^ Good stuff ^
I got rid of my ridgelines completely, except my Blackbird for the netting, and never been more comfortable. I now seem to focus on a proper setup overall instead of relying on the ridgeline to tell me, often incorrectly, what's right or wrong. Much less, or no more calf ridge as well.
Tree distance can vary and you can still maintain 30 degree hang angle. Just vary the height that you wrap your straps around the trees!
Should I be worried? It is located right in the middle of my ridgeline. Not sure if I have to replace it.
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"Kites rise highest against the wind, not with it.”
― Winston S. Churchill
Halfed, sometimes, when we push the envelope, stuff happens.
My hammock ridgeline is 1/8 amsteel.
My straps are Dutch’s Spider Daisy Chain Webbing.
1/8 amsteel rated 2500 pounds
Loops on daisy chain rated 1500 pounds
Overall daisy chain rated 3000.
Weakest part of my suspension is 1500 pounds
Many times my hammock ridgeline is spang tight
Usually no problem with CRP calf ridge pressure.
But that might due to my hammock’s size 12x6
When my hang angle is not 30* the forces on my suspension can be considerably more than my body weight.
Things can go wrong, if my hang angle is too flat.
Something can bust:
Strap can break
Hammock ridgeline can break
Hammock can rip in half***
Tree I’m hanging on can break and fall on me snoozing in my hammock
I’ll chance it
Unlikely to break my top notch suspension components or hammock
Unlikely to break trees that at least look strong and healthy
***and sometimes I’m afraid I might rip hammock in half, when I set it too high off ground. When I get out there is lots of pressure on edge seam, with most of my weight on edge seam just before my feet reach ground while exiting hammock.
Sometimes I just gotta be brave
Or oblivious to world around me
Maybe you can replace damaged hammock ridgeline with 7/64 amsteel
Or don’t do anything
Don’t Worry, Be Hoppy
the structural ridge line is there partly for convenience (consistent hang/lay without bringing out the protractors or laser measuring rig), and partly for enabling hangs which otherwise would not be possible (and then it becomes "really structural"), but if it fails it's usually no big deal.
however, it is also protecting the hammock from unreasonable forces even when the suspension angle is not ideal, and is very cheap to replace (usually much cheaper compared to the hammock itself). so i'd say, if in doubt, replace.
take this one, isolate and remove the damaged part, and then make a few softshackles out of the pieces. softshackles are always good to have around, and fun and easy to make. or make whatever seems might be useful or fun to make. if you haven't made/spliced anything yet, looks like a good excuse to start.
ahem, btw, for next time, starting a new thread for such question would probably be perfectly reasonable (no worries, just sayin')
Phantom: if the edge seems to take all the load when you step out of the hammock, that's indeed cause for some concern, aside from making sure hang height matches your confortable sit height or lower, you can also consider to adjust the lay so the edges are less taut (if you have a hammock which is gathered with a becket hitch or whipping, instead of channels, that's easy to do), and perhaps also considering if reinforcing the edge might not make some sense for a future project (i've been considering this myself, like you, sometimes i like to hang it high). but the structural ridge line will protect the hammock from extreme forces at flat hang angles, ripping the edge as you're worried will be much more likely, and in fact quite possible, when hanging too flat and without a structural ridge line
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