Sewing a new boom bag, thread choices

[GILow]

Hi all,

I am about to sew a new boom bag, using the old one as a template, as it is well thought out and works nicely. Sadly, it is the wrong colour and getting a little old now (20 years).

I have black Sunbrella cloth and I have a Singer 291U3 light industrial sewing machine which can handle this job in its sleep.

Now I need to choose a thread. I am working from the Sailrite site, which seems to have the best prices and options.

It does look like Tenara is the way to go, but I cannot decide if I should go with black, white or clear thread.

Also, it seems that the Tenara only comes in VERY big spools (8 oz), whereas I can get Profilen on a 4 oz spool, which I think should be plenty.

Finally, I am not sure about thread size. The Profilen only seems to come in V-92, whereas the Tenara comes in V-92 and V-138. I assume the V-92 will be strong enough, but I really am not sure.

Can anyone guide me on this one?

Matt

[dougweibel]

I know what I'd do if I had your question. I'd pick up the phone and call SailRite. They are super helpful and will guide you on the best choice for your machine. I understand sewing with lifetime threads can be tricky and getting the one that will play nice with your machine will be a big help.

[dougweibel]

Just noticed you are in Australia, so maybe you want to email instead of calling... They also do have a live chat on their website you can try during their business hours.

[Rearsteer]

I believe the V-92 is what Sailright sends out with their stack pack kits. They do sale a thread that is more UV resistance. The V-92 should be OK. May have to resew some seams after ten years or so. I would get the max UV stuff. Look at their sail cover video or their online catalogue should show it also. You can also just call them and ask.

[dougweibel]

Originally Posted by Rearsteer

I believe the V-92 is what Sailright sends out with their stack pack kits.

You are correct. That is what is in their kit, and is what I used. I wish I had gone with a lifetime thread instead. After three years of sun the V92 is coming apart in high stress areas that have sun exposure.

[Rearsteer]

When I saw your post, no one posted a reply. We both where typing the same time. So there goes the redundancy on some info.

[Rearsteer]

Originally Posted by dougweibel

You are correct. That is what is in their kit, and is what I used. I wish I had gone with a lifetime thread instead. After three years of sun the V92 is coming apart in high stress areas that have sun exposure.

I used the V-92 for my sail pack also as that is what Sailrite sent out. Sounds like some resewing is in my future.

[Mainebristol]

These threads are very slippery, which means that it pays to take a little time to adjust your machine. In particular, bobbin tension needs to be reset, and then thread tension to match that. It's not a big deal, but it pays to sew some surplus cloth to begin with, until you get the tension right.

[model 10]

Don't get Tenara thread unless you know your machine has enough bobin tension, most don't. I bought a $120 spool of it, could not make it work, finally sold it for $60.

[GILow]

Thanks all.

Just to clarify, I may be wrong, but I believe the v-92 refers to thread thickness, not construction. So those of you using the v-92 from sailrite should be ok if it is one of the PTFE threads.

My machine copes with the PTFE thread fine.

[GILow]

Originally Posted by dougweibel

Just noticed you are in Australia, so maybe you want to email instead of calling... They also do have a live chat on their website you can try during their business hours.

Yes, that’s a good idea. But I’d like some independent thoughts too. It’s hard to be truely objective when you are selling stuff

[Winter River]

I have used V92, Profilen and Tenara. The V92 is supposedly uv resistant but it disintegrated in several short New England seasons. I restitched a couple years ago with Profilen clear, which against my Captain Navy Sunbrella may as well be white. I wish I had used black instead, as it would have blended in better. This season I was out of the Profilen and bought Tenara (the thinner version) in navy to do more restitching. I found the Tenara annoying initially but once I got the tension set properly it was smoother to work with. I like that the sometimes imperfect stitching is nearly invisible.

All of my projects have been just on the edge of possible using my home sewing machine. Restitching the bimini that came with the boat required a lot of hand cranking. I know I will never be able to make a new one without a stronger machine. The grill, binnacle, and other covers were fine on my cheap machine.

