So i have been interested in sewing a Quilt for my HH explorer asym for quite some time. I see alot of people on this sight with far more knowledge and experience than my own at sewing nylon, silnylon and m50/m90. i purchased enough 1.1oz Ripstop and some generic batting for insulation to do a mock up / trial run on a quilt. After an extensive search of this webisite and google, i thought i would ask for tips and pointers regarding how to sew the nylon. eventually i would like to try my hand at tarp making, down quilts, sleep systems for hammocks and ultralight backpacks. but for now i would just like to make a quilt and some ditty bags! i have experience sewing, i own a machine and do alot of hand stitching. my questions are these :

when sewing 1.1oz RS nylon, what size needle do you prefer?
what kind of thread? what are good stitches for hemming? straight? zigzag?
do you run the machine fast or slow?
whats your thread tension like?
what are your favorite fabrics and why? (cuben/nylon/silnylon, etc)

Thanks for the help! This is by far the most informative sight for people like myself who love to experiment in making my own gear -

-Thomas

when sewing 1.1oz RS nylon, what size needle do you prefer?

small one like #9?

what kind of thread? what are good stitches for hemming? straight? zigzag?

straight - flat felled seam and french seam are useful in different cases. zigzag for sewing webbing to nylon, but you don't want needle holes too close together, like 1 mm, or it will weaken fabric

do you run the machine fast or slow?

slow - I am a novice

whats your thread tension like?

normal - adjust so top and bottom threads are even like normal sewing

what are your favorite fabrics and why? (cuben/nylon/silnylon, etc)

1.1 oz silnylon 2nds for tarps, 1.1 or 0.9 oz for garments, some day I will do something with cuben but it requires special techniques, 2.5 or 5 oz Apex is pretty good synthetic, I've played with down a little which I used to be afraid of but isn't that difficult and has better warmth per weight

there are some articles on this site but you have to be a member

size 60/9 or 70/10 needles
i like thru-hiker's thread, the size 40 is good for everything (maybe a little heavy for quilts) The size 20 is awesome for quilts. you can also use guterrmond or metlers 100%poly you can buy local.
straight stitch set between 2 and 3 for length for all seams and hems, zigzag only for tie-outs
i run it full blast, but start slow until you get comfortable (keep tension on the fabric in front and behind the needle with your hands while you run it through)
keep the tension even so top and bottom look the same


cuben is easiest to work with, but expensive and has durability limitations
1.1 rip is my least favorite fabric for sleeping bags/quilts as it is sticky when you perspire and has poor dwr/wind resistance when compared to momentum90 or intrepid20D both of which i love. i am working with the new sevenD right now and it is very nice stuff, looking forward to using it more.

-Tim

I've used 9-10 needles with gutermanns with good results on both 1.1 silnylon and m90. For camping stuff I've only used the straight stitch, the only time I've used zig-zag is on stretch material like fleece and for overlocking the edge on seams on dress pants. I run the machine slow to start then speed up, I think it runs better and more even the faster I run it. Thread tension is normal, bottom is set so that the bobbin slips a little and the top to match. I've only worked on nylon, sil-nylon and m90, I like silnylon because the edges unravel less easily than regular nylon, even when singed.

Thanks everyone for your helpful responses! i will get to work on this project shortly and attempt to post some pictures of the finished product.

Hey, all. I came across this thread while searching for advice on sewing M90. I just got a small order from thru-hiker in order to start wrapping my head around working with UL materials.

I'm using a #9 needle and poly coated cotton (all-purpose) thread. It sounds like I need to switch to a 100% poly thread, which I will try post haste. I've worked straight and zig-zag stitches so far. Upper tension set around '4' on my Singer for the straight and 3.5 for the zig.

I'm having a lot of difficulties with seams so far. I will appreciate any suggestions.

1. Straight stitch, when I reverse the direction to backstitch the material bunches up
2. Zig zag doesn't seem to work at all, the stitch just fails to grab
3. Material bunches up in the presser foot

Thanks in advance!

Gutterman 100% Polyester is a good commonly available thread. Some other brands may be slightly better but less available.

#9 needle should be fine

Maybe your machine needs to be serviced, it shouldn't do that?

Sometimes you have to hold the fabric - one hand ahead of where you're sewing and one behind and feed the fabric through. That may avoid the fabric bunching up.

Is the tension adjusted properly? When you look at the stitch on both side of the fabric, it should be the same - the place where the top thread and bottom thread join should be in the middle of the fabric. If not, and this is a new to you machine, maybe adjust the tension of the bobbin to the middle, adjust the top tension to the middle, then sew and adjust the top tension until it's good. But it doesn't sound like this is your problem.

"2. Zig zag doesn't seem to work at all, the stitch just fails to grab"


This can be an issue of "timing". The thread as it comes out of the needle isn't being
picked up by the rotating hook under neath. For example, if the needle is adjusted to
sit higher in the bar holding it, this can happen.

Drop down the needle a fraction of an inch and try the zig zag. If this temporarily
fixed the problem, you need the machine timed.

Edited by oware on 10/05/2011 11:40:27 MDT.

Hmm, machine timing...to be clear, this is a cheap machine (singer prelude). It will pick up the zig zag on the backstitch, but not the forward stitch. Just bought the needle at Wally world, could be a slightly different length. I'll check that out!

I'm definitely a novice here, but 1 and 3 sounds like your presser foot tension could be set too high.

As for 2, are you certain the bobbin is threaded correctly? When I first set up my machine (older Kenmore, no manual) I had the thread in the bobbin case incorrectly at first such that things kind of worked then suddenly would go very wrong very fast.

I kept trying different needles until I found one that works.
I set the tension in the middle and would try plus 1, minus 1 on each needle.

I have a hobby Singer machine, but I finally got it to work.

> when sewing 1.1oz RS nylon, what size needle do you prefer?
#60

> what kind of thread?
Fine. I find Gurermann too heavy. I like Rasant 120.

> what are good stitches for hemming?
Straight. I do also use single-stitch and 3-stitch zigzag

> do you run the machine fast or slow?
Once I get the thread tension adjusted (NOT tight), fast.

> whats your thread tension like?
LOW, and always checked for each different fabric.

Cheers

Thanks everyone for the great advise. I think I'm ready to dig back into this with your gracious guidance.

And, speaking of silnyl...Thanks to David for the outstanding service. If I didn't know better I'd swear that you had winged horses running your deliveries! The shipment that you sent me on Monday night has already arrived, according to my wife!