In a market increasingly dominated by larger brands with overseas manufacturing, Warbonnet Outdoors kills the competition with American-made hammock camping gear that’s built to last a lifetime.
It’s no secret that the best hammock camping gear comes from cottage companies — small, often home-based businesses with a handful of employees who craft everything by hand in small batches.
If you’re picturing a couple of bearded guys with bandanas and camo pants hunched over sewing machines, you’re not too far off the mark. To be fair, there are plenty of women in these workshops with bandanas and camo pants, too (minus the beards).
Of the countless cottage companies in the hammock camping market, Warbonnet Outdoors reigns supreme. These guys have been producing superior lightweight gear since 2008, and their focus on quality and rugged reliability has catapulted them to the front of the pack.
Their success has also allowed them to expand production and hire more skilled workers, so they’re able to offer hand-stitched quality with less waiting time than many other cottage companies.
About Warbonnet Outdoors
Brandon Waddy started Warbonnet Outdoors back in 2008. He had a vision of outfitting fellow outdoor enthusiasts with comfortable, durable, long-lasting gear, made right here in the USA.
“I started Warbonnet with the goal of making a better camping hammock. Turns out I just love designing gear and bringing it to market no matter what it is,” Waddy said when asked about the company’s inception.
Over a decade later, Waddy’s company remains laser-focused on those same founding principles. Warbonnet Outdoors is committed to constructing lightweight, top of the line sleep systems with every product uniquely designed with the customer in mind.
Best of all, their products are still constructed in Evergreen, Colorado, and the company sources American materials as much as possible.
Warbonnet Outdoors’ focus on quality has set them apart since the beginning. To this day, every single stitch in their hammocks, tarps, and quilts undergoes a rigorous step-by-step quality control inspection before leaving the warehouse.
Making products in small batches lets them retain full control over the manufacturing process, resulting in high quality products and consistent customer satisfaction.
Innovation plays a major role in the company’s success, too. Their product designs represent the cutting edge of hammock camping gear, harnessing new technology, manufacturing techniques, and creative ideas to shed weight, optimize performance, and boost longevity.
Here’s what Waddy had to say about Warbonnet’s mission: “Our goal as a business really is to stay competitive and relevant in the industry while manufacturing our own products ourselves, right here in the US.”
So, if you’re looking for durable, reliable, comfortable, and unique hammock camping gear that’s second to none in quality and craftsmanship, look no further — Warbonnet Outdoors has you covered.
Warbonnet Outdoors Gear
Warbonnet Outdoors specializes in premium lightweight hammock camping gear. They offer everything you need to dive into the world of hammock hanging, including hammocks, tarps, underquilts, top quilts, and suspension systems.
Hammocks
Warbonnet Outdoors offers five hammocks to suit your style. The Original Blackbird is, as the name suggests, the hammock that originally launched the company to success. The gathered-end hammock features an integrated NoSeeUm mosquito net that fully unzips on the entrance side, and can be folded over the side when not in use.
Fans of the classic model looking for a longer hammock can upgrade to the Blackbird XLC, which is large enough to fit 6’6” campers. The Blackbird XLC offers a larger footbox, a unique storage shelf just like the Original Blackbird, plus an integrated bugnet that can be completely removed with ease.
If you need the extra length but consider the Blackbird XLC too heavy, switch to the Eldorado. This hammock streamlines the design and eliminates the storage shelf to shave off unnecessary weight, while still providing a comfortable hang for tall campers up to 6’6” tall.
Of course, if you really want to drop unnecessary weight there’s the Traveler. This simple, no-frills gathered-end hammock (sans bugnet) fits campers up to 6’6”, offering the lightest possible setup for ultralight backpackers.
Finally, for those who find traditional gathered-end hammocks uncomfortable, there’s the Ridgerunner — a bridge-style hammock that offers a flatter lay. It has two saddlebags on the sides for gear storage, a removable NoSeeUm mosquito net, and baggy end caps for additional storage. This hammock is probably a little too heavy for most backpackers (especially weight-conscious ones), but it’s great for car campers.
Tarps
The beauty of hammock camping is you don’t have to carry a heavy tent in your backpack. But what happens when the weather turns on you, bringing wind, rain, or snow? Simple — set up a minimalist shelter with a rain tarp.
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Warbonnet Outdoors offers a variety of hammock tarps, from simple overhead shelters like the Mamajamba to hardy all-weather shells with door flaps like the Superfly. You can go with a stock tarp for faster shipping, or tailor a design to your liking with a custom tarp.
Underquilts
If you’re new to hammock camping, the concept of underquilts and top quilts is probably foreign to you. Here’s what you need to know: using a traditional sleeping bag in a hammock compresses the down insulation while you sleep, leading to the dreaded Cold Butt Syndrome.
The solution is to cut the traditional sleeping bag in half to create two quilts, covering the bottom of your hammock with one and draping the other over the top of you like a comforter. Intuitively, those are referred to as underquilts and top quilts.
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Top quilts are fairly universal, but bottom quilts work best when they mate with the design of your hammock. Warbonnet Outdoors makes this very simple by offering two primary underquilts. The Wooki fits their Blackbird, Blackbird XLC, Traveler, and Eldorado hammocks, while the Lynx is designed specifically for the bridge-style Ridgerunner hammock.