[Seaworthy Lass]

Originally Posted by GILow

Hi all,

I am about to sew a new boom bag, using the old one as a template, as it is well thought out and works nicely. Sadly, it is the wrong colour and getting a little old now (20 years).

I have black Sunbrella cloth and I have a Singer 291U3 light industrial sewing machine which can handle this job in its sleep.

Now I need to choose a thread. I am working from the Sailrite site, which seems to have the best prices and options.

It does look like Tenara is the way to go, but I cannot decide if I should go with black, white or clear thread.

Also, it seems that the Tenara only comes in VERY big spools (8 oz), whereas I can get Profilen on a 4 oz spool, which I think should be plenty.

Finally, I am not sure about thread size. The Profilen only seems to come in V-92, whereas the Tenara comes in V-92 and V-138. I assume the V-92 will be strong enough, but I really am not sure.

Can anyone guide me on this one?

Matt

Hi Matt
I use Tenara exclusively for anything that spends any time outside. The cost of the thread is negligible per project when the rest of the materials let alone all the effort are taken into account.

I would buy a clear spool for several reasons:
- Strength is slighter higher than for black or white or colours.
- It is no harder to work with (they all feel a bit like fishing line).
- The clear will take you through every project, no need for multiple spools.

Tenara V-92 equivalent will be fine for a boom bag. That is all ours is stitched with. The only time I have needed Tenara V-138 was for the yankee.

One tip: I found that if you allow the thread to spool straight off the top (as you would with conventional thread) it can develop kinks and they break as they go through the needle. Take the time to set it up so the spool lies horizontally. For small projects I simply pull a few metres off at a time horizontally by hand and let it lie on the floor while I am working.

SWL

[GILow]

Originally Posted by Seaworthy Lass

Hi Matt
I use Tenara exclusively for anything that spends any time outside. The cost of the thread is negligible per project when the rest of the materials let alone all the effort are taken into account.

I would buy a clear spool for several reasons:
- Strength is slighter higher than for black or white or colours.
- It is no harder to work with (they all feel a bit like fishing line).
- The clear will take you through every project, no need for multiple spools.

Tenara V-92 equivalent will be fine for a boom bag. That is all ours is stitched with. The only time I have needed Tenara V-138 was for the yankee.

One tip: I found that if you allow the thread to spool straight off the top (as you would with conventional thread) it can develop kinks and they break as they go through the needle. Take the time to set it up so the spool lies horizontally. For small projects I simply pull a few metres off at a time horizontally by hand and let it lie on the floor while I am working.

SWL

Hello SWL, some great tips there, thank you.

Glad to learn the V-92 thickness will work for this job, and also that you are happy with the clear.

I agree that the cost of the thread is negligible, I certainly will not use anything other than a PTFE thread for this job.

I assume you have not tried the Profilen thread (also PTFE) that Sailrite offers? I was mainly interested in it because of the smaller spool, as I am going to end up with a LOT of spare thread at the end of this job, no matter which spool size I use. Perhaps I can just sell off the excess Tenara to other boats as I cruise around....

I note that Sailrite recommends Tenara over Profilen for rotary hook machines like mine, so that’s probably the deal-maker right there anyway.

Looks like a spool of standard weight Tenara clear is going in the cart. [emoji846]

Matt

[GILow]

Originally Posted by Seaworthy Lass

One tip: I found that if you allow the thread to spool straight off the top (as you would with conventional thread) it can develop kinks and they break as they go through the needle. Take the time to set it up so the spool lies horizontally. For small projects I simply pull a few metres off at a time horizontally by hand and let it lie on the floor while I am working.

SWL

That’s a great idea, I will do that. I noticed it was a bit prone to that with the current PTFE spool. I bought the remains of a spool from a local marquee fabricator for testing, not enough to do the whole job, but enough to see if it would work.