Print PDF
Favorite
Email
Step 5A Note About Sewing
So, here's the thing about sewing:
Don't worry if you've never sewn a stitch in your life. Once you've got your six sides cut out, you're over some of the harder steps. Or more precisely, if you gotten this far, everything else will be easy.
You'll need:
a sewing machine
good scissors
lots of nylon thread, preferably UV resistant
needles--hand, machine
a seam ripper
lots of pins
a good magnet (easier to deal with pins)
a tape measure/sewing measure
something to mark on fabric with
1. SEWING KNOW-HOW:
I never sewed before I made this tent. If you're in the same boat, read up on the subject a little online or in a book, but most importantly, start by sitting down with a well-tuned, definitely working machine and learn to make some straight stitches on scrap material.
For my sewing training I looked at the owner's manual for my mom's machine to figure out how to thread and adjust it, then I looked at the old tent and how its seams were made, and then tried to duplicate them. I also went to a fabric shop with some scraps from the tent and talked to some employees there about what I wanted to do and they showed me how to make a couple of basic seams too.
Getting a zipper foot and learning how to use it seems like it would be helpful--I didn't have one and my zipper seams are functional but kind of ugly.
You can figure functional sewing out in under an hour, so just jump right in. Once you're making the tent if you mess up, you just rip the stitches out and start again...but you probably won't need to do this if you practice a little.
2. Access to a decent machine is critical. I recently picked up a used Brother and started making some bike panniers and a few dry bags with it and it SUCKS! Doing any project with a Chinese-manufactured piece of crap will make you hate life and the whole project which is tantamount to hating the Will-to-Make-Stuff that comprises every decent human being's most basic drive (that's right; Freud got it wrong.)
I borrowed my mom's 1970 Singer Athena 2000 to make the Pretty Great Tent and it's a beaut! I plowed through a few thicknesses of ripstop and webbing with it with no problems...I also made a water and impact-resistant hardcase for my camera and a backpack with it, and if it wasn't 2600 miles away now I'd be making the panniers with it. So if you're trolling for a used machine I highly recommend it.
But, my friends, Beware of the Singers from the Russian Years...that's all I'm saying on that topic.
On the other hand, if you want to make a lot of outdoor gear for yourself, family, and friends, a commercial machine is better--though it's a bigger investment. I'm currently waiting for the right deal on a commercial machine to come down the pike myself...
If you own or get a free junker though, don't worry--you can still make tents with it. A piece of crap machine like my "Brother" could probably handle most of the sewing on the tent, but doing the corners, and sewing webbing in require power.
I talked to someone who runs a Bernina sewing store who said that their Swiss-made machines can sew a seagull to a cinder block, but even the old used Berninas cost way too much ($1200++). ***But, the store owner told me that instead of buying one you could sign up to use the store's machines by the hour. She recommended doing the lighter sewing on your piece of junk at home, then bringing the tent in and sewing the corners and webbing and such with the brick-stitchers at the store to save cash.***
3. I used a denim needle on most of the seams and zippers.
4. I bought a big spool of UV-resistant nylon thread online from Outdoor Wilderness Fabrics--a great, cheap source--and used it for all of the sewing.
5. Glues and such gum up the needle and aren't necessary--I just pinned all of my seams together and then sewed them. It can be slow, but it seemed worth it.
6. You could try using some sort of waterproof seam sealer tape as you sew. I didn't bother because I'm cheap, I planned to have a fly that would keep the tent dry at the bottom of a lake, and because I painted on seam sealer once I was finished (just mix up 100% silicone in a 4-5:1 ratio with mineral spirits and paint it on when you've got the tent set up.)
Don't worry if you've never sewn a stitch in your life. Once you've got your six sides cut out, you're over some of the harder steps. Or more precisely, if you gotten this far, everything else will be easy.
You'll need:
a sewing machine
good scissors
lots of nylon thread, preferably UV resistant
needles--hand, machine
a seam ripper
lots of pins
a good magnet (easier to deal with pins)
a tape measure/sewing measure
something to mark on fabric with
1. SEWING KNOW-HOW:
I never sewed before I made this tent. If you're in the same boat, read up on the subject a little online or in a book, but most importantly, start by sitting down with a well-tuned, definitely working machine and learn to make some straight stitches on scrap material.
For my sewing training I looked at the owner's manual for my mom's machine to figure out how to thread and adjust it, then I looked at the old tent and how its seams were made, and then tried to duplicate them. I also went to a fabric shop with some scraps from the tent and talked to some employees there about what I wanted to do and they showed me how to make a couple of basic seams too.
Getting a zipper foot and learning how to use it seems like it would be helpful--I didn't have one and my zipper seams are functional but kind of ugly.
You can figure functional sewing out in under an hour, so just jump right in. Once you're making the tent if you mess up, you just rip the stitches out and start again...but you probably won't need to do this if you practice a little.
2. Access to a decent machine is critical. I recently picked up a used Brother and started making some bike panniers and a few dry bags with it and it SUCKS! Doing any project with a Chinese-manufactured piece of crap will make you hate life and the whole project which is tantamount to hating the Will-to-Make-Stuff that comprises every decent human being's most basic drive (that's right; Freud got it wrong.)
I borrowed my mom's 1970 Singer Athena 2000 to make the Pretty Great Tent and it's a beaut! I plowed through a few thicknesses of ripstop and webbing with it with no problems...I also made a water and impact-resistant hardcase for my camera and a backpack with it, and if it wasn't 2600 miles away now I'd be making the panniers with it. So if you're trolling for a used machine I highly recommend it.
But, my friends, Beware of the Singers from the Russian Years...that's all I'm saying on that topic.
On the other hand, if you want to make a lot of outdoor gear for yourself, family, and friends, a commercial machine is better--though it's a bigger investment. I'm currently waiting for the right deal on a commercial machine to come down the pike myself...
If you own or get a free junker though, don't worry--you can still make tents with it. A piece of crap machine like my "Brother" could probably handle most of the sewing on the tent, but doing the corners, and sewing webbing in require power.
I talked to someone who runs a Bernina sewing store who said that their Swiss-made machines can sew a seagull to a cinder block, but even the old used Berninas cost way too much ($1200++). ***But, the store owner told me that instead of buying one you could sign up to use the store's machines by the hour. She recommended doing the lighter sewing on your piece of junk at home, then bringing the tent in and sewing the corners and webbing and such with the brick-stitchers at the store to save cash.***
3. I used a denim needle on most of the seams and zippers.
4. I bought a big spool of UV-resistant nylon thread online from Outdoor Wilderness Fabrics--a great, cheap source--and used it for all of the sewing.
5. Glues and such gum up the needle and aren't necessary--I just pinned all of my seams together and then sewed them. It can be slow, but it seemed worth it.
6. You could try using some sort of waterproof seam sealer tape as you sew. I didn't bother because I'm cheap, I planned to have a fly that would keep the tent dry at the bottom of a lake, and because I painted on seam sealer once I was finished (just mix up 100% silicone in a 4-5:1 ratio with mineral spirits and paint it on when you've got the tent set up.)
| « Previous Step | Download PDFView All Steps | Next Step » |
 |
Add Comment
|
