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Homemade Gear/Sewing/Thread-Injecting Thread

Check out curtain backing. It's coated with PVC to block light. A bit stiff at first but does loosen up. I made a camper awning from it.

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Thanks for that, nice set up.
I will use this as a backup if my mad sciencing fails me. It is my curse to bypass a great idea in order to make a more expensive and messy project that will most likely fail.
Hi Ho, Hi Ho. Off to the hardware store I go
 
I have a question ,more about fabric than machines. I want to make some waterproof-ish tarps for camping, To quickly cover gear is case of crappy weather. I saw online that it is possible to treat bedsheets with a Silicone caulk cut with Toluline and let dry. Sort of a poor man's sil-nylon.
The idea appeals to me to try but a quick search shows Toluline is hard to find. That worries me a bit. Is it legal to buy and use it?
Have any of you tried this?
If it works it might be a good material to test and modify items before using more expensive fabrics. Also to use as quick covers when weather turns unexpectedly
Oh and here is my machine. Yes it is a Husky!
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Is this for bike camping, or for RV/car camping? I think a coated bed sheet would take up a lot of space, relative to a silnylon tarp. It's also going to make quite a mess to seal the whole sheet. I know that silicone mixed with mineral spirits or toluene has been used for seam sealer when making tarps. The ridgeline and pull-outs usually need to be sealed after sewing.

That Husky needs the Norden yellow stripe.

The real question: For those that have sewn/attached nylon webbing... I have a dry bag backpack that can strap onto my bike via four straps with camlocks.

From the manufacturer, one strap was not sealed well enough at the end and frayed on a road trip. Halfway through the trip, I got pissed off and cut the strap about one inch from the sewn point. As it's a dry bag, I am afraid to try to remove the strap and redo it. I've considered sewing it back on with a hand Awl or maybe just doing grommets.

Has anyone tried either?

If the strap is already sewn on, you can sew on a replacement. Or is it sewn to a patch of material that is then bonded to the dry bag? That will be harder to fix, but still doable. Worst case, you can sew the new strap on, and use a seam sealer on the stitches to keep water out. It may not survive being submersed, but it would keep rain out.
 
I just finished sewing up another seat cover for my Tracer. I did a new one for the Dirt Ninja a couple weeks ago as well. Both seats needed some work. The Dirt Ninja had a gap between the Ninja seat and the Versys tank, so I had to close that. The Tracer needed a better seat for long days in the saddle. I got by through 4 years so far, but it was time for a change.
The Nakajima made these two covers much more manageable. Trying to sew multiple layers of vinyl on the Janome was a struggle.

d3MNnu-0j4DU4O14yPS5FbqOVN-ZA_R1nSM2LfswQxvwl=w800.jpg

JcK6FKRjX-tiFDh2eyRqBf-kUSUdGSAmLQm84YigR1OKi=w800.jpg


0c0yhmxuqoVgw73It7d0vmH1lB1oIXuIYShyspLgvbtvj=w800.jpg

FAMHbJz6kFix4czApA-iS7H0ocY1C9teaIJJN7eCgAF7z=w800.jpg
 
Is this for bike camping, or for RV/car camping? I think a coated bed sheet would take up a lot of space, relative to a silnylon tarp. It's also going to make quite a mess to seal the whole sheet. I know that silicone mixed with mineral spirits or toluene has been used for seam sealer when making tarps. The ridgeline and pull-outs usually need to be sealed after sewing.
Both.. For years I have bike only camped solo, 60k miles worth only 650. But Recently I have been bringing the enduros in the truck with my son and camping/ riding in the hills. We still tent and minimalist camp . He gets his license this summer so soon we can take the bigger bikes and leave the truck home. But for now the truck gives me both the advantage of cargo space and time to experiment Plus having a diesel heater to keep the tents warm and dry extending our season is kind of nice. Bedsheets fold pretty small and a king size sheet is roughly 9'x9' without seams. plenty big to test some ideas. The semi waterproofing will help with determining how water pools and runs off of our creations without wasting expensive material. The sheets are a learning tool, not a permanent piece of kit

Oh and Mess? Bwahahahahahaaa I have a plan!! LOL
 
I just finished sewing up another seat cover for my Tracer. I did a new one for the Dirt Ninja a couple weeks ago as well. Both seats needed some work. The Dirt Ninja had a gap between the Ninja seat and the Versys tank, so I had to close that. The Tracer needed a better seat for long days in the saddle. I got by through 4 years so far, but it was time for a change.
The Nakajima made these two covers much more manageable. Trying to sew multiple layers of vinyl on the Janome was a struggle.

d3MNnu-0j4DU4O14yPS5FbqOVN-ZA_R1nSM2LfswQxvwl=w800.jpg

JcK6FKRjX-tiFDh2eyRqBf-kUSUdGSAmLQm84YigR1OKi=w800.jpg


0c0yhmxuqoVgw73It7d0vmH1lB1oIXuIYShyspLgvbtvj=w800.jpg

FAMHbJz6kFix4czApA-iS7H0ocY1C9teaIJJN7eCgAF7z=w800.jpg
I'm really happy with the Yamaha Comfort Seat on my FZ09 ( first bike seat I've ever been completed happy with) but the upholstery they used is a weird velour type stuff that holds water. Maybe I should recover it. I REALLY like the honeycomb pattern on your Tracer seat. Did you stitch that pattern or was it already on the material you used?

