My Journey to Freedom and Ultralight Backpacking (24 page)

A
seam ripper
is actually a small tool with a plastic handle and sharp pointed end, tiny enough to "pick" out the smallest stitches. If you ask anyone working at a sewing department, they will show you. Maybe they call it a ripper because that's what you feel like doing. But, your patience will pay off when you pick out the seam and resew it neatly.
A
Candle
or other method is needed for heat-sealing the cut edges of silnylon and rip-stop. Some people use a hot knife or a soldering tool with flat blade. Allow the soldering tool to get good and hot, and keep the blade at a 45-degree angle, to prevent tearing. Place some protective board under the fabric to prevent marring of the cutting surface. Silnylon will catch on fire, so be very careful when heat sealing the raw edges of any fabric. While the tools are cooling, they are still capable of burning the fabric, so take precautions to keep your project well away from heat sources.
Other Useful Items
or things you might really like to have are paper or plastic
real size patterns
. These can be transferred from scale drawings to 2-mil plastic sheeting before tracing the figures directly to your silnylon. A
simple calculator
for figuring angles and weights is very handy, enabling you to double check figures if you have a basic understanding of geometry. An
electronic gram/ounce scale
for keeping track of weights on your projects in progress is good to have. I always keep
a pencil and notebook
handy to record notes as I go, for future reference. A
large work area, with table and space
to spread out the fabric, some good music and a pot of hot coffee, is a sewer's heaven.

   This book about ultralight backpacking and all the patterns have been copyrighted. They are the result of countless hours of sewing, designing, testing, and writing. A lot of energy, time and money have been spent on this project. Please respect my rights to this material, and do not copy it for another’s use.

   Hopefully there will be many projects you plan to try once you have the tools listed above to sew your own gear. I encourage you to start with something simple, especially if your experience with a sewing machine is limited. A ditty bag, or fleece watch cap would be a great beginning project. They require few seams, and not a lot of fabric. You can make either out of a remnant of fabric not suggested, just to get the feel for the instructions.

   There are several ways of doing anything. The directions here are my ways, in general, with compromise and consideration given for the benefit of a new sewer. Over the years, a person develops shortcuts, but I avoid describing the more difficult ones, and instead give the ones that are easiest to follow. Unfortunately, no video has yet been made for demonstration purposes. Hands-on is always the best teacher, but the written word has served to relay the world’s cumulative knowledge for centuries.

   If you passed kindergarten, you learned to follow directions. Sometimes, a whole page of directions seems to make no sense. At that point, simply stop, get a cup of coffee, and read the first line. Even though I encourage you to read everything before proceeding, to sort of see where you are heading, still it’s always one step at a time.

  Then, having read the first line, do it. Repeat all through the pattern. Soon, you will find yourself reading several steps, and seeing the trend, and proceeding with confidence.

  My method is to do everything possible to each single piece before adding it to the main project. That way, you are working with small parts, and combining them last. If a mistake is made on one detail before adding it to the main project, it will be much easier to fix, and you won't have to rip it all off if it needs redoing. I think you will be successful with this method.

  If you learned to ride a bike, you can learn to operate a sewing machine. I met one man who sewed extremely well, but he did everything by hand. His internal frame pack was an excellent product, but it took him weeks to complete. Learning to operate a sewing machine is a worthwhile endeavor, and each encounter will make the next one easier.

  There is no sewer alive who hasn't ripped out a seam, or discarded a mistake. If you see a large project you would like to try, but are uncertain, get some inexpensive material to practice with. F
abric can be manipulated easily with a scissors, needle and thread. It can be marked, pinned and tested. You can add fabric back to your project by using another seam, or you can take in another seam and trim it down. Field repairs are always possible, because you made it.

  The seam allowance is the fabric at the edge of the pieces where they are joined together by stitching. In some patterns, the seam allowance is 1 inch, in others it is only ¾ or ½ inch. Stay within the seam allowance to mark or baste so these aids won't show on the finished product.

Heat sealing the fabric edges.
  Unfinished cut edges of rip-stop nylon, siliconized nylon, web strapping or pack cloth will fray if subjected to pulling and friction. These fabrics are flammable, so be careful if you choose to heal seal the edges. Light a candle, and run the length of the cut edge about 1/4 - 1/2 inch away from the flame, but do not let it touch the flame. It will shrink back just a bit, and form a tight, crisp edge. Practice on a scrap first, being careful not to scorch or burn your fabric. It will be easier to do it piece by piece, rather than at the end, when the project is larger and more complex. By heat-sealing the fabric, you prevent raveling later on, and avoid problems of failing seams.
Seam Sealing

  One hundred percent silicone works best on all shelter fabrics. You can buy this in caulk tubes in the hardware department, which are designed to be used with a caulk-gun. Smaller, squeezable tubes are available, but they are more expensive.

  Place a small amount of silicone in a plastic jar lid. With one finger, or a soft application tool, spread the silicone smoothly into flattened seam. Be careful not to let the fabric get bunched up, or it will dry this way permanently. Within half an hour of application, recheck the seam to be sure it is properly set and not attaching to itself.
  Allow all seam sealing to dry completely before packing it away, for a minimum of 24 hours. If it is the least damp, it could become sealed together permanently.

