I’m thinking about a try at a 90 type hammock using clews on the sides. Anyone ever tried that before?
I’m thinking about a try at a 90 type hammock using clews on the sides. Anyone ever tried that before?
There are 2 manufacturers who do it that way - HammockTent and Cross Hammock. Both started out as DIYers. The maker of the Cross Hammock is a member in the German hammock forum, where quite a few people made their own 90° hammocks. There are a couple of threads about the individual projects, but they're all in German. The clews work, but it puts a lot of stress on the fabric, and it's typically the first point where the hammock fails. I think most people ended up with stronger fabrics (at least 40D) for that reason.
My right angle hammock, which predated the Amok.
https://www.hammockforums.net/galler...hp?i=17328&c=4
There is a 2nd set of clews for the torso area of the hammock inside the yellow storage areas on each side.
Looks great wv. Have you stuck with it over time or how did pan out? If you’re using something else now which way did you go?
Good questions! The thing I liked best about the right angle design was adjusting the individual clews to produce crosswise ridges under my knees, lower back, and neck to make a comfortable contour, like a recliner. It took the sometimes uncomfortable part of a gathered end hammock - the diagonal ridge under my legs - and used it to advantage. Also, it was adjustable. When I started experimenting with bridge hammocks (thanks to the generosity of BER, who first sent a Eureka Chrysalis for me to try and then gifted me with a beautiful White Cloud bridge of his own making) I found that if I sewed in some pleats along the sides of the White Cloud it produced transverse ridges where the fabric was narrower. Varying the width of the fabric in select spots had the effect of distorting the catenary curve I had carefully created, so I ditched the catenary edges and used straight lines to form an angle (and hence a knee ridge) in the People's Bridge Hammock. Using three straight sections on each edge instead of two produced two interior angles and hence two ridges, one for the knees and one for my lower back. In practice, it turned out to be difficult to get the lower back ridge small enough to be comfortable all night long, and the distance between the knee ridge and the back ridge was calculated to fit my body shape, which meant the hammock didn't fit people taller or shorter than me. I found the best design for the PBH used just the knee ridge, supplemented by a pillow to adjust support for head and neck. That design has worked well for hangers of varying sizes, including very big ones (adjust material strength accordingly). The European model, or VBH (Volksbrückenhängematte), is similar, except the dimensions are in centimeters.
Head not spinning yet? There's more. I like the adjustability you get with tiny whoopie slings in clews made of hollow braid fishing line or kite line (spectra or dacron, respectively), so I tried making a bridge hammock that had a piece of fabric suspended between side tendons by lots of short clews. This design is the most comfortable so far, and it duplicates the contours of the right angle hammock. It's not for everybody, though - very labor intensive. Don't try this at home ... yet. Make a PBH first. You may never want anything else.
Gotta go cut fire wood. I'll look for pictures to post when I get back.
Here's a video clip of the adjustable bridge with clews along the sides. (I tried one that adjusts with clews only on one side. That works, too.)
This hammock has a layer of fitted insulation made up of irregularly shaped panels with Primaloft quilted to the individual pieces before they were assembled to form the curved shape of the hammock.
Would you say that the Dutch Chameleon is a rip-off of the Dream Hammock Sparrow? If your answer is yes, then the Cross Hammock is a rip-off of the HammockTent. But I guess in that case, the HammockTent is a rip-off of the Mayan hammocks, too. Very few products don't build on other products already existing or have no similarities.
By the way: the Cross Hammock is pretty unique in that it doesn't use 2 layers to hold a pad. It only has pad pockets on the head and foot end. You lie directly on the pad, which allows you to use pads of different heights in contrast to the HammockTent. Also, it's available in your fabric strength and color of choice. Plus it has actually been available for the past half year. The HammockTent was not available for months.
Last edited by hutzelbein; 10-23-2018 at 03:20.
Bookmarks