For an upcoming thruhike I am looking to shed weight, but with low risk of fabric failure; what would be the next lightest material above monolite with potentially less chance of catastrophic failure? I need an 11 foot hammock due to my height, weight about 190 lbs.
I checked the reviews for monolite on ripstopbytheroll. There are pages and pages of people who have made hammocks that are happy with them. I totally get that a failure could happen but that could have been a freak accident or something in the picture above. That being said, I will definitely be careful with it and not hang over any sharp objects!!!
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I would recommend the 1.3 MTN fabric. Rated to 250# and would be approx. 63" wide finished. Our 1.3 sidezips have been coming in at about 14-15 oz.
My favorite hammock is a Dutch 1.4 Polyester that is no longer sold. I have a couple on ice if my current 1.4 fails. In general, I use 1.6 or 1.7 hammocks. I experimented with light weight fabrics, but the failure rate was astronomical - I don't want to replace a hammock after 12 trips.
"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." Ralph Waldo Emerson
I've had my Darien 1.3 MTN on too many trips to recall and it is no worse for wear. Fantastic fabric and build. The wraith hasn't been on as many being as new as it is, but I've no real concern on it holding up. The amount of people that crawled in and out of it at HC, as well as my own use doesn't make me think it won't hold up. I'm personally more concerned about snagging the .5 noseeum due to how soft it is than the monolite body, but that goes with the territory. It's a cutting edge build for those who want the lightest of the light and know what comes with it. It is by no means a beginner or inexperienced user piece of gear.
As an example, you read about and see people complain about DCF packs not lasting and abrading or a DCF tarp/tent getting holes easily. The material is not meant to slide against rocks or be poked by branches (tarp) or sticks on the ground (tent.) Proper use and care of gear comes in to play with these UL materials and is always a key element of how they perform and last. Do stupid stuff and treat them rough, yes you can have high failure rates. Take proper care and precautions, you're good to go.
Just my opinion of course - HYOH.
Last edited by cfx69; 02-21-2020 at 02:17.
In my experience those are facts, not opinions!
However as far as MikekiM's Monolite hammock incident, I've done plenty of trips with him and can say that he is very careful with his gear. We did an immediate post-rip run-down of possible causes (sharp/metal objects in pocket... even a pants pocket zipper... plopping down hard on it, stick poke, etc) and really couldn't come up with an explanation.
We were just glad it happened at a fairly "convenient" place and not on the Laurel Highlands trail where it would have ruined the trip.
That said, I am ambivalent about its long-term suitability. Trailheadz, DH and others are still making hammocks with it and RBTR is still selling the material, and nobody on reddit is caterwauling about it (yet!) so it must be working acceptably for a lot of people.
I just know that I personally will carry something made with a heavier material for a longer trip where bail-out is difficult and/or failure would totally ruin the trip, and especially when not carrying a back-up air mat for GtG. And I would not be carrying an air mat anyway unless I knew for sure (or thought it highly likely in an unknown area) that I would be GtG. It would be moronic (IMO) to carry an uber-light hammock and a 8-12oz back-up air mat only as insurance against hammock failure.
you and me both
"Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs. I am haunted by waters.”
― Norman Maclean
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