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Thread: Got thread?

  1. #1
    Senior Member dragon383's Avatar
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    Got thread?

    Heres a question for the professionals on the forum... when strength counts, what is the absolute best thread... nylon or polysester and what size.... for example: your building a hammock and you sew the 3 magical tripple rows in the ends for the channel... after all... your hammock is only as strong as its weakest link, and im not sure... but folks may not understand.... you can have a weight rating of 1000 lbs for the material that their using, but if the thread isnt up to the challenge, guess where your gonna end up! Thanks for any and all replys......Chris

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    Senior Member Fronkey's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by dragon383 View Post
    Heres a question for the professionals on the forum... when strength counts, what is the absolute best thread... nylon or polysester and what size.... for example: your building a hammock and you sew the 3 magical tripple rows in the ends for the channel... after all... your hammock is only as strong as its weakest link, and im not sure... but folks may not understand.... you can have a weight rating of 1000 lbs for the material that their using, but if the thread isnt up to the challenge, guess where your gonna end up! Thanks for any and all replys......Chris
    100% polyester thread for sure. I also like Gutterman's thread. Looking forward to pics dude!

    Fronkey

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    Senior Member Bubba's Avatar
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    Gutterman's 100% Polyester is what I see most recommended here.
    Don't let life get in the way of living.

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    Senior Member craige's Avatar
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    Re: Got thread?

    +2 on the the polyester, I use gutermann as well because it works well and is widely available.

    I just use the standard stuff for everything, no failures yet

  5. #5
    Senior Member Lost_Biker's Avatar
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    I use Gutermann Mara 70 Tex 40, 100% poly for everything. Never had anything break thread wise.
    I got in a fight one time with a really big guy, and he said, "I'm going to mop the floor with your face." I said, "You'll be sorry." He said, "Oh, yeah? Why?" I said, "Well, you won't be able to get into the corners very well."


    Underquilts.com

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    Quote Originally Posted by Lost_Biker View Post
    I use Gutermann Mara 70 Tex 40, 100% poly for everything. Never had anything break thread wise.
    +1

    I use it for everything used outdoors that requires strength.

    Shoulda used it for my convertible pants too, they're in the mending pile...

  7. #7
    Senior Member Ramblinrev's Avatar
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    Nylon thread can stretch and really play hob with the tension settings on the home machines. IMO I would rather have the thread break than tear the fabric. So I like the thread to be the "weakest link". If you have properly tensioned stitches of an appropriate length thread is very strong. Also IMO the strength of a seam is found in the fabric itself not the thread. The thread serves to hold the fabric in place so it can do its job properly. With three stitch lines you have built in redundancy. If the stitches in one line break you have two others to pick up. You need to be inspecting you gear anyway. So you can catch broken stitches before they get to a catastrophic failure point.
    I may be slow... But I sure am gimpy.

    "Bless you child, when you set out to thread a needle don't hold the thread still and fetch the needle up to it; hold the needle still and poke the thread at it; that's the way a woman most always does, but a man always does t'other way."
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    Senior Member dragon383's Avatar
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    Thanks for all the replies... I have heard of that thread. Time to place an order

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by dragon383 View Post
    ... after all... your hammock is only as strong as its weakest link...
    Quote Originally Posted by Ramblinrev View Post
    ... If you have properly tensioned stitches of an appropriate length thread is very strong....
    As this comes up from time to time, I decided to do a most unscientific test on the breaking strength of a Mara 70 stitch.

    I took two pieces of Mara 70 and looped then together as they would be in a stitch, attached them to a pull scale and a handle with multiple wraps to avoid knots and pulled slowly to failure.

    The thread broke at ~6 lbs.

    Ignoring the fact, that like Ramblinrev, I believe the end channel will provide more strength than the straight pull breaking strength of the thread alone ... using 8 stitches per inch would provide a straight pull breaking strength of 48 lbs per inch of channel.

    While entering a hammock, your weight may be concentrated on only a 16" width (wild guess) of fabric. 16" x 48 lb = 768 lbs breaking strength from a single row of stitching.

    I think we're good to go with three rows of stitching and any good quality polyester thread.

    Edit: did the same test with two additional quality 100% polyester threads frequently available locally.

    Gutermann Sew-All ~3.4 lbs

    Mettler Metrosene Plus ~4.4 lbs
    Last edited by gmcttr; 10-12-2013 at 10:47.

  10. #10
    Senior Member Ramblinrev's Avatar
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    There is a gospel object lesson I have used numerous times. (Don't worry I'll not give the message except in PM to anyone who requests it) One piece of thread is tied around a persons hands which of course is broken almost without effort. As successive wraps are made it quickly becomes impossible to break the loops. I had one guy try so hard he actually cut himself before he could break it. (I asked for the strongest guy is the school... he readily accepted and did not heed the request to stop. Macho fool.) In any event, the stuff can be pretty darn strong.
    I may be slow... But I sure am gimpy.

    "Bless you child, when you set out to thread a needle don't hold the thread still and fetch the needle up to it; hold the needle still and poke the thread at it; that's the way a woman most always does, but a man always does t'other way."
    Mrs. Loftus to Huck Finn

    We Don't Sew... We Make Gear! video series

    Important thread injector guidelines especially for Newbies

    Bobbin Tension - A Personal Viewpoint

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