You did a great job there, man 👍
 
If the strap is already sewn on, you can sew on a replacement. Or is it sewn to a patch of material that is then bonded to the dry bag? That will be harder to fix, but still doable. Worst case, you can sew the new strap on, and use a seam sealer on the stitches to keep water out. It may not survive being submersed, but it would keep rain out.
It is a sewn to a bonded/welded panel. I am more worried about doing excessive damage trying to remove the threads. And it is so thick I'm not confident I could get through it, the panel, and an additional strap with a sewing awl. Hence the idea of small grommets attaching the new webbing strap onto the end of the strap I cut short.

My hand sewing sucks. I replaced the old plastic flip cam locks with metal ones and sewed them on with fishing line. That is an ugly mess that would make Betsy Ross vomit. (This was before I found a sewing awl I had inherited from my dad years ago.)

This bag is used for camping on and off the bike. The main purpose is to keep stuff dry in a downpour. If it's ever submerged, then I fell over in a water crossing! L
 
Both.. For years I have bike only camped solo, 60k miles worth only 650. But Recently I have been bringing the enduros in the truck with my son and camping/ riding in the hills. We still tent and minimalist camp . He gets his license this summer so soon we can take the bigger bikes and leave the truck home. But for now the truck gives me both the advantage of cargo space and time to experiment Plus having a diesel heater to keep the tents warm and dry extending our season is kind of nice. Bedsheets fold pretty small and a king size sheet is roughly 9'x9' without seams. plenty big to test some ideas. The semi waterproofing will help with determining how water pools and runs off of our creations without wasting expensive material. The sheets are a learning tool, not a permanent piece of kit

Oh and Mess? Bwahahahahahaaa I have a plan!! LOL
Well, if it's an experiment, then go for it! I'm all about trying new stuff just 'cuz!
For packing on the bike, I'd go with a 9x12 or 12x12 in silnylon. Those will pack up to the size of a baseball or tennis ball, depending on what weight fabric you use.

I'm really happy with the Yamaha Comfort Seat on my FZ09 ( first bike seat I've ever been completed happy with) but the upholstery they used is a weird velour type stuff that holds water. Maybe I should recover it. I REALLY like the honeycomb pattern on your Tracer seat. Did you stitch that pattern or was it already on the material you used?

You did a great job there, man 👍
I rode a Tracer with the comfort seat. It didn't seem like a big enough improvement in comfort for me. And it had that same faux suede material that seemed problematic to me.
I did stitch the honeycomb pattern. It took quite a bit of time to draw up the stencil (went through several versions to get the hexagons to be the same size...) then stitch it and not make mistakes...
It is a sewn to a bonded/welded panel. I am more worried about doing excessive damage trying to remove the threads. And it is so thick I'm not confident I could get through it, the panel, and an additional strap with a sewing awl. Hence the idea of small grommets attaching the new webbing strap onto the end of the strap I cut short.

My hand sewing sucks. I replaced the old plastic flip cam locks with metal ones and sewed them on with fishing line. That is an ugly mess that would make Betsy Ross vomit. (This was before I found a sewing awl I had inherited from my dad years ago.)

This bag is used for camping on and off the bike. The main purpose is to keep stuff dry in a downpour. If it's ever submerged, then I fell over in a water crossing! L
If you use a thread ripper carefully, it won't cause much, if any, damage. You could possibly bond another patch with the right type of cement, but some of those adhesives are pricy! The grommets might work. It won't have the strength that the strap material, but should be strong enough to hold the bag to the bike.
 
If you use a thread ripper carefully, it won't cause much, if any, damage. You could possibly bond another patch with the right type of cement, but some of those adhesives are pricy! The grommets might work. It won't have the strength that the strap material, but should be strong enough to hold the bag to the bike.
Since it's only one of four straps, I think the grommets would work well enough. I've ridden with three straps and there is just a tiny bit of wobble if I grab the bag with my hand, so this is just to be safe. The bag only cost $56 on a Black Friday sale. So I'm not too worried about appearances.

Thank you for your thoughts!
 
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