There are some statistics out there on the net about it's UV resistance. Slightly less than Sunbrella is what they say. My canoe covers are still fine after 30 yrs but they've spent most of their life in the garage. I made a cockpit cover for our Sea Pearl 21 Tri from this fabric a few years ago. It's been outside 24/7 in harsh UV at a mile high and it's still holding up although it shows some evidence of wear. It doesn't leak. I don't know what Sunbrella does in these same circumstances. The old Sunbrella cover on the Sea Pearl leaked like crazy, although it looked serviceable. I was tired of bailing the boat. The Sunbrella was probably 12 years old (+) when I got it but boat was from MI and had been stored inside in winters. Aesthetically, I think Sunbrella is more pleasing.
Economical Hot knife solution
- Thread starter flynhi4u
- Start date
Here's Sailrite's comparison but I don't see a direct comparison to the 18oz polyester.
www.sailrite.com/.../Outdoor%20Fabric%20Comparison%20Chart...
www.sailrite.com/.../Outdoor%20Fabric%20Comparison%20Chart...
As you have, I have used a soldering gun as a hot knife for years. I find when not used for an extended time, removing the homemade blade and polishing the gun ends before use makes better contact for heating up faster and hotter.
I enclosed 3 PDF files of a companionway cover I’ve made for a Catalina 22 and a Seaward 25.
I enclosed 3 PDF files of a companionway cover I’ve made for a Catalina 22 and a Seaward 25.
I've used 18 oz. vinyl for many projects and live in Arizona and it holds up as long as Sunbrella. The only disadvantage IMO is it's stiffness. Great for some projects where you put it on and leave it on but I could not imagine wrestling a vinyl sail cover on, or trying to roll a bimini up. HH66 glue is great stuff.
I've been very happy with my LSZ-1 from Sailrite. I've made several winch covers, a foredeck bag for my hank on sail, grill cover, propane bottle bag that I hang off the stern rail, a mainsail cover, which over the weekend I modified to be able to fit with my just installed lazy-jacks, and I've done some restitching on my 110% jib. I've also a done up a number of non-boat items including re-upholstering seats in my M-715. The LSZ-1 is a darn fine machine for heavy home/light industrial use.
I learned to sew in the leather trades almost 30 years ago using machines that were many decades old then, Campbell and Landis stitchers. While the Sailrite machine may not be their equal it is still a huge improvement over any home machine you can buy today.
The machine sold by defender may well be a good machine and is possibly even made in the same factory but Sailrite has different specs for their machine. If one can get the same level of service for the Defender Barracuda sewing machine it might be OK.
I learned to sew in the leather trades almost 30 years ago using machines that were many decades old then, Campbell and Landis stitchers. While the Sailrite machine may not be their equal it is still a huge improvement over any home machine you can buy today.
The machine sold by defender may well be a good machine and is possibly even made in the same factory but Sailrite has different specs for their machine. If one can get the same level of service for the Defender Barracuda sewing machine it might be OK.
I re-did waterproofing on my Sunbrella main cover last season using 303. And then had a sailmaker friend put in a new zipper for me. No new cover needed, yet...
two things, the hot knife is great for cutting lines and heat sealing the ends all in one step without any whipping needed. Second for small projects try using heat weld one brand is Sitch witch, just iron on one piece put on second after removing paper cover and iron together. Permanent seam, did one will see how it lasts on the boat.
