Will just any polyester thread do?

[johnspenn]

I'm getting ready to start se... er I mean... injecting thread for the first time since 7th grade Home Ec. I don't know shtuff from shinola at this point.

I'm starting with RBTR's grab bag, going to make some stuff sacks. My intitial question is- what kind of thread do I need? Can I get what I need locally at JoAnn's or similar places, or do I need to special order it from DIY places like RBTR and etc?

Thanks and thank you all for inspiration and willingness to share and help!

[Caminante]

I like the Mara 70 from RSBR and others, it's a little heavier than what Joann's sells. Having said that, I've used the Guntermann sew all poly thread from Joann's and found it to be fine.

[Intimidator]

I like the Mara 70 from RSBR and others, it's a little heavier than what Joann's sells. Having said that, I've used the Guntermann sew all poly thread from Joann's and found it to be fine.

Yep. For stuff sacks etc, sew all is perfectly fine.. All I used til I got a collection of Mara 70

[Bubba]

I've used Gutterman's sew all polyester thread from my local sewing store for everything I have sewn so far. I'd like to pick up so Mara 70 but I've not had any issues thus far. The sew all will do for most DIY gear.

[Kpi890]

Sew all should work just fine for you for the time being... Having said that you'll get the DIY bug within a week and want to start making hammocks and tarps. That is when you'll want to starting looking at Mara 70 and for some heavy load occasions Mara 50. My machine actually sews much better with the Mara 50 so I use it almost exclusively for all my projects. Good luck with your projects!

[DrPhun]

Get the free thread from rbtr witnyour order.

[Ramblinrev]

For the most part any high quality polyester thread is fine. Avoid the big box stores like Walmart and such as they buy in huge quantities and thread has a shelf life. Stored properly, low light, dry and temperature controlled the shelf life can be quite long. But I don't trust them folks to store their thread properly. A sewing center or Joanns type store is much more likely to keep threir thread supply fresh as they need the good will of their customers. If you are sewing commercially for other people then you may want to be more precise about the thread choice, but for my own projects... I don't get that fussy.

[xrayit]

Old thread or mishandled thread causes too many issues with my tension controls also tends to fuzz up at the needle. If I get these symptoms the first thing I do is toss the thread and get a fresh spool.

[johnspenn]

For the most part any high quality polyester thread is fine. Avoid the big box stores like Walmart and such as they buy in huge quantities and thread has a shelf life. Stored properly, low light, dry and temperature controlled the shelf life can be quite long. But I don't trust them folks to store their thread properly. A sewing center or Joanns type store is much more likely to keep threir thread supply fresh as they need the good will of their customers. If you are sewing commercially for other people then you may want to be more precise about the thread choice, but for my own projects... I don't get that fussy.

Thanks for your advice. Your video series was instrumental in getting me to try this myself.

Just so I'm clear- you think the Gutermann sew-all (I got the extra strength) would be ok for say a channeled end hammock with three seams?