Seam Finishing

  A good method of finishing seams on silnylon projects is to heat seal them, then double roll edges together and topstitch. This prevents raveling and strengthens the seam. If you are using a fabric blend that doesn’t respond to heat-sealing, you can either double roll the edge and stitch, or use a zigzag stitch to finish the edge, or use a pinking shears to finish the edge. If it is fleece or a knit, the seam does not require any finish. A second row of stitching, 1/8 inch from the first seam, is always a wise move on high-use items.

   This term I use to refer to an edge that is folded over once, then once again, so that the raw edge is tucked inside the seam. Usually this is used to form a drawcord casing. When double rolling to form a casing, stitch close to the edge folded under. This procedure will use up about one to one and a half inches of fabric.

 
This means sewing a preliminary seam with large stitches, a very useful procedure that allows you to see if the project is sized correctly.  If something is incorrect, large stitches are easier to remove with a seam ripper.

  Basting can also be used to hold many pieces together.  If you have several layers like a beak, door and screen that must all be sewn on to a canopy, first baste the beak, door and screen together, all facing upwards. Then, add it as one piece to the canopy. When basting, stay within ½ inch of the edge, which is within the normal ¾-1 inch
seam allowance
. This way, your basting stitches will not show when the project is complete. When the project is turned right side out, all seams allowances will be on the inside. When the basting is done, and checked for mistakes, you can sew the pieces on together with smaller stitches.

The Right Side
, sometimes referred to as the outside, is the side that will be visible when done. The
Wrong Side
, or the inside of the project, is the side which will not be seen. Mark on the wrong side. When right sides are placed together, touching each other, the seams will be sewn on the wrong side. Then the project is turned right side out, and no seam allowances will be seen.

  Reverse stitching to secure the ends of seams is like tying a knot. Backstitch periodically on large projects and seams that are under stress for reinforcement. If a portion of the thread gets broken, the whole seam will not come undone, and the stitches will stop coming lose where it has been backstitched.

The Fabric Content

 
This refers to the type of thread used in fabric. For backpacking gear, man-made threads like rayon, polyester, nylon, and spandex are preferred, being less likely to rot or shrink. Fabrics with little or no cotton content will dry quicker and hold less water. Sometimes percentages are listed, as in a 50% cotton/polyester blend.

Some General Sewing Tips
  Always
cut out the large pieces first. Allow an extra inch for seam allowances on all silnylon projects. Fleece and no- see-um netting will need only one-half inch seam allowances. From your scraps, you will be able to cut out the smaller pieces, stuff sacks, stake bags and fabric loops.
  Always be sure you are working on the correct side. Usually, right sides should be touching when sewing seams, so that the seam allowances are on the wrong, or inside of a project. Before cutting or trimming anything, remember the old adage "you can always trim away more, but it's hard to add it back on."

  Siliconzied rip-stop nylon can be quite slippery to handle, but following a few simple suggestions should make it a little easier. When handling bigger sections, place all the material in your lap. Match seams and feed through the sewing machine. Do not let the sewn sections fall onto the floor in the process. The weight will cause the fabric to slide away from you. In order to keep it in your control, have a table or desk to rest the finishing sections while you are in the process of sewing these long lengths. A mesh-silnylon interface is extremely slippery. Remember to concentrate on matching the edges, and feeding the narrowest section through the machine. The bulk of any project should be on your left, and not under the sewing machine itself.
  When using safety pins, try to stay in the seam allowance. This will eliminate any holes in the actual project. Always read through every section before beginning that step in the gear-making process. Try to visualize, even set up the components. If applicable, check to make sure you have the left side and the right side of the item. Especially with tents, make sure the inside and outside are correct. It is much easier to double-check than rip out stitches, and it saves on the amount of seam/hole sealing you will need to do later.

  No-see-um netting has a stretching factor both in width and length. If it is cut across the grain, at an angle, otherwise referred to as the
bias,
stretching or warping of shape will occur. Be careful when adding this fabric to a tarp or shelter. If it is stretched tight, it will cause binding of non-stretching seams. For this reason, always set up your shelter before adding final touches.

  And the last tip; a very important lesson learned the hard way, if you are tired, stop. Give yourself a break.

A ditty bag makes a great first project.  Make these ditty bags using scraps of silnylon, rip-stop nylon, or even no-see-em netting. All the sewing directions are the same.

Supplies:

Silnylon, rip-stop nylon, no-see-um netting

1/8-1/4-diameter cordage (100% nylon, acrylic, or polyester)

Cord lock

  Determine the size bag you will need and add 1 1/2 inch to these measurements for the top, bottom and sides for seam allowances. Lay out the fabric. Cut out the rectangular shape, at least 5 inches wide by 10 inches long.  Heat-seal edges, if necessary, by lighting a candle and passing the edge of the fabric within 1/2 inch of the flame. Hold the fabric firmly, and take care not to scorch.

  Hem the top edge, at the same time creating the cord-casing by folding 1 inch of fabric over, then turning 1/4 inch under and stitching close to the edge of the fold. This will be referred to as double rolling the fabric.

  Fold in half, with right sides together and the casing at the top. Stitch the side and bottom beginning just below the casing, turning the corner and going along the bottom, also. Always backstitch at beginning and end of seams. I also backstitch when I turn the bottom edge corner to add strength to the seams. Do a second row of stitching, if desired, 1/8 inch from the first row.

  Turn right side out. Using the cord threader described above, draw the cord through the casing. Put on the cord lock. Tie a double knot at end of cord, heat seal.