We’ve tested a handful of camping hammocks now, and the Coleman Lightweight Sling Hammock is the worst of them. It’s light and packs into its own pocket, but the fabric feels flimsy, and hanging it means tying your own knots with the rope that comes in the bag.
Here’s what we found, and which hammocks we’d pick instead.
What You’re Getting
A single parachute-nylon hammock, 148 × 220 cm, that stuffs into an attached storage pocket. Instead of tree straps, it comes with a hang kit of two nylon ropes and two steel carabiners. Coleman rates it to 180 kg. We paid $55 at Anaconda.
What we like
- Small and light, 511 g
- Stuffs into its own pocket
- Carabiners included
- Parachute nylon, rated to 180 kg
What we don’t
- Fabric feels flimsy
- Ropes instead of tree straps
- Wrong knot can lock solid
Quick Specs
| Spec | Details |
|---|---|
| Brand | Coleman |
| Model | 1419652 |
| Fabric | Parachute nylon |
| Weight | 511 gwith ropes and carabiners (our scale) |
| Max load | 180 kg |
| Size | 148 × 220 cm |
| Packed size | 18 × 20 × 6 cm |
| Hang kit | Two nylon ropesTwo steel carabiners |
What’s in the bag
Instead of tree straps, the hammock comes with a hang kit of two nylon ropes and two steel carabiners. Everything stuffs into the attached storage pocket, and with the ropes and carabiners it weighs 511 g on our scale.
Setting it up
This is where the Coleman falls behind. The other hammocks we’ve tested come with tree straps you loop around the trunk and clip on. The Coleman comes with plain rope, and you make your own knots to tie it onto the carabiners.
Make sure you use the right knot. If you tie one that pulls tight with no easy way to undo it, it locks itself completely once you’ve had your body weight in the hammock for a few hours, and you’ll struggle to get it off the tree.
Fabric and comfort
Once it’s up, it holds you, but the material feels flimsy compared with every other hammock we’ve tested. It’s thin and light, which keeps the weight down to 511 g, but it doesn’t give you much confidence. The finishing isn’t great either: ours came with loose threads hanging from the stitched edge. It’s pretty snug as well: at 148 × 220 cm it’s a small single, not a roomy hammock. On the plus side, the attached pocket doubles as the stuff sack, so there’s nothing separate to lose.
Conclusion: Coleman Lightweight Sling HammockConclusion
The Coleman Lightweight Sling Hammock is light at 511 g and packs into its own pocket, but it’s the worst hammock we’ve tested. The fabric feels flimsy, and instead of tree straps you get rope you have to knot yourself, where the wrong knot locks solid after a few hours of use. At $55 it costs more than better options like the Mountain Designs Double Hammock or the $30 portable single hammock, so we’d only consider it if you already own tree straps and want a small spare.
The weakest hammock we've tested: flimsy fabric and a rope hang kit you have to knot yourself.
It's light and packs small, but cheaper hammocks do the job better.
- Car campers
- Hikers
- Backpackers
No. I paid $55, and for less you can get a hammock with proper tree straps and stronger fabric.
