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  1. #11
    Senior Member Tony c's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rex Clifton View Post
    Oh God, spare me all the accolades! You make Dutch sound like the Louis Pasture of hammocking. Let's face it, the Chameleon is nothing more than a warmed-over Sparrow.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    I have assumed there would be a time for this, but a few months later once the kick starter ended. As much as I think the chameleon is over blown in it's popularity, it did bring some new ideas and it's slick. I will wait until we get more reviews in before we start the epic comparison battles.

  2. #12
    Senior Member kitsapcowboy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rex Clifton View Post
    Oh God, spare me all the accolades! You make Dutch sound like the Louis Pasture [sic] of hammocking. Let's face it, the Chameleon is nothing more than a warmed-over Sparrow.
    It's Pasteur, actually, if you were making reference to the scientist who was the Dutch of microbiology in its golden age.

    I stand by my review and wouldn't change a word.
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  3. #13
    Member
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    Dec 2012
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    Quote Originally Posted by kitsapcowboy View Post
    It's Pasteur, actually, if you were making reference to the scientist who was the Dutch of microbiology in its golden age.

    I stand by my review and wouldn't change a word.
    I really enjoyed your review, found it entertaining as well as informative, can't wait to receive my Chameleon. Thank You.

  4. #14
    TxAggie's Avatar
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    Jun 2016
    Location
    Pasadena, MD
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    Half-wit (3 season), Chameleon (win
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    I really wish I would have joined this forum sooner and known about the kickstarter campaign for the Chameleon. Guess I'll just have to wait until they're up for sale on the site.

  5. #15
    Senior Member TrailSlug's Avatar
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    Sep 2015
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    Huntsville, AL
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    Nice review. Sounds like you didn't like the hammock much though This one is going to be a game changer for sure.

  6. #16
    Senior Member kitsapcowboy's Avatar
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    Jun 2016
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    Quote Originally Posted by brswan View Post
    Awesome write up. It's done so well I think if I get my wife to read it she'll just buy one for me!
    Quote Originally Posted by Bigtimber View Post
    Nice review and a nice looking hammock for sure
    Quote Originally Posted by Bill_Mead View Post
    I really enjoyed your review, found it entertaining as well as informative, can't wait to receive my Chameleon. Thank You.
    Thank you, guys.

    Quote Originally Posted by Flash Grundelore View Post
    @Kitsapcowboy~ this was not only a wonderful and very thoughtful review of one of the units that so many of us are curious about, but it is also probably the finest piece of review writing I've ever seen on the forums. Thank you! [and Dutch oughta too!]
    Thank you very much, Flash. I'm very glad you liked my review, and that's really kind of you to say. Much obliged.

    Quote Originally Posted by TxAggie View Post
    I really wish I would have joined this forum sooner and known about the kickstarter campaign for the Chameleon. Guess I'll just have to wait until they're up for sale on the site.
    The good news is that Dutch will probably have built stock and offered the Chameleon on his website by the start of the summer, and you will have had plenty of time by then to read more reviews, see different options for the hammock as part of a modular system, and get feedback on fabrics and accessories -- all of which will help you pick out the perfect Chameleon for you if and when you decide to get one.

    Quote Originally Posted by TrailSlug View Post
    Nice review. Sounds like you didn't like the hammock much though This one is going to be a game changer for sure.
    Thank you, Slug. I think you're right in that with all the little details/features and its likely popularity across a broad base of hammock enthusiasts, we'll probably see a lot of different Chameleon set-up, tips, tricks, and techniques shared here on HF in the future.

    Personally, I'm looking forward to testing out the Beetle Buckles, and when I do I will post my thoughts (or a link to my separate review) here in this thread.
    Last edited by kitsapcowboy; 03-18-2017 at 09:01.
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  7. #17
    Senior Member
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    Great review!!! I received mine March 13th. Standard width, Coyote Brown in 2.4 Hexon (Backer #44). I haven't slept in it yet but have spent several hours so far in it hanging from my turtle dog stand in the basement watching TV. (How lazy is that?!) I think the standard width is perfect. Don't think I'd want to go wider. There is a very slight calf ridge. I can eliminate it by moving my left leg to the "Figure 4" or "ballerina" position. (I'm laying head left, feet right.) I like using the pullouts at the shoulder and foot end. Shoulder squeeze is practically nonexistant. Obviously the fabric wraps up around your back and shoulders, but it's nothing that I even notice.

    The Hexon 2.4 is definitely a heavy duty strong fabric. In hindsight I think I would have gone 1.6, but I do like the support of the 2.4. I don't think it stretches at all! Plus when I design things I generally over-engineer and like the 400 pound weight rating for my 220 pound, slightly big body. That's like a 90% safety factor! Anyways when the craziness of the Kickstarter is over I can always order a 1.6 body and use my existing bugnet and suspension on it.

    The Beetle Buckles and Poly/Dyneema straps are awesome! Enough said there.

    The zipper system is easy to use. I like that Dutch has included pull tabs on the slides. It's just those little things that make it even more awesome.

