Thru-Hiker

quilting summer quilt

2010-07-06T03:54:44Z

I have just finished a summer quilt with Momentum and 2.5 Climashield. Very simple, closed foot, around 1.3 meter wide and 1.95 meter long. I would like to know whether I have to quilt this Ray Jardine-wise, and if so what should the distances be between the quilts? Total weight at the moment is 365 grams. Nice reduction from my sleeping bag. Any advice will be greatly appreciated. Marianne

Stuff Sack Project

2010-06-09T18:16:00Z

I just finished my stuff sack project and posted the pattern/instructions on my blog if anyone is interested. I was really happy with the results, I love the sense of liberation and empowerment I get by sewing my own stuff. I don’t think I will have to buy another stuff sack again… to think of how much money I have spent on those things in the past makes me sad.

DIY tent help

2009-09-23T00:31:57Z

Hey all,
I’m looking at making my own tent and I have a few questions.
The tent will be a 2 wall with a mesh canopy and a waterproof/water resistant fly.

Would Momentum MR (the one that comes in multiple colors) be a suitable fabric for the fly? I’m envisioning a very lightweight tent. I take very good care of my gear, so I’m not worried about it snagging on branches or anything because I’ll just prevent that from happening. Momentum is the lightest DWR ripstop I’ve found and it seems to be excellent at keeping water out according to another thread.

Second, I’m at a complete loss as to how to sew the seams for the corners of the tent. I have a hexagon-shaped bathtub style floor drawn up, but I can’t seem to figure out how to so the seams.
In the picture, A and B are the sides to be sewn together, and C is where the corner will be. My fear is that when I sew A and B together, C will become an nice little entrance for water. Should I just add a second layer of fabric to the corner?
[method a.png]

Another idea was to sew the walls separately to the floor, but then the seams would all be at ground level… o.0

Third, I’m going to make a footprint for the tent anyway, so is it OK to skimp on the weight of the floor material? I just want to save as much weight as possible, and it seems unnecessary for two separate layers of heavy-weight fabric for the floor. And if I’m going to be using a footprint, do I really need to worry about the corners?
Thanks,
Shadycakes

Fun with scraps!

2010-02-09T19:04:07Z

Having a bit of Momentum and Primaloft left over from my Kinsman pullover, I made a hat and some booties.
The hat is based on a pattern from the finnish site Shelby and the booties I just made up.

The hat weighs 7/8 of an ounce. I like it but it did come out a little more snug than I anticipated so the insulation is compressed a bit. I will add an insert into the center back seam to give myself a little more room. I get earaches when my ears get cold so I like caps with ear flaps.

The booties, at 2 5/8 ounces, are heavier than they need to be - first because I just used what I had (some heavy coated taffeta) for the outer soles, and also since I have not decided what I want to use for the foam inserts so the foam is not included in this weight.
Since they have a study sole I can shuffle around camp in them and the foam will make that more comfortable since the insulation will compress when I stand on them. Mostly, though, I’ll wear them while sleeping.
They have a two part inner sole so I can slide the foam in there and it will stay in place.
The booties are secured at the ankle with a scrap of round elastic (although plain cord would have worked as well), a cord lock, and a little brass bead (so the cord lock does not escape). The ends of the elastic are sewn into the seams of the gusset.

To make the pattern, I just measured my foot in a few places, made a pattern out of butcher paper, and taped it together with masking tape (the flange sticking out around the bottom of the paper mock up is just so I had something to tape to), stuck it on my foot, admired it, then took it apart so I could make the real thing.

The pattern pieces from left to right are:
Upper, cut on fold
Two-part inner sole
Below that is the pleated gusset for the ankle opening (like a sewn-in tongue)
The little oval piece is the pattern for the foam insole
The big blob at the right end is the outer sole

Tarp w/ Catenary Cut?

2010-04-28T01:58:08Z

I’ve searched the web in vain for a pattern for a 1-person tarp with a catenary cut on the main ridge line. I don’t care whether it has ‘beaks’ in front or back, or not - mainly want to keep it fairly simple - it will be my first attempt at a tarp.

I will even settle for a web page or book page that tells me how to lay out a catenary cut ridge line seam. I guess my main question is how many inches of deflection off the straight line should I build in per linear foot of seam? And I suppose this changes per the material I choose to use and so on..

