Calf Ridge

[Phantom Grappler]

Marty at WildernessLogics made a custom Lite Owl for me. 12x6 made with Hexon wide 1.6
Very comfortable. Might have to get larger tarp, bugnet, and pack.
I think you could still get more comfort by moving up to 11 and a half foot by 5 and a half.
Good luck


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[GoneSquatchin]

Marty at WildernessLogics made a custom Lite Owl for me. 12x6 made with Hexon wide 1.6
Very comfortable. Might have to get larger tarp, bugnet, and pack.
I think you could still get more comfort by moving up to 11 and a half foot by 5 and a half.
Good luck


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I will check into it. I already bought the big tarp and have the oversized bugnet. Thank you for the information.

[GoneSquatchin]

You may be a bit stout for that fabric. I have a Robic 1.2 that I made for ultralight long weekends. That has much more stretch than my normal 1.6oz HyperD that I usually bring along. My kids have HyperD 1.0 hammocks and that feels pretty mushy and I can't get comfortable in them for sleeping. I go around 230. You may, unfortunately, have to go for a heavier fabric.

Thanks for the solid feed back. The heavier fabric seems to be the common denominator and will start looking into that. Thank you.

[GoneSquatchin]

Thank you all for the great feedback. It looks like I will be going to a heavier fabric.

[underserviced]

What is the Figure 4? That like criss cross applesauce.

Sorry: Figure 4 - Tuck the top of your right foot to the back of your left knee (or the other way around). It does all sorts of things including, stops hyper extension if you're not on a diagonal, lifts one leg over calf ridge and avoids it with the other leg...

Not perfect but a solution that works for me in one particular hammock.

[Andymc]

Thank you all for the great feedback. It looks like I will be going to a heavier fabric.

I am 6'1 250lb and have no trouble with the lite owl. 1.0 is plenty strong for bigger guys when used as a double layer. You would be pushing the limit in say, a snipe single layer 1.0. I remember feeling some calf pressure in my first lays, but after a few 10+ hour sleeps, I think it breaks in some and conforms to your body. Just my opinion. There are stronger more supportive fabrics, but I've never felt anything as good as Marty's fabric! Try some different hammocks, but I'd keep that lite owl. You might go back to it.

[Miquel Westano]

I love my lite owl hammock, however, no matter how I hang it I get a Nasty calf ridge. I have tried tightening it, loosening it, all of Shuggs ideas on his channel and nothing seems to rid this nasty bugger. I am looking for any ideas to help out with this. thank you.

This may seem a bit off the wall, and I may not get this clear. But, when I first started, I never paid much attention getting in the hammock. I sleep feet right, head left, so you may need to do the opposite if you lay the other way. But here goes:

I enter from the left side, and used to just plop in. I would get calf ridge from time to time but not always. That should have told me something. I started paying attention to how far back in the hammock my butt was, and how much material was bunched under my legs. I found if I had lots of material pleated up like drapes under my legs between my butt and knees, I had lots of calf ridge.

I began to take more care getting in, and now try to place my butt closer to the left side, leaving less cloth between the butt and knees. There seemed a sweet spot for me of just a few inches of pleated material. Next I played with the foot and head heights while noting the changes. For me it is about 6" higher on the feet for the best lay.

Then lastly I started to note how far my head was from the gathered end. I now leave just enough room for my out stretched arm to just barley reach the head end of the hammock from the inside. I have done this so long, I pretty much get in the same spot every time. I have several hammocks and this puts me spot on with my XLC and close with my DH, my old Grand trunk hybrid, and my DIY rip stop nylon.

I don't know if this will help you or not, but it is key for me getting a flat lay with no calf ridge. I hope this made sense, and does help at least a little.

Happy hangin!

[Big Sweets]

I have been using a Night Owl for over 3 years now and putting a small pillow under your knees really helped me.

[FlaDave]

+1 on what Miguel Westano said. I was dealing with calf ridge in my XLC when I first got it. Tried the usual adjustments, raise the foot end, raise it some more, move toward the head end, legs in figure 4. The biggest improvement was when I would move my butt a little to the left. I was surprised that I hadn't read anything about that before. I thought maybe it was just me.

[Miquel Westano]

+1 on what Miguel Westano said. I was dealing with calf ridge in my XLC when I first got it. Tried the usual adjustments, raise the foot end, raise it some more, move toward the head end, legs in figure 4. The biggest improvement was when I would move my butt a little to the left. I was surprised that I hadn't read anything about that before. I thought maybe it was just me.

LOL thanks Dave. I knew I was making it sound so much more complex than it needed to be. Move your butt to the left is a lot simpler than my ramblings. Sometimes folks ask me what time it is, and I tell them how to build a watch. I bet a little body position adjustment here and there will fix the OP right up. His hammock certainly sounds plenty long enough, even for a big guy.