Shoulder squeeze at any amount of sag.

[kattdogg]

Is there a hammock that can do both gathered end and flat lay, were you can switch easily on the trail

[Leavitt]

Is there a hammock that can do both gathered end and flat lay, were you can switch easily on the trail

This may sound insane, if so I'm going to play the "new guy" card, but if you had an adjustable ridgeline you could make it reeeeaaaaalllly short, like 48" or maybe even less, and you'd end up with something like a WBRR with very tall sides. Heck, you could even run a spreader bar through each end channel and lay parallel to those bars, then you really would have a bridge hammock. Unorthodox, but who cares if that's the answer to full nights sleep without pain?

That's an accidental discovery. I have an 11' hexon that Dutch made for me with no ridgeline. I've been experimenting with sag to find a flat lie. I set up a deep sag and started the night on a diagonal but woke up in the morning laying 90*, body fully supported except from my knees down, soles of my feet were resting gently on the floor. Oops, but my back felt great! It may not be practical for the outdoors but my application is full time indoor hanger. I suppose that if that's what it takes to sleep outdoors a DIY giant bug net is in the future. At any rate, the OP is trying to find a position that suits his body and shoulders and one benefit if this experiment is that it doesn't cost anything but time to try.

Good luck!

[Spiguyver]

I know this has already been covered very thoroughly, but I'll add my own experiences. I've got 3 hammocks, all Dutch, all different lengths and all different fabrics. I am 5'7" and 170ish lbs. I can say that for me a stretchy fabric feels really nice for a short time, but begins to really pinch the shoulders and becomes uncomfortable for me after an hour or so. Even when that fabric is on the longest of the hammocks. A shorter more firm hammock is superior for me. So what I've found, for me anyway, is that it's much more about the fabric, than it is about the length.

[WV Mountaineer]

I'm going to say this with no intent of being a wise guy. Just getting to the point. You have fought this since the beginning. Just because a fabric is rated for 250 pounds doesn't mean it is going to be the most comfortable fabric for a 250 lb person. All fabric will stretch when you get close to the weight limit. Every single one of them. Especially when it gets damp. So, buy a fabric way over rated for your weight if you want to negate the stretch. It is that simple.

Quit doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. Call a supplier and buy a Hammock or, buy you 4 yards of 2.4 Hexagon D from them, whip the ends, and experiment until you get the right lay. It's in there. I promise. Once you get the fabric that won't stretch.

Shoulder squeeze has very little to do with anything other than improper lay or, material that stretches too much. Discomfort caused by Length issues is simply an improper lay causing the squeeze. Material that swallows your body also causes Shoulder squeeze. Those two things are what you need to address. And, don't address it with another 1.6 ounce fabric.

One more piece of advice, get the foot end of the hammock up minimum 6 inches higher than your head end. If you do this, once a flat lay is achieved, you will be floating on the fabric. Your head and feet are level when you are laying flat. You stay put.

I'm as sensitive to shoulder squeeze as anyone I don't weigh as much as you. I still went with the 2.4 Hex. D from Dutch to ensure I was comfortable. Try it. I think it will help you. God Bless

[Shug]

Bridge hammock may be the cure.... No calf ridge either.
Carry forth.
Shug

[MikekiM]

Just an idea for you to explore..

I have super sensitive shoulders. Both rotator cuffs are a treating wreck and shoulder squeeze is painful.

At first I wasn't sure what to do. But being a back sleeper I find that with right leg bent at the knee and resting on the right side of the hammock, shoulder squeeze is non-existent. Maybe your solution is how your positioning yourself..

I am a traditional feet right hang. With feet end always higher than head.


Posted from somewhere east of Montauk