View Full Version : Finished Gear (tarp, hammock, etc.)
Well, I thought I should share these with the community since yall provided the ideas. Many thanks to those who put in the time to write all the fantastic instructions!
I had never touched a sewing machine before I started these projects. I started with smaller projects and worked my way up. My stitching leaves much to be desired, but its functional!
So far I have made:
Stuff sacks
Hammock
Snakeskins
Jeff's All in one
Hex-cat tarp (thanks blackbishop!)
Anyway.. here are a few pics:
http://img393.imageshack.us/img393/3447/imgp1065ao9.jpg
http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/4663/imgp1063cj6.jpg
http://img367.imageshack.us/img367/1308/imgp1064vj2.jpg
http://img176.imageshack.us/img176/8937/imgp0978ub6.jpg
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/2638/imgp0981zc7.jpg
Just Jeff
03-18-2007, 10:21
I think your stitching looks great...especially considering how long you've been sewing. Or just that you have the guts to try, even...that's the hardest step for any of this stuff.
Great projects, too - and self-sufficient. It's pretty cool when folks ask where you bought your setup...and the look on their faces when you tell them you made it. (Then they start figuring up how much they spent on their gear that they're almost happy with.)
Great job...thanks for the pics.
Great job.
To mirror what Jeff said, I am also a fan of making everything you can. My goal some day is to make a complete hiking kit where I made everything non-electronic or footwear.
FanaticFringer
03-18-2007, 11:10
Sweet pics. You should be darn proud.
blackbishop351
03-18-2007, 11:29
VERY nice stitching. Especially on the corner patches - those are the toughest part IMO. Great job!
Bird Dog
03-18-2007, 12:23
Good looking projects. Hope the stitching on my first few come out as good as yours. BD
headchange4u
03-18-2007, 12:34
Looks great. Even made yourself a hammock stand. You are ready to go!
very nice indeed!!! i wish i had that talent....am a woman who is totally useless when it comes to sewing....:(
Good looking projects. Hope the stitching on my first few come out as good as yours. BD
If it helps..
I dont pin anything when I sew. I just work very slow, a few inches at a time. The grosgrain trim on the tarp was BY FAR the hardest thing I have done. It took hours.
Also, Bird Dog, you can see the butt of our pointer in the hammock pic above. :)
A couple more notes...
The tarp weighed in at 15.85 ounces before seam sealing. 12 foot ridgeline. The grosgrain trim added about 2.3 ounces, but the edges feel bombproof now.
The green hammock w/ straps weighs in at exactly 16 oz. (Is this a little heavy?) It is sized for people ~6'4" tall.
All fabric is $1/yard walmart special.
Those weights are similar to mine. I'm not into super ultra feather weight stuff, though.
Perkolady
03-18-2007, 17:37
Your home made gear looks WONDEFUL !
I only hope mine comes out as good when I get going on mine...
Thanks for showing us- you should be very proud:)
Perkolady
Bird Dog
03-18-2007, 18:03
If it helps..
I dont pin anything when I sew. I just work very slow, a few inches at a time. The grosgrain trim on the tarp was BY FAR the hardest thing I have done. It took hours.
Also, Bird Dog, you can see the butt of our pointer in the hammock pic above. :)
I noticed that the first time I saw the photos, but wasnt quite sure what it was! :D
Thanks for the advice. BD
Dingus Khan
03-18-2007, 18:40
As someone learning to sew homemade gear, let me just say this - YOU ARE MY HERO! (and there is hope!!)
I have been toying with little stuff and time to move on to bigger... thanks for the encouragment and proof that DIY is possible, one Walmart-1$/yard at a time!
NCPatrick
03-18-2007, 19:10
Great job. You give me hope that sometime soon I'll be able to do the same type of thing.
You should have seen me over the weekend trying to sew a rolled hem on my Cat Tarp... I was running out of thread and then noticed that the rolled hem was traveling and making the side straight. I seam ripped and started over, then my machine randomly jammed (I don't think it ever had before, for me). I ended up yelling a lot and throwing the hammock across the room. I think I am going to use grossgrain instead of a rolled hem. It will look better anyway. I just need to get thread now.
Peter_pan
03-19-2007, 06:50
Machines don't "randomly " jam.. try cleaning it... try replacing the bent or burred needle... try getting a better quality thread.
Pan
I have thread from Thru-hiker, the needle is brand new. It may need to be cleaned. It was really weird the bottom thread gained a whole lot of tension and then the top thread started to make large loops on the bottom. My old machine use to do that. Never could figure out why. It did it all the time, which is why it is my old machine. I only had that POS for one month before it started doing that, but it was a very cheap machine.
