ROPE HAMMOCK = ZERO COMFORT CREDIBILITY
 

100 years ago, the rope hammock was introduced to North Americans by a plantation owner from North Carolina. 

This entrepreneurial gentleman, undoubtedly, noticed real hammocks from Central or South America, where they originated over 1000 years ago.  In the early 1900s, few people were able to travel abroad, but this man and his friends were world travelers.  

They knew that the idea of swinging horizontally was novel enough to sell the hammock concept to Americans, so rather than investing the time and energy required to make comfortable hammocks, they built a minimalist version known today as the common rope hammock. 

Before this intervention (anti-innovation) wooden spreader bars were not found in hammocks.  The addition of 2 wooden "spreader bars" provided a framework for a "quick sketch" of a hammock.  By eliminating the tight weave of traditional hammocks, the rope hammock, with its wide-open holes, could be produced in a fraction of the time.  This was purely entrepreneurial, but at such a cost-the total loss of comfort. 

People bought it!  They didn't know what they were missing.  They didn't realize that comfortable hammocks had already been perfected over a 900-year period, and that they were buying an utterly inferior knockoff.  Without a direct comparison, there was no way to know.  The prevalence of rope hammocks in America can be attributed to one main factor: Ignorance. 

Two companies dominated the rope hammock trade during the last century.  The marketing of the Pawleys Island Rope Hammock Company and Hatteras Hammocks is admirable.  Several others have copied their business model in the last few years.  There is not patent on a rope hammock, and it's easily reproduced for low cost and sold for high profit. 

Comfort has never driven the success of the rope hammock, but these two original companies and their successors have embedded an image in the minds of Americans by way of viral marketing and television.  They continue to profit from the ignorance of the American public today.  Travel anywhere else in the world where people know about hammocks - you won't find them made of rope! 

The rope hammock is an icon but it is an empty image.

When people see a rope hammock they wrongly assume that there is a built-in connection to leisure and comfort.  Few people who buy rope hammocks ever realize what they are missing.   

Fine, tightly-woven, hand-made hammocks have been around for over 1000 years.  They provide support by design, and restful, therapeutic comfort.  Real hammocks are woven by people who understand the nuances of design and the ergonomic requisites for comfort - people who use hammocks every day.

No one who is concerned about comfort would make a hammock from rope -no one who is concerned about your comfort.  Rope eliminates most of the benefit that a true hammock can provide.  Rope hammocks are a quick sketch of the real thing.  A poor copy of a copy of a copy of a copy.   

Real hammocks are not made of rope.  The best ones traditionally come from Central and South America.

However, anyone can make a fine hammock - anyone who follows careful guidelines of design can manufacture a fine hammock.  It just takes decades of experience and thousands of hours of study. 

You can buy a good hammock with wood spreader bars or without.  Everyone has a preference on this point.  The presence or absence of spreader bars is more about stability than comfort, though the two are connected.  The spreaderless hammocks are far more stable.  For sleeping, the spreaderless hammocks are superior – nearly impossible to roll out.  Hammocks with bars provide an “always open” look, and this is what some people really want.  Some people find these easier to navigate as well. 

The comfort factor isn't so much about the spreader bars- it is the weave of the hammock body that makes all the difference.  The tight “open weave” hammocks are most comfortable.  Mayan hammocks are the best example of the tight open weave hammock. Cotton is the best.  Synthetic materials never compare on comfort.  

Duracord® and Textilene® are fancy names for synthetic materials that subtract comfort from a hammock.  Synthetic materials don't outlast cotton to a degree that makes them a good choice.  All you get with a synthetic material is an uncomfortable hammock that lasts longer.  

There are no shortcuts to comfort!  Pay attention, or you'll pay too much and you won't be comfortable.  If you are aiming for comfort, buy hammocks DESIGNED for comfort.  Every retailer claims their hammocks are comfortable, so few companies can back it up.

Support established independent retailers who don't sell rope hammocks, as these are the people most likely to care about comfort.  Ask questions.  Mass retailers love to sell you the least for your $.  AVOID.

If you shop carefully, you CAN pay less and get more comfort value: by avoiding the rope hammock and companies promoting that empty image.

Whether you pay $13 or over $200 for a rope hammock, you have paid too much.  Buyer beware.