.

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The original post was about comfort, not perceived quality or lack thereof. It's not a "cottage vs. mass produced" thing at all. I've read plenty of posts on the forums describing calf pressure issues with many brands of hammocks including the cottage vendors. Calf pressure is generally about hammock length and width (longer and wider the better). There's no special sauce that comes along with American stitching through Chinese ripstop that makes the hammock more comfortable.

The night owl is definitely longer and wider than the Hennessy, so it'll be easier to lay flat (as illustrated in the pics on the WL site). I have a HH Deep Jungle XL and it has the same dimensions as your Explorer Deluxe. I've never experienced any calf pressure in it but I'm only 5'9". One thing to also consider is whether your feet are too low. This can cause your lower legs to be constrained as your body settles closer to the foot end. Make sure the head end is at least 6" lower than the foot end.

Anyway, if it's comfort you're looking for you should be able to find it by getting something a little bigger than the Hennessy. Have some fun and make one yourself. And don't get caught up too much in hammock religion.

[Rolloff]

Then yes. I'd say most if not all 10 and 11 foot offerings from our HF vendors will be better on calf ridge than the shorter HH's. And this includes the WL line of offerings.

If not, they can build to width or length for you that will suit your needs.

The above is why I made the original statement. Tom also won't drive 48 hours to get to you on your thru hike to replace or effect a repair on a piece of his equipment, to keep you from having to bail.(HF has vendors that have done this) If that's not exactly comfort.....it's piece of mind.

[ggreaves]

Tom also won't drive 48 hours to get to you on your thru hike to replace or effect a repair on a piece of his equipment, to keep you from having to bail.(HF has vendors that have done this) If that's not exactly comfort.....it's piece of mind.

peace of mind. And I wouldn't expect Tom to do that (he seems kind of old). And I'd say that if you think that spending a couple hundred bucks with someone entitles you to 96 hour round trip warranty house calls, that's a bit unrealistic (God forbid 2 people in different parts of the country need help at the same time). I understand that a lot of the cottage vendors here have excellent customer service and many have gone above and beyond like the situation you mentioned. I've also found Hennessy customer service to be excellent with timely responses to my questions and quick shipping. I can't speak to repairs because its so well made.

[fortran42]

Both are well made products and Marty@WL and Keltie@HH have always been helpful. The question was about calf pressure NOT whether you Like HH or WL Products-That is Irrelevant...The Longer the hammock The Less Calf squeeze you will have generally speaking and the WL Light Owl is definitely Longer-a flatter lay w/o calf pressure as Shug's pictures show.

[Rolloff]

They don't repair. If an HH is damaged due to defects or poor construction....you just get sent another one exactly the same, with probably the same problems.

A cottage vendor will want and need to know of any development like the above, because they want to modify or improve their products, immediately.

Lots of folks have gone that way or started there, and moved on to higher quality materials, construction, and workmanship. Are those hangers all just going for the bling? I think not.

Don't brush off the fact that hands on customer service from the person who owns, runs, and makes most of their own products, or discount it due to Tom's age. HH has many more resources than any of our cottage vendors to work from to accommodate someone having problems. HH, Eno, GT, business model calls for them to sell to big box distributors, not the individual gear hounds. You'll get the same attention from them as you will get from Gander Mt or Dicks.

I wonder. Just for the record. Have you been to any organized hangs, where other hammocks are available to try out? I've tried the GT line and found it unsuitable for my needs and comfort, for multiple reasons. Too short, too narrow, too heavy, suspension horrible, materials and workmanship fair, but inconsistent.

HH got me interested in hammocking, but I like non attached tarps, and nets, and the Explorer model is the only one of all their offering that seemed like what would suit my needs. HH stock tarps also couldn't provide adequate coverage at the time, so you had to upgrade to the Hex. I learned a little more, and didn't pay 100's of dollars for my BIAS WW. It's also not fair to make price comparisons using only WBs and Dream Hammocks.

If you were going to do that, why not use Eno or GT at Dealaday.com pricing, against the highest priced most custom handmade models available?

[ggreaves]

It's also not fair to make price comparisons using only WBs and Dream Hammocks.

I didn't make any price comparisons at all in my post. But since you mention those 2 vendors, the current lead time from WB is 4 weeks and it's 2 months from Dream Hammocks. Part of great customer service is the ability to deliver in a timely manner. I wanted a Superfly tarp but couldn't wait a month for it. So I bought a Simply Light Designs Winter Haven (it was made and shipped out in 2 days) and got it within a week. Good products and customer service are where you find them be it from SLD, an excellent cottage vendor or Hennessy who have great products that happen to be widely available. Also, to give a shout out to WL, they told me I could get an Old Man Winter tarp within a couple days although I ultimately decided to go with the Winter Haven.

I wonder. Just for the record. Have you been to any organized hangs, where other hammocks are available to try out?

I was at one last weekend. There were 17 people there in Hennessy's, WB's, Eureka and DIY hammocks. I didn't try out anyone else's hammock because it was raining the whole weekend and people's setups were pretty hunkered down. There wasn't any bed switching going on that I noticed. There was some discussion around the fire about the BB being "finickey" to get comfortable.

higher quality materials, construction, and workmanship

Repeating this myth again and again doesn't make it true. I like the cottage vendors as much as anyone and I have purchased and will continue to purchase gear from them in the future. I just don't feel the need to slag Hennessy when I do it. And pigeon-holing them with other commodity taffeta cookie cutter hammocks, passing them off as entry-level or raising unfounded speculation on quality and workmanship is a little unfair.

BTW, have you ever seen the fabric used in the Deep Jungle? It's buttery soft and I've never seen any other hammocks with a nicer fabric. I get compliments from owners of other Hennessy models all the time on it. They have a whole lineup of hammocks from the entry level Explorer to the more expensive Deep Jungle's available with or without tarps included. You can still do all the fiddling you want with respect to tarps and suspensions with a Hennessy hammock and you don't have to "attach" the tarp. Buy any tarp you'd like from anybody. I promise, you won't get wet under a WL tarp just because you're lying in a Hennessy. You don't like the included bug net and that's fine, but I appreciate it being there when I need it and it tucks nicely out of the way with a grosgrain strap when it's not needed. It adds a couple extra ounces but I can make up for that by laying off the bread for a few days.