How many people DIY their hammocks???

[Billiard Pete]

DIY hammocks???

What are the pros and cons.

[Fixxr5]

Pros.
I love making things of quality with my own hands, it is extremely satisfying.
Lots of colors, fabrics, types of construction, so many different ways to make them.


Cons.
I have to try every color, fabric, type of construction. It's an addiction
I love it.

[gargoyle]

I think everyone should do at least one.

You learn a craft. Or learn to hate a craft.
You'll have the respect of saying "I built this". Or say "I can't, but I can buy it". At the least, you'll learn to respect those that do make gear, and value your next purchase even more.

Sometimes you can save a $1 or $2. But if your starting from ground zero and need to buy everything, including the sewing machine, then it'll cost a lot more.
If you, or your friends and family, have a machine and you want to learn, I say go for it. Find someone with the sewing skills and ask them for some lessons? If you ask around, maybe someone you know has an old machine and will give it to you?

The benefits (beyond the personal satisfaction) are that you can tweak or redesign the hammock. At least design it the way you want. Who knows, maybe your idea will be the next great craze?

Follow some of the tutorials or "sticky" threads, do some research, maybe copy one of the sticky's? or take a bit from two or three sticky's. Combine them into one hammock?
If, after a bit of research, the diy bug sounds like its your thing, try it. You can invest a little or a lot.
You don't need a sewing machine. Several folks took the time and have sewn good gear by hand. It (sewing) is a great skill to learn and you can use that skill forever.

DIY can be addictive.
It doesn't need to be sewing either. Plenty of good gear comes from woodwork or steelwork. You can DIY shoes, jackets, hats, stoves, cook kits, food...the list goes on and on.

[The Old Boot]

I DIY'd ALL my own gear - tarp, suspension, bridge hammock with bugnet, quilts, compression sacks, backpack hipbelt and pack(s), stuff sacks, pillows, fleece liner and silk liner and my hiking pants and rain gear.

I do it for a couple of reasons - when I was researching gear I kept finding things I liked about model A and things I didn't. There were features I wanted that only Model b came with. And some of the stuff I wanted just wasn't in my price range like a luxurylite pack system.

I finally realized that if I wanted to get ALL the features I liked and none of the ones I didn't, I was going to have to make my own. That was the primary reason.

Second to this was that I could ensure that I had a superior product at a cost I could afford. I've spent just over $800.00 in material and supplies but of that almost $200 has been in shipping charges to Canada. I have enough material left over to fool around with or make some smaller items for friends.

Fortunately, I already had the sewing and design skills. Even more fortunate, I had access to all the brains here on HF - no new wheels were invented during the process...

The only 'con' I can think of is that nothing was instantly available...but then I did most of my work during a very long spring when I wouldn't have been out camping anyways!!

[XTrekker]

For me MYOG is the ultimate way to get the best gear. At first your skill at making the gear sucks horribly but over time it gets better and eventually you start making gear that suits your needs perfectly and looks how you want it to look. There just isn't anything better than custom made. Depending on how far you get into it, it can get expensive. I am already looking to upgrade my sewing maching and i'll be dropping $330+ to do so. Not to mention all the other tools I have acquired along the way adds up. Half decent pair of scissors cost $20+. These little things stack up over time. But I am having alot of fun making my gear. So even if my gear isn't as good a quality of what vendors offer, I still had fun making it and it's custom made for me. But DIY aint for everybody. Some just dont have the time or patience and that is why we have awesome vendors to look after you and get you what you need.

[aka.jobbe]

It is the pleasuer of being out there with somthing YOU made. And the proudnes of it....
When People ask wich hammock you have and you Tel you made it Your self. Proud

[dragon360]

Yep - set ups for myself my friends, their kids. Had a blast doing it.

[GDM]

Careful.... it is addictive!!! :-)

I recently built a couple hammocks, then accessories, PLUQ... Not only the pride that comes from building your own stuff, it is empowering overall - I look around the house and see something like my jacket and say, "I can modify that to suit my needs better"... Now I have "mods" planned to a pile of non-DIY stuff as well.

[CamRuns]

made my own hammock. I love it and when I accidentally rubbed it on the ground and created weak spots, I was so upset. Now looking at making another to replace it. I have a WBBB and I find myself reaching for the stuff I make over it. Don't get me wrong, I'm not good enough to do integrated nets, but it is now making me consider using non-integrated instead because I like my own stuff so much.

[SouthernExposure]

I made all of the hanging gear that I use. I enjoy the design and creation processes and try to make it perfectly the first time.

I also like the idea that I have dodged the pervasive retail bullet and have a high quality, custom made product at a fraction of the cost.

SE