Backpackers who only need a half-size underquilt to cover their torso (usually in conjunction with a seat pad to insulate your legs) can opt for a Torso-Length Lynx or the Yeti. The latter is the half-size equivalent of the Wooki, designed for the Blackbird, Blackbird XLC, Traveler, and Eldorado hammocks.
Like most of their products, you can choose from stock underquilts for faster shipping or build your own custom one.
Related Read: Enlightened Equipment: Leading a Revolution in Hand-Made Performance Gear
Top Quilts
Warbonnet Outdoors only has one top quilt, and it’s a strong contender for the best top quilt on the market.
The Diamondback features the company’s patent-pending Constriction Point Baffle pattern — a series of constrictions in the vertical baffle pattern that isolate the top and bottom halves of the quilt. This prevents down shifting to keep the 850 fp goose down in place better, and it allows you to overstuff one (or both) halves for extra warmth and comfort.
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The Diamondback is available with a sewn footbox or a zippered footbox, the latter allowing you to completely unzip the quilt to function as a traditional comforter. You can also build your own custom Diamondback top quilt.
Hammock Suspension Systems
Warbonnet Outdoors offers a couple of hammock suspension systems, including the popular Dynaweave Whoopie Suspension and the ultrasimple Becket Straps. Both are top of the line, ultralight hammock suspension systems, but we should warn you — they’re advanced suspension systems that are best reserved for experienced hammock hangers.
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If you’re new to hammock camping, this is the one place we’d recommend shopping elsewhere. Start with a simple pair of daisy chain straps (see our list of the best hammock straps to see some examples), then upgrade to an advanced Warbonnet Outdoors suspension system when you’re ready to up your game.
Other Accessories
Warbonnet Outdoors offers a variety of camping accessories, including hammock pillows, lightweight stuff sacks, and ultralight Titanium V Stakes. They even carry the Tensa4 Hammock Stand (a third party product) for campers who don’t want to bother with the hassle of dialing in the perfect hang angle between two trees.
Customer Reviews
If you can’t tell from the overall tone of this article, we’re fans of Warbonnet Outdoors. Members of our staff have used their gear for years, so we can personally attest to its quality and reliability. But don’t just take it from us — we’re not the only ones delivering a five-star review. Here’s what some of their customers are saying about them:
“I’ve slept in darn near every commercially available camping hammock and I own one, or more, of most of them. The Blackbird is without a doubt the most comfortable, well constructed, and convenient one of them all. I love my Birds!” — Kris M.
“Awesome staff, fantastic workmanship quality, friendly, fair prices, and exceptionally diligent getting orders to the customer.” — Carmen W.
“33 weeks pregnant, best sleep I’ve had in months!” — Monica W.
“Couldn’t be more satisfied with my gear and your top notch service. Extremely fast shipping, only took 7 days or less from the time of order on two separate occasions…would highly recommend this company to anyone.” — Dylan James
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We tried to find some negative reviews to offer a fair, balanced perspective, and here’s thing — there wasn’t a single bad review out there. The only gripes we saw involved orders taking a little longer than anticipated, but even those reviews were positive!
The customers reported that Warbonnet Outdoors contacted them ahead of time to inform them of the delay, and they were all satisfied with how the process was handled. So, kudos to the customer service team for turning potentially negative situations into positive customer experiences.
Shipping And Returns
Warbonnet Outdoors has a fairly liberal return policy. Stock items may be returned for any reason within 30 days of shipping. The company will issue a full refund for the purchase price, not including shipping costs. You can return custom equipment within 30 days for an 80% refund (there’s a 20% restocking fee).
Note that returned items must be in new, unused condition. Gear that appears damaged from use or smells funky will still be accepted within 30 days, but you’ll get a reduced refund to account for the fact that they can’t resell the gear as new. So if you’re unsure about your new equipment when it arrives in the mail, don’t take it out for a test run — return it right away.
As for shipping, most domestic packages arrive within 3-5 business days via USPS Priority Mail. If you’re in a rush, you can upgrade to Express for 1- to 2-day shipping. For international orders, expect to receive your shipment within 1-2 weeks.
Warranty And Repairs
Warbonnet Outdoors is serious about their gear being built to last a lifetime, so they back their products with a lifetime warranty. The lifetime warranty covers defects in materials and workmanship for the practical lifetime of the product. Items with defects will be repaired or replaced for no charge.
The lifetime warranty does not include damage caused by neglect, accident, misuse, improper care, normal wear and tear, or natural breakdown of materials over time. Only original, unmodified, and unaltered products are accepted for warranty work, so think twice before you permanently modify one of their products.
Fortunately, there’s a silver lining for folks who don’t qualify for regular warranty work. If your gear needs repair due to improper care or accident, Warbonnet Outdoors will repair the gear at a reasonable rate.
Conclusion: Two Thumbs Up
Warbonnet Outdoors is a one-stop shop for premium hammock camping gear. These guys can outfit you with everything you need — hammocks, tarps, top quilts, underquilts, and suspension systems — and you can trust that you’re getting the best lightweight gear on the market. Their innovative equipment is built to last a lifetime, so you can justify spending a little more on their American-made gear knowing it’s a lasting investment.
Ready To Start Hammock Camping?
We wholeheartedly recommend buying all of your gear from Warbonnet Outdoors, but to be fair there are other great options out there, too. When you’re ready to assemble your hammock camping arsenal, check out our favorite hammocks, tarps, top quilts, underquilts, and suspension systems.
