How to use a Sewing Awl (Handy Stitch) 101

[kohomcm]

The Sewing awl is a very handy tool that very goalie should have, especially if you want to do repairs or modifications on your own, especially on heavy materials. The only issue I had with it was that the instructions that came with it are not very clear. Either way they run for about $15 US. When you order it you get the actual Awl, the needles and some thread, a lot of thread.


The first part is putting it together; the needle I use has an indentation in the middle of it, I out that indentation up so when I thread the needle and go through the material it makes it real easy to pull it back so you can get your little loop.


When you do your first stitch push the needle through and then pull out as much thread as you think the seam is going to take and then a little more, that little more is going to be used to tie off the knot at the end when you are done stitching.

Once you do that you proceed to make your next stitch. Push the needle through then pull back just a tad; this will make a little loop in which you will pass the thread through to make your stitch.


You will then repeat the process until you finish where you want.



Once you are done what you want finish of the stitching with a double square knot.

Well this was a quick How to! I know Becca and Goaltendah can probably add more if they wish.
If you have any questions feel free to ask.

[goaltendah1]

For stitching straight lines, use a pencil to mark the area that you are going to stitch. Space your stitching out evenly. A good lock stitch should be about 1/8" long.

The best thread to use is bonded nylon thread. It's available from www.thethreadexchange.com

A 4oz spool should be more than enough for anyone. I would recommend 1 of black and 1 of white at least. The thread that comes with the awl works fine, but it's waxed and can be a pain to work with sometimes.

Also the awl uses a bobin. Instead of utilizing the bobin I woul straight off of the spool. It allows me to prevent a lot of issues with the bobin getting tangled.

There are two needle sizes. #5 and #8. A #5 wi great for most light weight projects that deal with perhaps two layers of Jenpro or nylon type projects. If you get into anything heavier use the #8. Buy a lot of spares of size #5. They break easilier than the #8 due to the size.

Jeff

[kohomcm]

Thank you Jeff I knew I was missing some info. I hope this helps some folks out.

[KMcDermott]

I also am very much a proponent of the speedy-stitch/handy-stitch/sewing awl.

Have had one for a few years now that I've used mostly to repair glove palms, add on to & repair c/a's and such.

Only thing I would add is my particular tie-off knot of choice:

The Surgeon's Knot



I just feel like it holds better.

McD

[Gasman]

an excellent "thread" gents!



Well done!

[goaltendah1]

Another thing I wanted to point out is that there are two kinds of sewing awls. One has a bobbin mounted between the needle and the handle. It looks like this:



The other kind, which is what Kohomcm and I have, looks like this:



I would highly recommend the 2nd one as it is much sturdier IMO than the 1st. The bobbin holder on the 1st runs the chance of bending, and changing the bobbin out is much harder.

Nash isn't the cheapest place to get a sewing awl either. I swear by Nash for parts because the prices on materials are great, but the tools they sell are more expensive than other places.

A good place to get a sewing awl is Cabelas. Here is a link:

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/te...&cm_ite=srchdx

Here is another place that has it cheaper:
http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/st...0226&langId=-1

Yet another place:
http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/ZAA007-543-599.html

So you see, there are many places that you can find a sewing awl for under $10.

Here are some links to the 138 thread I was talking about earlier:

4oz black bonded nylon:
http://www.thethreadexchange.com/miv.../BNL138BLAC04B

4oz white bonded nylon:
http://www.thethreadexchange.com/miv.../BNL138WHIT04B

Just to add, you can get larger spools up to 16oz, but a 4oz spool should last any of you a long time if you are doing repairs. If you are getting into machine work where you are putting out a large amount of gear you would need to order 16oz spools and a lot of them.

Black and white thread should be enough for most of us, but if you are going to be doing graphic work and you want it to look professional, I would recommend getting the corresponding thread to the color of Jenpro you are sewing.

Here is a link for needles and supplies. I think it was the cheapest one I found in my searches.

http://www.tradepostonline.com/products.htm

I have some helpful hints to add, but I am going to need to take some pictures to show what I am talking about. I'll try to do those tonight.

Jeff

[kohomcm]

I just placed my order for some new thread thanks for the link

[MrMikeEMike]

I may be the only one who prefers the waxed thread that comes with the awl. When I'm done with my stitching, I usually take a match and melt the wax on the knot. Never had one come undone one me after doing that.

Oh, and in a pinch, you can load the bobbin with fishing line. Neon yellow stitching is the new hotness.

MtA

[goaltendah1]

Originally Posted by kohomcm

I just placed my order for some new thread thanks for the link

No prob. Their prices are great and shipping will not kill you. I always get my thread in a couple of days with U.S. mail shipping from them.


One of these days I am going to have to do a thread on materials with pictures. I'm getting ready to order some foam and it would be good for people to see what kinds of foams go into pads and what sorts of applications they have.

Jeff

[kohomcm]

Originally Posted by goaltendah1

...One of these days I am going to have to do a thread on materials with pictures. I'm getting ready to order some foam and it would be good for people to see what kinds of foams go into pads and what sorts of applications they have.

Jeff

Thats a good idea. Merle's thread got me thinking about maybe taking a weekend and adding 1" or 1" 1/2 to my pads. I might call Nash and order some white material and foam. Thats the beauty of white pads I only need to order one color.

[KMcDermott]

Originally Posted by goaltendah1

... it would be good for people to see what kinds of foams go into pads and what sorts of applications they have

I was actually going to ask for this specific info... looking forward to this!

McD

[goaltendah1]

Originally Posted by KMcDermott

I was actually going to ask for this specific info... looking forward to this!

McD

I'll get all of the materials I have together tonight. I have some scrap HD and LD foam that I can use for this as well as many of the other materials (elastic, cord, nylon webbing, buckles, etc.). I'll be sure to get lots of pictures as well as some descriptions of each.

Jeff

[c0nquistad0rian]

Originally Posted by goaltendah1

I'll get all of the materials I have together tonight. I have some scrap HD and LD foam that I can use for this as well as many of the other materials (elastic, cord, nylon webbing, buckles, etc.). I'll be sure to get lots of pictures as well as some descriptions of each.

Jeff

That sounds great. Maybe someone can jump on this and put it in the wiki goalie dictionary!

[RedK]

I am a big fan of the waxed thread. When water can't get in, it can't cause rot. Also, if you do have a stitch break, the wax will help hold it in place, giving you a longer time to find the rip and fix it before you have a large split seam. It also makes for tightly sealed knots because the wax will bond the threads together. That helps prevent pullouts.

I've usually bought my leather supplies from http://www.tandyleather.com. There is a branch here in Columbus for anyone who comes through town. I've gone through their scrap bucket and bought a few inches of scrap leather for pennies to make replacement toe bridges.

[guest1]

I linked this thread to the Repair thread.