tarp hem question

**Brian** · 11-08-2008, 20:14

You really do need to roll it - if you sew the GGR straight on the fabric, if/when the tarp flaps around in the wind, that snapping effect puts and enormous amount of load of the fabric and will pull the ribbon right off the fabric as it unravels due to the force.

For that roll, it doesn't need to be a perfect job, so if you pin it/iron it to get it close, and give it a roll or two, it should be fine. Then apply the GGR and hopefully it won't be too puckered.

I ruined my first few tarps before I realized that you had to roll it, so let our mistakes be your knowledge!

Brian
OES

**lenle01** · 11-08-2008, 20:21

Would you suggest sewing the ggr flat or fold it over the edge to hide the nylon hem?

**TeeDee** · 11-08-2008, 20:26

Originally Posted by GrizzlyAdams

nice tip TeeDee, thanks.

I could have used this last night when I was putting a double-roll hem on a parabola-shaped end-cap, made of sil. The gentle curve of a cat-cut tarp has nuthin on the small turning radius at the bottom of this parabola!

Like anyone trained in real analysis I approximated the curve with a sequence of straight line mini-hems <grin>

Grizz

Grizz - have you used sil for end caps before? If so, have you had any condensation issues? Or other issues using sil for the end cap? Have you used in the summer? What is your main reason for sil for the end caps?

I've always used DWR for the end caps. I've thought about using sil, but always had other uses for the sil I've got. I've heard a myth about WallyWorld having $1/yrd sil, but never been able to confirm the myth

. In fact, I've never even found a $1/yrd bin at the WallyWorlds I've visited

. The 1.3 oz sil would help hold the weight down.

And yes, that parabola bottom is a PITA.

**GrizzlyAdams** · 11-08-2008, 21:48

Originally Posted by TeeDee

Grizz - have you used sil for end caps before? If so, have you had any condensation issues? Or other issues using sil for the end cap? Have you used in the summer? What is your main reason for sil for the end caps?

These are endcaps for a hammock sock, winter use. Last winter I had a sock (for a larger hammock), and used sil at the ends for that. Worked out fine. Seems to be far enough away from my head to not be a problem, and I put in "always on" ventilation in both of these.

Main reason for using it is higher resistance to wind than DWR.

I'm not so sure that DWR is so "breathable" in the winter, in this context.
The inside of the sock is 5-10 degrees warmer than the outside, seems to me that vapor is going to condense and freeze on the inside of DWR just as readily as it does on sil.

Grizz

**Ramblinrev** · 11-09-2008, 10:29

I have had nothing but bad luck and frustrations with rolled hem feet on a straight let alone a curve. I find them worse than useless... But I have no strong feelings about that.

Grosgrain ribbon is not the easiet stuff to use on a curve in the first place as the weave likes to seek a straight line. There is enough give in the narrower grograin to do curves. Sewing it first to the raw edge is the best option _but_ do your best to sew it very close to the edges of both the ribbon and the tarp. The closer you sew to the curve the easier it will be to fold it cleanly.

I do not care about the grosgrain contrast edge. It looks classy but I don't need it. I will substitute bias tape or twill tape for the grosgrain. Either of those take curves way better than grosgrain. For the loss of strength, I double roll the hem. I like the look and the tarp is, IMO just as strong. To some degree it is a "whatever floats your boat" choice.

I could also suggest therapy for the flatness OCD. But then there are times when I exhibit CDO. (That's "obsessive compulsive disorder" for those who need everything in alphabetical order.)

**gibmo** · 11-10-2008, 19:24

Thanks everyone. I'll do it right and roll hems. I'll try ironing and ignore (I hope) the puckers.

**Iafte** · 11-10-2008, 20:12

I go slow, and only roll the section just before it gets sewed(Err, Gear Stiched?), it makes it alot easier. trying to pre-roll always gave me trouble. In the end, I have little to no puckers and what puckers I do get, I can sew them flat.

*Note: This is the way I do it, and as far as I know, I could be wrong, but it works for me.

**JaxHiker** · 11-11-2008, 09:24

Sewing gg on curves sucks. I was doing a bag with sports nylon (think gym bag type material I guess). I'll be damned if I didn't have to rip the stitches in the middle of the curve several times. I kept thinking I was getting it only to pull it off the machine and realize I'd missed the nylon once again.

**RTR** · 11-11-2008, 18:39

Originally Posted by JaxHiker

Sewing gg on curves sucks. I was doing a bag with sports nylon (think gym bag type material I guess). I'll be damned if I didn't have to rip the stitches in the middle of the curve several times. I kept thinking I was getting it only to pull it off the machine and realize I'd missed the nylon once again.

That is why I am just going to do a triple rolled hem on my tarp edges. Seeing as how I am the one doing the work I know my skill level and I am sticking to the "KISS" rule on this one for sure. Straight (well almost

) stitches are my bag baby. Maybe my next Tarp will have some nifty GG and Cat Cuts. Anyone know the weight of the average GG per yard or when added what it added to the over all weight of the tarp? Also anyone think that a triple rolled hem will be over kill as opposed to the run-o-the-mill rolled hem (Double)