Dodger refurb

[wmcunninghamii]

Wingsail, ok, now I am really motivated. That dodger looks fantastic!

[JPA Cate]

Good morning wmcunninghamii,

Well, if you're going to get a machine, all those projects you mentioned will be more within your grasp. We have made cushion covers, a downwind rain awning (actually different ones on different boats), weather cloths, boom bag (on a 17 foot boom), hatch dodger, and dinghy chaps....and also sewed wrap-around skirts for locals in far off places. My background for that was sewing clothing for my family. [I bought a 2nd hand SailRite machine, from another cruiser, and making just the boom bag did more than pay for it.]

One thing I did learn, is that if you are willing to use zig-zag stitches, not only is it strong, but it is way easier to rip out when/if you make a mistake. That said, I use zig-zag to reinforce seams, now, mostly, preferring the look of the straight stitch. Yes, use basting tape, but use it next to but not on the seam line. Use the hot knife on acrylic canvas, for cutting, so it cannot ravel, because candeling seams is a nuisance. It is better to allow the time for hot knifing.

Finally, I became enamored of the concept of WeatherMax because it was half the weight and price of Sunbrella. However, in 2 years, the dark red had faded to what to me was an ugly color. I don't like to replace things for appearance only, and I wished I had used Sunbrella again. We used the medium gray WM for the dinghy chaps, and the color it fades to was not objectionable to me. It is something to do with the dyes. If you are so positioned, sometimes people give away their old Sunbrella mainsail covers. They are an excellent source of material for cockpit cushions, if you care for the color. It's a great source for things like dinghy tank covers, o/b covers, etc. My kind of recycling, but you have to have a thick skin.

It is a kind of frugality that seems generally unpopular in the community.

Ann

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

...Finally, I became enamored of the concept of WeatherMax because it was half the weight and price of Sunbrella. However, in 2 years, the dark red had faded to what to me was an ugly color. I don't like to replace things for appearance only, and I wished I had used Sunbrella again...

Sunbrella is an acrylic cloth by Raven Mills. It is excellent and they also have some varieties with different qualities. All good in my opinion, however it is expensive.

We have been buying generic acrylic cloth and have had very good luck. For example we bought several meters of dark blue acrylic while in China, in 2005, and made a mainsail cover and some other canvas projects and that cloth has stood up very well, with no signs of fading or deterioration in the sun. Recently we bought 20 mts of acrylic in Mexico for $7 a meter (here the Sunbrella, imported, is $37/mtr). It was used for a large sun awning and rain catcher and it is doing fine after 5 years.

Some other fabrics, such as TopGun have been very useful and not so high priced. We also buy a variety of sail cloth products from Challenge and Dimension Polyant for use in various projects.

I bought a sheet of Strataglass from Pacific Fabrics in La Paz. Expensive but very nice.

[wmcunninghamii]

I just wanted to update you all on where I wound up.

I did purchase a used brother 755 industrial sewing machine from a professional seamstress for $400 bucks, or to put another way, for the cost of 2.5 hours of canvas repair labor in my area. I have added a servo motor to slow it down a bit (you won't believe how fast these things are in their "industrial" configuration, they go zero to sixty in 1 second). I also purchased various tools and so forth which added another $300 to the cost. So investment remains modest. BTW e-bay is your friend re material, there are some fantastic deals on Sunbrella and Weathermax 80.

It has been a revelation! I pulled my funky dodger and got to work. I had a race to go to so I worked on critical repairs first. Remounted the dodger and was blown away by my brilliant decision to DIY. Really really happy. Is it an Iveson? absolutely not. Does it do what it is supposed to do and look halfway decent, absolutely yes.

It is hard and sometimes complex labor but I really enjoy doing it. One key thing is my ability to RE-do it if I screw something up or do something I don't like. Adding to that is the ability to be creative...and do stuff as I dream it up without having to shuttle back and forth to a canvas shop.

Of course once you have the equipment you can sew all sorts of stuff for the boat. Before I started on the dodger I wanted to get some experience with the machine so I built new hatch covers, a couple of line bags for the cockpit and a new cover of the dodger glass. They worked out great and I just thought..wow, I should have done this years ago.

Anyway, I now have the dodger back off the boat to address a number of nit noy items and fix a few things I did wrong during the first round.

And, I tell you, you can get creative big time. It is cool as hell.