Finally decided fo buy a walking foot sewing machine! This is an artisan 618-1SC which from what Ive heard is very similar to a sailrite fabricator and other Mitsubishi clones. Looks like it was taken good care of. Should help with some of my heavier duty sewing projects.

In the process of buying the material for a DIY tent, found goretex on sale for about $9 a yard in dessert camo. Would goretex make a good tent floor? My research say's yes but wanted a second opinion.

I have a straight stitch only walking foot, and if I understood correctly you can NOT reverse stitch to lock in your first or last stitches with a walking foot.

How do you lock those stitches in without reversing?

Also, anyone know a good quality HIGH SHANK ZIGZAG walking/even feed foot ?? I paid $55 for this Professional Singer walking foot (RWA-5) and it appears the zigzag version (RWA-2) is not good quality but they are in the <$25 range

Hello all, I occasionally make framebags for my bikes and friends bikes. I'd like to start doing more bolt-on attachment points on framebags, but would like to use oval shaped grommets to allow for a little error in placement as I've seen on bags made by the big gear companies. I can't find anything that doesn't look like a cheap hand tool. Any suggestions? I'd like to do it like a pro.

Top side

Bottom side looks mostly fine

Pics attached. Only happens with this webbing in particular:

Things I've tried with no success.

1. Adjusting bobbing and top thread tension.
2. Adjusting dog feet pressure.
3. Thicker and thinner needles.
4. Putting some paper around to make movement smoother.

One thing I noticed is when trying to go full manual using only the handwheel, it starts properly and sometimes when the needle is coming back up the thread from the bottom will jump up and form an open loop. I have no idea what can be causing this, I have played with very high tension and very loose tension and none have fixed it. I'm running out of ideas :(

I have a consew 199 and a juki 1900a-ss bartacker.

But both struggle to sew thicker materials. So i’m looking to make life easier and get a newer back tacker more suited to heavy materials and upgrade to a walking foot zigzag with more clearance under the presser foot.

Any suggestions. Want to keep on a reasonable budget as this is for hobby work.

Has anyone made their own? Should I even bother looking at making one as an option? I've got an older bag that is just not quite the right size which I could use the components of.

Or maybe I'm crazy for even thinking about it!

I'm designing, for lack of a better term, an admin pouch. Inside I want a stiff "flap" with elastic loops to place pens/pencils. Any reason I can's use PVA (yellow woodworker's glue) to glue denim/canvas to a stiff piece of cardboard AFTER sewing the elastic to the fabric? Will it hold up under use? Is there anything better for this?

TIA

Hey everyone,

I’m really excited to get into the hobby of creating my own backpacking gear, and I’ve been thinking about making my first project a tarp. I’ve been needing one for a while, and since I’m in college and have free access to a maker space, I figured this could be a great opportunity to give it a shot.

I wanted to ask if anyone has any recommendations or tips for a first project. Would a tarp be a good choice to start with, or would you suggest something else that might be a bit more beginner-friendly? Also, for making a tarp, what kind of material would be a good place to start, and how much would I expect to spend on the materials? I want to keep it affordable but still functional.

Any advice would be super helpful, and I’m really looking forward to learning more about this hobby! Thanks in advance!

Hey all :) I have been having some struggles with my machine as of today. Started out with the needle not catching the bobbin thread. So I re tensioned the bobbin, and hook. Machine worked great for a little bit then right away started doing it again. Now I’ve reset the tension a third time and it’s just not pulling either of the thread. Was wondering if there’s anyone who would be so kind to help troubleshoot this, or even hop into a video call if that would help. Best, :)

Any advice on this repair? Is there any diy glue i can make to do a stick on patch for this, im low money but high supply in the creative and feel like i probably have something laying aroudn the house. Would rubber cement work on this if i use ripstop then rubber cement it on? Maybe thats crazy. Its a arcteryx mid layer

I'm working on making a 90s-era Starter jacket-type pullover. Its primary use will be for commuting and walking around the city. The shell is going to be made out of vintage curtains (more on that in a second). It gets fairly cold where I live, especially at night and as we get deeper into the winter. So I'd love a jacket that will keep me warm up to (down to?) sub-zero temperatures.

After all the research I've done here and elsewhere, it looks like my best option is Climashield APEX 10 oz. Has anyone had experience with this insulation? A few comments I found make it seem like it might be overkill for a jacket.

The shell fabric is pretty heavy and warm. However, I haven't tested it for wind, and I'm not sure it'll do too well with that. Should I consider lining the shell with some sort of fabric before constructing it? (So it would be Shell> Wind lining> Insulation> Body lining.) Or am I thinking too hard about all of this?

Larger quantity

Looking to get into sewing bags and pouches that use cordura and webbing. I was digging around previous posts about the 20U and found this machine locally who is asking for 300.

I’m pretty new to sewing machines and I’m not familiar with these modifications. Can anyone lend some insight as to if this would be a worthwhile investment considering the fact it’s been modified?

Thanks!

And where can I buy some? Looks like a low profile loop type fabric .

I can't seem to find somewhere I can find brown 70D nylon tafffeta by the yard. Can anyone make any suggestions?

Someone showed me this reddit the other day. I am starting from ground zero. I read the wiki.

What's the best way to get started? Should I order a pattern and machine? I feel lost. I want to eventually design my own gear, but I'm at step 0 now.

Debating on this machine. It’s a 2.5 hour drive each way. I mostly want to do heavy canvas and cordura sewing for tactical and camping gear. I know this machine is not as nice as a 1541 but the price seems pretty decent. What’s everyone’s thoughts?

My server is seriously struggling with this material. Does anyone have any suggestions? It seems like the inner fibers are getting caught as it goes through the feed dogs and the loopers. Stitch length is also significantly variable.

I’ve been thinking about creating a backpack out of white x-pac or ecopak that would allow my niece (or anyone really) to design and draw on the cut out fabric, so that when the bag was assembled, her drawings would be visible on the outside of the bag. Has anyone done something similar? Would standard permanent markers work in this case or should I use fabric markers, or possibly fabric paint?

Even if it was “mostly permanent” that would be fine, I just wouldn’t want it all to fade or wash away quickly.

Has anyone done this before with any success, or should I attempt this with a canvas or cotton fabric instead?