Does anyone have a clew? ;)

[lijn]

A couple of weeks ago my DD hammocks arrived. The 'nekkid' camping type: two layers, no bugnet, ~9ft (270cm).
I have already replaced the suspension with whoopies, and am eagerly awaiting nicer weather to take it outside. In the meantime, I have hung in the house a couple of times.

Now... I must say it takes some getting used to. Nothing unexpected btw, but it's quite a step from the large Brazilian thick cotton one that's hanging permanently off the ceiling beams in our living room.
I understand that a small nylon gathered end is no competition for the cotton one that hugs you but stays roomy, but there are two things that are a bit difficult.
1) Because the fabric gets narrowed all the way at the continuous loops, the hammock sort of encloses you.
2) Because it's so 'small' (9ft of fabric is still a lot ) and stiff compared to cotton, there's ridges everywhere, it seems. Toying with the suspension a bit (head end a bit lower, a bit more, or less, sag) makes this better, but I can't seem to get it as comfy as my large one.

I've read around quite a bit here, and I think that the length of the hammock is an issue. So I was thinking... would it help to add a clew to one or both ends of the hammock? Not only would this lengthen the hammock a bit, but I think it would also help to spread the fabric a bit better, making for a flatter lay.

Before I start asking around in the DIY section, I was curious about your opinions on this. Clew clue?

[gmcttr]

Definitely comparing apples to oranges.

A 30 degree hang angle is a good place to start for sag in order to be able to lay on the diagonal.

You may be interested in the 545 posts in the mini spreader bar thread.

[OutandBack]

A clew is a sailing term for a metal hoop at the end of a sail or the cords by which a hammock is suspended.
I don't see how that would make a 9 foot hammock longer where it counts.
Maybe I am missing something?
Folks have tried a short spreader bar at the ends of a gatherend hammock with little effect on the lay.

More sag, shorter RL, lay more diaginal is usually what reduces the ridges.
hth

[Rolloff]

Length is an issue as well as often overlooked width.

You probably need an 11' hammock with 56"-60" of width. If you are short, you might get away with a little less over all, but most 9' hammocks come with all the problems, banana lay, shoulder squeeze, calf ridge.

A great way to figure out what you require, might be a Tableclothfactory.com prototype. That way you could experiment around, whipping it at different lengths until you hit a sweet spot, or just go with the growing number of enlightened longer hangers and just go with 11'.

I'm 5'6" and could probably get by with 10' or 10.5', but seriously why? My BIAS WW at only 14 ounces rides like a dream. I can get a crazy good flat crosswise lay. Not Mayan for sure but I'd still sleep in it over my bed any night.

[MAD777]

I think the mini spreader bar does help a bit with the lay, by effectively making the hammock longer. It's fairly easy to add, as long as you have a channel at the end of your hammock.

[lijn]

Definitely comparing apples to oranges.

A 30 degree hang angle is a good place to start for sag in order to be able to lay on the diagonal.

You may be interested in the 545 posts in the mini spreader bar thread.

I have read that thread of course
And I wouldn't try anything other than lay on the diagonal. I have slept in my large one for a while when I had back issues. Maybe I'm just spoilt by that...

A clew is a sailing term for a metal hoop at the end of a sail or the cords by which a hammock is suspended.
I don't see how that would make a 9 foot hammock longer where it counts.
Maybe I am missing something?
Folks have tried a short spreader bar at the ends of a gatherend hammock with little effect on the lay.

I might have the terminology all wrong...
I was referring to this http://theultimatehang.com/2013/01/w...clew-tutorial/ tutorial from dejoha about weaving one, but I see now that he refers to the ropes that are woven into the clew as nettles.
I thought clew referred to the ropes, not to the metal. So my bad. What I mean is of course adding let's say 1-2 ft of ropes to the end(s) of my hammock, like the Brazilian ones, or the Amazonas/Byer of Maine Moskito or Travel Silk hammocks.

I've recently read two threads, one about replacing the original tangling mess on a Moskito (here: https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...hlight=tangles) and another that I cannot find anymore, about a DIY project, a very wide hammock that was more rope than fabric.

What I mean is: by adding ropes/nettles, you essentially lengthen the hammock a bit AND the fabric can open up a bit more.

I hope this clarifies it a bit. I'm still interested in opinions

[lijn]

They say a picture is worth a thousand words: here's Dirtwheels' finished project



Rolloff, I'm only 5'4", but yes, I think larger would help. The thing is, here in Europe we don't have cool things like tableclothfactory or the likes, so that makes experimenting a bit harder. I could use some cheap cotton of course, but that fabric is só different from nylon, it would completely alter the lay.

[OutandBack]

They say a picture is worth a thousand words: here's Dirtwheels' finished project

I don't see why that would not work. Looks like a fun project.

[overthinker]

I just made an 11' hammock recently, moved up from a 10 footer. The difference in comfort between the sizes is incredible. And, when compared to my GT UL that is 9' and change, the 11 footer is a dream.

Try whipping up a longer version and see what happens.

[FLRider]

I agree that a little extra length goes a long way. I moved from a 10'6" Hennessy Explorer Ultralight to an 11' DIY, and the difference was night and day (I'm 6', ~185 to ~200 lbs depending on my workout schedule, for reference). Since then, the 11' has been shortened by 4", and that has made a difference in comfort. It's not quite as comfortable as it was, unless I get the hang angle just right (I had a bit of slop to play with before). However, it's still more comfortable than my Hennessy.