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  1. #1
    Senior Member DemostiX's Avatar
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    Speedy Stitcher--Not quite useful kit from Sportsman's Guide

    That would be the Deluxe Stiticher Kit 0.9 WX2-1079 for about $20 from Sportsman's Guide.
    Why? It is for leather, not fabric.
    • Mounted thread already is coarse (and tan), not black and fine
    • 180yds of extra thread for the "kit" is more of the same
    • Two included needles, curved and straight both have three sharp cutting edges. They are for sewing leather, not for fabric, which they will cut up.
    • Two spare needles are duplicate , for coarse thread, and again, expressly for leather.


    So, nice awl, but I'll be going out for needles and waxed black thread appropriate for fabric.

    All that said, the OTHER Speedy Stitchers from SG may come with non-cutting needles. Like the WX2-8409, the one with the bobbin in front, for $9 less. Or the most expensive kit, with multiple bobbins.

    Made in the USA...... to go extinct. Is someone at Stewart too stubborn to just label and distinguish the products so the customer knows what is in the box and chooses the right product?
    Last edited by DemostiX; 04-16-2012 at 10:45. Reason: change tone and title

  2. #2
    Senior Member DemostiX's Avatar
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    Awl for All C.A. Myers Co.

    Turns out there is another US manufacturer of hand sewing awls, buried (here) in the google search results.

    http://www.awlforall.com/merchant2/index.html

    Contrary to a belief expressed in another thread, it seems this century-old design, with bobbin up front, is not an earlier Speedy Stitcher, but from another company altogether.

    Compare the offerings of thread, needles, and parts with those of Speedy Stitcher, and it isn't close. C.A. Myers wins, easily.

    Unfortunately, it is all a blur to and the same to Sportsman's Guide, not the fault of Speedy Stitcher or C.A. Myers.
    Last edited by DemostiX; 05-05-2012 at 13:33.

  3. #3
    Senior Member BillyBob58's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by DemostiX View Post
    Turns out there is another US manufacturer of hand sewing awls, buried (here) in the google search results.

    http://www.awlforall.com/merchant2/index.html

    Contrary to a belief expressed in another thread, it seems this century-old design, with bobbin up front, is not an earlier Speedy Stitcher, but from another company altogether.

    Compare the offerings of thread, needles, and parts with those of Speedy Stitcher, and it isn't close. C.A. Myers wins, easily.

    Unfortunately, it is all a blur to and the same to Sportsman's Guide, not the fault of Speedy Stitcher or C.A. Myers.
    Just ordered one, along with an extra pack of extra fine needles. Thanks for the tip.

  4. #4
    Senior Member UncleMJM's Avatar
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    Rats. One more thing I don't have yet. Good point on the fine and extra fine needles and threads.

  5. #5
    Senior Member
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    The one I have from Harbor Freight(?) has a more or less universal chuck that I think I could put a sewing machine needle in. Are the others like that?

  6. #6
    Senior Member SmokeBait's Avatar
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    Have had the same awl for multiple decades. Great tool and have repaired all sorts of gear with it. Have even pieced together a knife sheath. Everybody should have one.

  7. #7
    Senior Member DemostiX's Avatar
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    Per another thread here, any regular sewing machine needle can be put in the chuck. Besides being smaller, it will also be shorter, but not a problem.

    I was recently to an independent and very busy fabric store with vast stock, and picked up a 5 pack of Schmetz 90/14 jeans / denim sewing machine needles for $3.00. (Plainly a mis-mark, as most needles there were $5 / pack. But the low price sticker didn't stand out among other labels on products from West Germany, yes, stickered by a clerk there twenty years ago.

    I doubt JoAnns carries NOS like Stitch 'N Sew (Lakewood, NJ). How could they if they haven't been around for 60 years?

    ---------
    Lots of previous generations must have had sewing awls as part of the home kit. There's no shortage of them on ebay, still in the box.

  8. #8
    Senior Member WV's Avatar
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    Somebody (JustJeff?) posted that a sewing machine needle alone makes a great lockstitch awl for trail repairs, and I've been grateful ever since. It's worth picking up a Speedy Stitcher or Awl-for-All to develop your lockstitch skills with something that's easier to hold onto.

  9. #9
    Senior Member JohnSawyer's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by WV View Post
    Somebody (JustJeff?) posted that a sewing machine needle alone makes a great lockstitch awl for trail repairs, and I've been grateful ever since. It's worth picking up a Speedy Stitcher or Awl-for-All to develop your lockstitch skills with something that's easier to hold onto.
    Brilliant Idea!

    3 minutes, a drill bit, a Jeans needle and a scrap of wood later:

    A 1/4" piece of dowel might work, too...
    "Do or do not, there is no try." -- Yoda


  10. #10
    Senior Member DemostiX's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by JohnSawyer View Post
    Brilliant Idea!

    3 minutes, a drill bit, a Jeans needle and a scrap of wood later:

    A 1/4" piece of dowel might work, too...
    Wait a minute....maybe that toothbrush handle didn't have to be sacrificed for weight savings after all!! With a hole drilled in the end for that emergency sewing needle, (and a second larger, full-depth hole for storage).............

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