    I don't have the peak loft installed yet. I also got one storage pocket. I wish it were bigger. I got spoiled by the Ridgerunner's saddlebags for storage. Maybe once I get the peak loft in that will help.

    One thing I wish it had is a small metal ring on the elastic pullouts. When I had my BBXLC it had a small metal ring on its pullout to which you attached the guyline to the stake. That allowed it to slide just a bit while maintaining tension. Maybe as I use it more it won't be such a big deal, but I may add one just to see.

    I had a Blackbird XLC for a while and never could get comfy in it. I'm not knocking the Blackbird because I know a lot of people like it. Shug said in one of his videos something to the effect that some hammocks fit some people better than others and for me the Blackbird didn't fit where I find the Chameleon right on point. As always YMMV.

    So thank you Dutch for taking a chance and bringing this to market.

  8. #18
    Senior Member kitsapcowboy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by drsolarmolar View Post
    Great review!!! I received mine March 13th...
    Thank you very much. It sounds like you are already enjoying yours...

    Quote Originally Posted by drsolarmolar View Post
    ...I don't have the peak loft installed yet. I also got one storage pocket. I wish it were bigger. I got spoiled by the Ridgerunner's saddlebags for storage. Maybe once I get the peak loft in that will help...
    I agree, the standard storage pocket is on the small side compared to a typical ridge line organizer, but I understand that it is sized exactly to span the interior/exterior D-ring intervals of the Chameleon. I will also note that while it's smaller than a typical ridge line organizer, it was also less expensive (at $10) than a typical ridge line organizer. The Chameleon pocketis about the same dimensions/capacity as the zippered storage pocket sewn into my Simply Light Designs Trail Lair and has the added benefit of being able to be repositioned anywhere inside the hammock; if I want more storage along the edges of my hammock, I can always add a second storage pocket inline with the first.

    You will dig the peak loft, I'll wager.

    Quote Originally Posted by drsolarmolar View Post
    ...One thing I wish it had is a small metal ring on the elastic pullouts. When I had my BBXLC it had a small metal ring on its pullout to which you attached the guyline to the stake. That allowed it to slide just a bit while maintaining tension. Maybe as I use it more it won't be such a big deal, but I may add one just to see...
    As a fellow XLC owner, I borrowed that trick and used it on my Chameleon. My Chameleon came with Dutch's proprietary 1000-pound lightweight carabiners, and each of them had a 1" split ring fastened around it when I unboxed the suspension. I assumed these rings were for the shock cord tie-outs, allowing them to slide without constraint while tied out to a stake in the ground on either side of the hammock. Since I had a pair on hand, I replaced the split rings with welded rings from some Nite Ize S-Biner racks (of 6 micro-size) that I'd purchased recently, and they work perfectly in conjunction with the shock cord assemblies Dutch provides.

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  9. #19
    Senior Member
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    There are a couple of things that surprised me as I've used my Chameleon more. I will readily admit to being a gathered end novice. 99.9% of all my hammock experience has been in a bridge (Ridgerunner) so maybe these things are normal for a gathered end. Help me understand if they are...

    I notice that when I zip on the bug net it shrinks the width of the hammock. It's still fine and comfy, but narrower. (Or narrowerer as Shug says in his Ridgerunner video!) Along with that, and here's where I have a question, it seems like there are certain areas of the zipper that have a lot of stress. I noticed as I was zipping it closed I had to tug very firmly in certain areas to get it to close, particularly along the length where my head-shoulder-torso lay along that edge. It seems the weight of my body pulls the hammock down and it takes some tugging to get the body and net together. I can get it there, but it takes effort. The netting is also very tight in that area, as well as by my feet on the opposite side. The netting to my right is fairly loose and to the left of my legs. (I'm laying head left-feet right.) Makes sense the areas that are tight are where most of my weight is. Wondering if the zipper should be easier to close and if the zipper is designed to carrying that weight? Should the bugnet have a more passive zip? I have the bug net over the ridgeline to hold it up. I've adjusted the Beetles to see if easing of hang angle makes a difference. It didn't seem to. It seems to me the bug net should have less tension on it but I don't know.

    I also noticed with the bug net on that I can make a bit of a shelf. I have my small inner pocket hooked to the D rings on my right (remember I'm laying head left) and I can flip it over into the area formed by the hammock body and bug net. It's not exactly a Blackbird shelf, but I can get the pocket out of the way. I also notice with the bugnet on that the right "wall" of the hammock body is much shorter than it is without the bugnet. And the right edge by my shoulder, which without the net on is practically flat, is now up about 5-6 inches. Is this normal for a gathered end with the bugnet attached?

    I didn't have any split rings included in my suspension package. I looked at the Night Ize size 1 mini biners. Didn't know they made micros. I might also look at the local Ace Hardware and see what they have in metal rings.

    As I use the Chameleon more I'm still really liking it, it just is very different than my familiar old bridge.

  10. #20
    Senior Member
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    Problem solved...I had the bugnet on wrong. It's easy to do. Once I straightened it out the Chameleon is working perfectly again.

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