There was a thread on this forum a few years ago where a guy posted a link to Six Moons Designs, where they were offering a pattern for a tarp with cat cut ridge line. When I clicked on it I got an error. I went to the Six Moons web page and searched for “pattern” and came up empty.

Here’s what I’m looking to come close to: an Oware Cattarp:

http://www.owareusa.com/images/solocat.jpg

Any help out there?

down sweater from whitney pattern

2010-03-11T02:49:03Z

Many thanks to Ayce for such great patterns! I modified the pattern from my size L Whitney to make a down sweater style jacket for my girlfriend. I probably spent 15 minutes in the local shop with a tape measure getting dimensions from a size XS patagonia down sweater! I’m jealous of smaller people, this jacket clocks in at 7.2 ounces. Anyway, I thought I’d post it to show a couple things I did to accomodate the smaller baffle size if anyone else wants a down jacket that isn’t as warm as the Whitney, just buy the Whitney kit anyway and experiment a little!

One added complication was trying to fill all of the outer pocket chambers from below, and getting the down past multiple small seams into the upper chambers (If you’ve seen the Whitney instructions you’ll know what I mean). To compensate for this I left the pocket open on the end (basically skipped the first step of making the jacket) until the very end. Then, after filling the outer pocket from this open raw edge, I finished it off with lycra binding. Not only does it add a nice accent, it is nice and soft on the wrists.

Another thing that gave me trouble when I made my whitney was filling the collar. Again, I solved this by not closing the top of the zipper where the collar is. Essentially, when you are finished assembling the shell and liner and go to sew the liner to the shell, sew across the top of the collar, up the draft tube, but on the right hand zipper, only sew up to the start of the collar. When you turn the jacket right side out you can see a little opening between the zipper and the liner of the collar. This is easily sealed by extending the double row of stitching up the collar after the down has been stuffed.

Also, with the small baffle size I didn’t want a big drop tail, so I made a separate compartment at the bottom of the back. When sewing the baffle line, just don’t go all the way to the end so you leave a hole to stuff from above (from within the chamber above it) then close it up and continue filling the upper chambers.

This was meant to be an under-shell layer for skiing and hiking, so it was cut trim and kept thin. 2.5” baffles in the body and 2” in the arms.

Momentum Hammock

2010-03-24T20:01:37Z

I hope this isn’t a stupid question, but is Momentum strong enough to make into a hammock?

I currently use a double layer 1.1 ripstop nylon hammock, and wouldn’t mind reducing the weight a little. I could probably use a single layer of 1.7ripstop, but I like the idea of having double layers, thinking two layers of Momentum, since it would be a winter hammock and I feel that two layers are warmer than a single layer. I’m about 200 lbs.

Sewing Machine Advice

2009-11-07T18:32:29Z

I’ve been lurking, did a few searches here and at tlb, but haven’t found the answer i was looking for. I want to get a sewing machine to make some of my own gear. I was told at a repair center i should invest in something heavy duty like a pfaff 130. I’m not sure i’d get enough use out of the machine to justify buying one. I had my mom help me with a ray-way quilt and it was tricky feeding it through her high end bernina, and the machine also didn’t seem to like it very much.
I may be doing a kit or two in the future using Syn insulation, like a vest, or maybe a jacket.

so my question is, can anyone recommend a machine that will sew through the light weight nylons with ease and not cost me $500+?

been searching craigslist for things like a pfaff 230 or maybe an older singer that does more than just straight stitch.

thx.

JMT Poll: Have you ever/never been stopped by a ranger and asked to show your bear canister?

2009-05-19T00:15:45Z

How often do rangers actually ask to see if you have a bear canister?

I have a Ursack but currently the status is no-go for the JMT. I’m pretty experienced with bears (have spent many months camping in Yosemite Valley), and I really don’t want to buy a bear canister… but I also want to weigh the risk of getting slapped with a huge fine, or worse, being escorted off the trail.

Lengthening the sleeves on a Kinsman?

2010-02-14T16:18:10Z

I’m just getting started cutting out the pieces for my Kinsman kit, and being a taller person, need to add some length to the sleeves (adding length to the body was easy with the already provided cut lines). I was thinking I would cut the sleeve pattern, add about 2 inches to the overall length (similar to the body block), and then add new side lines to form a trapezoid similar to the original. The overall effect would be like if I was able to magically stretch the sleeve pattern. I’m new at this so any thoughts, opinions, or advice would be great!

Thanks,
Gus