Anyone into Sewing?

Tim Meehanwrote:

It's easy to sew new finger loops onto crack gloves as they blow out over time. I use the narrow nylon webbing commonly used for lanyards. I've kept my current Ocun gloves going for the past 4 years, though they are getting pretty manky from sweat.

not 100% sure, but i believe those are synthetic which means you could stick those in the washing machine...

A bag I made for a friend in NY. City slicker kinda guy so not super technical, but fun nonetheless.

Here’s a pack I just finished, I think it’s around 30L and specifically designed for multipitch climbs. I made it also so that the ice tool pieces and waist belt are removable so it has less things to snag on things while travelling. This was my first thing that I fully designed myself and was a shot in the dark, but I’m pretty happy with how it turned out. Definitely some modifications for the next iteration though. Made with EPLX400 and 100D ripstop.

A homemade chalkbag:

anyone have any experience enhancing the top flap of the Mountain Hardwear Alpine Light 28/35? It's pretty tiny and barely covers the cinch cord opening. If the bag is packed full the contents are exposed. Anyways, I'm just looking for a simple fix. Not waterproof. Just to keep out blowing snow. I have a sewing machine. I'll find some scrap of something. Just curious if anyone has done this before and had some experience to share. Thanks!

Made an ice screw roll with a stretchy dyneema flap to lock in the screws and a lil zipper pouch for screw caps, etc!

Alpine Chalk Bag

Used the prototype (black) on a few climbing trips to collect some feedback and took some learnings on the first one to make the next iteration (light blue). Changed the webbing, materials on the inside of the chalk bag and added a barrier to prevent chalk from leaking into the pocket. Used French seams to clean up the seams and changed the belt loop to what I think is a cleaner look.

Multipitch Rock Pack

First attempt at making a pack. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out and hopefully the lessons learned will help with future projects.

Haulbag I made

Really nice “bead” (?) around the bottom of the bag. I’ve often struggled with that in the past, any tips for that part of the construction? Looks super clean all around!

Yeah the bead did not come with out it’s trouble. I ended up taking the circumference divided by pi plus a 3/16 seem allowance to get the circle just the right size. It’s 3 inch webbing, there’s 2 inches on the main wall and 1 inch that wraps around the bottom. The webbing on the wall of the pack is sewn first with no bottom then I add the bottom and fold over the last inch. I find that more than 1 inch on the bottom pulls it all together much. Hope that makes sense.

I saw on an earlier you post you were going to bring the sewing machine on the road with you. I’ve been thinking the same, curios how that worked out for you?

Glad you made it over from Reddit Milo. I’ve posted this a few times, but here’s a poop tube i made from the same weight vinyl. It’s survived 3 trips up the captain so far. 

Milo Duffywrote:

Yeah the bead did not come with out it’s trouble. I ended up taking the circumference divided by pi plus a 3/16 seem allowance to get the circle just the right size. It’s 3 inch webbing, there’s 2 inches on the main wall and 1 inch that wraps around the bottom. The webbing on the wall of the pack is sewn first with no bottom then I add the bottom and fold over the last inch. I find that more than 1 inch on the bottom pulls it all together much. Hope that makes sense.

I saw on an earlier you post you were going to bring the sewing machine on the road with you. I’ve been thinking the same, curios how that worked out for you?

Ah this does makes sense! Thanks for the tech tip!

I have the machine in the van currently, it’s great. Slightly annoying to cut fabric in parking lots, but I’ve gotten used to sewing with less table space.

I just finished a bag the other day, and am working on another currently. It’s quite nice to have in the van when it’s rainy or you need a rest day.

Milo Duffywrote:

Haulbag I made

Impressive! I particularly like that flap you've got to cover the slot for the shoulder straps. What kind of machine do you have that can punch through all that material?

Pete Nelsonwrote:

Impressive! I particularly like that flap you've got to cover the slot for the shoulder straps. What kind of machine do you have that can punch through all that material?

Thanks! I have a sailrite lsz.

small haul bag made from dyneema. Really light and hopefully durable. Sending to a friend who climbs on the hulk a lot, so designed with that style of climbing in mind! All metal hardware from mozet, so thanks for the upthread rec with that supplier! 

Super clean design. Is that really DCF? Looks like challenge ultra to me?

Max Rwrote:

Super clean design. Is that really DCF? Looks like challenge ultra to me?

It is challenge ultra! Is that considered “dyneema”? Maybe I have my terms off

Matt Carrollwrote:

It is challenge ultra! Is that considered “dyneema”? Maybe I have my terms off

They’re both made of UHMWPE. Dyneema is a laminated version while ultra is woven with a separate film on the back. So technically they’re made of the same stuff.

I have a yard of ultra 400 i’ve been meaning to make something out of. However one of my buddies that sews with it often tells me the backing film is known to delaminate with time. 

Matt Carrollwrote:

It is challenge ultra! Is that considered “dyneema”? Maybe I have my terms off

Well...

"Dyneema" is a trademarked name for some specific fabrics built with Ultra-High Molecular Weight Polyethylene (UHMWPE) material like DCF and DCH. While Challenge Outdoor uses UHMWPE yarns in the Ultra fabric, it isn't "dyneema," hence their (and other companies) deliberate use of UHMWPE in all their marketing materials. In practice, UHMWPE is a total pain to say and type, and a lot of consumers use "dyneema" kinda like "kleenex" to describe any fabric made using UHMWPE yarn even though there's a huge variety of such fabrics on the market and "dyneema" is a trademarked name for a specific brand of fabrics. Other names for UHMWPE that companies have used over the years include "Spectra," "Cuben," and "Dynex."

On a functional level, there's a huge difference in UHMWPE fabric options. Some are made as pure laminates, some are made as woven laminates, some are pure UHMWPE, some are UHMWPE blends, etc etc. 

With regard to the delamination issues, the common factor I've seen is laminated fabrics with a film backer tend to delaminate in areas with repeated stress over the same spot, think roll-tops, creases, etc. The easiest way to resolve that issue is to use a woven fabric on anywhere that will see repeated stress (think a regular ripstop, packcloth, ballistic nylon, or similar). The other option that isn't quite time proven yet, but seems like the right direction, is to use a fabric like the UltraTX where it has a woven backing to the laminate rather than a film backing (like on the non-TX Ultra or a DCF fabric). I've been using a roll-top UltraTX pack I built for over a year of heavy use while guiding and I haven't seen any of the early signs of delamination that typically show up on a non-woven fabric. Time will tell, but I'm cautiously optimistic so far.

Great context, thank you both!

I’ve used the challenge ultra for a few things now, and we hauled a bag on el cap this year made from it. That bag is in fine shape, but I’ll check-in with some people who have the roll tops made with it.