Hammock "lump" on knee

[packeagle]

Ok. So while I wait for my new WBBB I have been playing with my diy hammock using knottys whipping directions. No matter what I do I can't get the hammock to be comfortable for my legs. The inside always has a ridge that digs into my knee calve area. I have tried the w whip and the standard whipping in the past. I have played with the adjustable structural ridgeline currently set at 109" for my 11'x60" hammock body. I have adjusted to many different diagonal lays. Nothing is working. Anyone have a suggestion?

[Bomber]

If you can't get rid of the ridge, try putting a fleece shirt under the area.
If that fails, try using a pad(i have a exped dam, which -when in the hammock- completely removes any pressure) It does however come with a cost - less overall comfort(IMO)

[BillyBob58]

Well, other than hanging the foot end a good bit higher, sounds like you have tried about everything.

Have you tried a much shorter RL length, like 100 or 98"? And have you tried a pillow under your knees?

If the WBBB does not work for you, it might be time for a bridge hammock.

[MrClean417]

You've pulled the side folds farther before whipping, making the hammock shorter towards the sides and longer in the middle? This also gives me sides that are a little hard to get out of. Sometimes I get that ridge in my DIY but I usually just get up and sit back down with my rear end a good deal to one side or the other. Make no doubt, the center of your weight is going to stretch that section with more load, making it tighter, then any other part of your body. I sometimes wake up, comfortable, but with on leg dangling out the side of the hammock. I only assume that because its only partially lower then the rest of my body it's the only reason I haven't cut off circulation, but it should indicate just how far sideways I get. Dang thing IS 5 feet wide, why we shouldn't use more of it then just the center I don't know.

Now, I've been using less and less pillow under my knees just because I don't want to carry everything I use at home. I've got a king size pillow that used to go under my knees AND I was quite comfortable that way, and a little pillow under my head. Then I woke up hugging the big pillow and went to a smaller stuffed pillow case. Figure it would resemble a cloathes bag for hiking instead of a uni-purpose thing. I get more ridges that way then with the big pillow. Eh, I'm a hugger what can I say.

You might try a full size to king size pillow under your knees as well. It will spread out the fabric at that point and may change your load. This may also be a construction issue with your hammock that you will find eliminated with the Blackbird. I know it seems simple AND was really. Just gather up the ends and whip them. Then I found out how little bitty differences could really affect the lay. Dang near didn't get the hammock back to where I liked it originally when I started screwing around with it. Then again, if you never experiment you'll never learn. Sleep in my DIY every night now since I made it. It's worth the effort. My big dog thinks so to and he climbs into bed with me every night for an hour or two. I wake up in the morning to my newest cat jumping in for some early morning snuggling. If I have other visitors (and I do) I usually don't notice them. Well, I notice when the Grand Daughter climbs in. Two years old and all elbows an knees, the little wiggle worm.

I know the above is a bit rambly, but I'm spit balling and hoping that something might make sense. We don't have a campfire going that we can all think around, so just imagine one and let the thoughts go. Something WILL pop up and you'll have your answer.

[Catavarie]

I had this occur the last night I spent in my hammock. The solution for me to to raise the foot end at the tree about 6 inches and extend the suspension about 6 inches as well. So this increased my hang angle and decreased the stress on the hammock body, thus causing that ridge in the middle of the hammock to disappear.

For full disclosure I have the head end of my hammock gathered via Knotty's method and the foot end is whipped with an accordian style folding with corners pulled about 4 inches to tighten up the sides. I've found this to be very comfortable and keeps TQ and feet from falling off the edges.

[Big Jim Mac]

Maybe not your problem but on my hang this week I had a ridge down the center, I was able to lay at an extreme angle which took care of it. In the morning took the hammock down and noticed I had it twisted on one end.

[Knotty]

I find that with longer hammocks the ridge under the calf is less prominent. Plus like MrClean suggests you can often avoid the ridge by moving your butt more to one side or the other and/or front to back. Pillow under the knee is the easiest solution.

[BillyBob58]

I find that with longer hammocks the ridge under the calf is less prominent. Plus like MrClean suggests you can often avoid the ridge by moving your butt more to one side or the other and/or front to back. Pillow under the knee is the easiest solution.

Of non-bridge hammocks I have used, the one with the least problem like this and most consistently without it is the HH Safari. Which is by far the longest hammock I have used. I say consistently, because all of my non-bridge hammocks can vary from one time to another, probably having to do with how I lay in the hammock. As already said, how much to one side vs being centered. ( seems like less pressure when being more to one side). Following my Safari for lack of calf pressure are some of my other long- but not as long- models. So length does seem related.

But there is one exception: My deep and stretchy Speer 8.5 has never had any calf pressure problems. I wonder why? I still need a pillow, because there is some knee hyper-extension(H-Ex), but no calf pressure and only 8.5 ft long.

With this thread, it has occurred to me that this problem, and related problems like heel pressure and knee H-Ex, make up by far the largest number of complaints I see regarding hammock comfort. Seems that way to me anyway, though I sure have not tried to make a count. And sometimes some folks just can not get rid of leg pressure problems. And sometimes we have to use a pretty good sized pillow to completely solve it, which can be a hassle at best. I have had (rarely) smaller "pillows" fail to solve the problem.

A bridge hammock is totally free of these types of problems (for me) every time. As well as free of any waist "twisting" problems while side sleeping. Yet bridge hammocks have never really caught on here. I'm thinking they make up a small % of hammock ownership. And I certainly realize that bridge hammocks have their own downsides very often: lack of shoulder room, spreader bars to keep up with and which might rub against the tarp, often can't go very fetal, etc. But if the above(leg pressure) really is the most common PITA, then the lack of popularity of bridge hammocks is kind of surprising.

[Jcavenagh]

BB58 - I, too, think that complaint is the most prevalent. But as to why bridge style is not more popular, I think it has more to do with weight and packability. I am not a gram weenie since I mostly canoe camp. But a lot of folks here are hikers and are always looking to shave pack weight and size.
Just MHO. I could be wrong. Lord knows, I used to be right a whole lot more often...then I got married and discovered how wrong I was so much.

[MrClean417]

BB58 - I, too, think that complaint is the most prevalent. But as to why bridge style is not more popular, I think it has more to do with weight and packability. I am not a gram weenie since I mostly canoe camp. But a lot of folks here are hikers and are always looking to shave pack weight and size.
Just MHO. I could be wrong. Lord knows, I used to be right a whole lot more often...then I got married and discovered how wrong I was so much.

I'm not a gram weenie either, but I am a forgetful fool. Bridge hammocks have extra pieces that I would surely forget and then where are ya? They sure look comfortable though.