Peter_pan
03-19-2007, 07:48
I have thread from Thru-hiker, the needle is brand new. It may need to be cleaned. It was really weird the bottom thread gained a whole lot of tension and then the top thread started to make large loops on the bottom. My old machine use to do that. Never could figure out why. It did it all the time, which is why it is my old machine. I only had that POS for one month before it started doing that, but it was a very cheap machine.
These are symptoms of a burred needle....you may not notice it but the machine, running at 300-1200 stitches per minute does.
Pan
Hmmm. Brand new needle and already burred. The old machine had a burred bobin and I was too lazy to find the replacement for it. It was also an excuse to buy a nice new one (had just got my Master's and got a job). The other one went to a hiker in need.
BOT: BB do you think it is easier to do a rolled hem or the grossgrain around the edges?
blackbishop351
03-19-2007, 09:56
You should have seen me over the weekend trying to sew a rolled hem on my Cat Tarp... I was running out of thread and then noticed that the rolled hem was traveling and making the side straight. I seam ripped and started over, then my machine randomly jammed (I don't think it ever had before, for me). I ended up yelling a lot and throwing the hammock across the room. I think I am going to use grossgrain instead of a rolled hem. It will look better anyway. I just need to get thread now.
As Pan says, that's likely a bent or burred needle. Change it out. Also try oiling the shuttle hook underneath.
I wouldn't recommend using grosgrain as a replacement for a rolled hem. Trim is a good idea for strength, but only in addition to a good hem.
stoikurt
03-19-2007, 09:58
I think the tarp still has a rolled hem whether it has the grossgrain on it or not.
I have exactly the same problem when my bobbin is running out (tight bottom thread, top thread loops on bottom followed by jam). Basically when my bobbin is below 1/4 full it is useless not matter how I adjust the tension. I guess it is a symptom of another problem but the only solution I have for now is switching to a full bobbin then it works fine again. It is kind of annoying having a bunch of 1/4 full bobbins laying around though, I wish I knew what the real problem was.
blackbishop351
03-19-2007, 10:03
I have exactly the same problem when my bobbin is running out (tight bottom thread, top thread loops on bottom followed by jam). Basically when my bobbin is below 1/4 full it is useless not matter how I adjust the tension. I guess it is a symptom of another problem but the only solution I have for now is switching to a full bobbin then it works fine again. It is kind of annoying having a bunch of 1/4 full bobbins laying around though, I wish I knew what the real problem was.
Sounds like your bottom thread tension might be too low. Then again, I'm not a machine expert :p
You should have seen me over the weekend trying to sew a rolled hem on my Cat Tarp... I was running out of thread and then noticed that the rolled hem was traveling and making the side straight. I seam ripped and started over, then my machine randomly jammed (I don't think it ever had before, for me). I ended up yelling a lot and throwing the hammock across the room. I think I am going to use grossgrain instead of a rolled hem. It will look better anyway. I just need to get thread now.
I did both a rolled hem and the GGR. I did a rolled hem about 1/4 inch wide. I used 1" GGR. Pin the seam first. The cat curve is the hardest to roll and sew at the same time. This is coming from the guy that hates to pin.
Check you bobbin tension for the thread issues.
It was just that one time, so it was probably something I did that was stupid.
Yeah, I did a rolled hem and then added the grosgrain trim. I used Mettler's 100% poly thread. I dont know if mettler is any better than other threads. I just used it because Hancock fabrics is going out of business and had 500 yd spools for $2.
It's pretty cool when folks ask where you bought your setup...and the look on their faces when you tell them you made it. (Then they start figuring up how much they spent on their gear that they're almost happy with.)
Great job...thanks for the pics.
I went on a trip this weekend. A ground dweller asked if my hammock was the same as my friend's. My friend was in a Hennessey Asym. It is gratifying.
question... are you letting the pick up foot pull the fabric into the machine...or are you hand feeding it in...i had simular problems with mine and the cause was me...i was applying too much tension by hand onto the fabric..and this caused the system to foul up....just an idea good luck
I finally finished my smaller version of the BlackCat. I had originally decided to make an 9'x8' poncho, that I was going to call the El Gato, but I felt it was going to be too clumsy. So I just made it into small cat cut tarp. I will post pictures, probably, tonight.
question... are you letting the pick up foot pull the fabric into the machine...or are you hand feeding it in...i had simular problems with mine and the cause was me...i was applying too much tension by hand onto the fabric..and this caused the system to foul up....just an idea good luck
I guide it with my hands, but I do find myself pushing or pulling at times. I try not to do that, but sometimes it takes some effort to get the fabric to move in the correct direction.
Last night I had similar problem while fixing a sweater for Chantelle. But it was the result of the sweater material getting pulled down. It happened on the back stitch and the fabric was puckering (seems to happen easily on the back stitch).