T&T: Fw: Sewing thread for boat covers

[Larry N. Brown]

> Tenara is available from Sailrite
> <http://www.sailrite.com/Categories/Lifetime-Guarantee-Thread>, it's
> dear at $139 a spool. I've heard about it from others who are familiar
> with the canvas business, say it can't be beat. Given that it's true
> that the seams are the weak link in canvas longevity, it seems that it
> would be worth every penny not to have to remove the canvas to have it
> re-stitched every couple of years.
>
> Steve

A little over a year ago now, I was trying to square the circle with a 4 
bow, SS Bimini using a kit from Sailrite, Sunbrella included. I asked the 
list what the normal height was and a listee who has a sail and canvas 
making shop in the Caribbean, gave me the info.

Long and short of it is that a Bimini of the size I needed could never have 
been made  with the conventional multi-bow format, so I had a welded 
aluminum Bimini frame built. Next was the discussion of materials. Sunbrella 
performs so poorly with continuous use in the tropics, they can't give them 
much of a warranty. It didn't take much talking to convince me to use 
Shelterite, the truck tarp stuff. By the way, they'll only warrant the white 
or beige stuff; the colored material isn't nearly as UV resistant.

Only use the Gore-Tex thread. He recommended using a #22 needle and 800 
Silico Reactivator HF fluid from Clearco as a thread lubricant, running the 
thread through a bath and dunking the bobbin in a bowl of the stuff to 
prevent snarls. Bought a spool of the stuff.

As I was steeling my nerves to sew the thing up myself,  I ran across a 
couple of itinerant sailor/sail who stitched a white ShelteRite top up for 
me, using a #20 needle and no lubricant. Worked out fine. They said the 
material was a little more difficult to stitch than Sunbrella but just 
watching, it seemed effortless to me.

If anyone's interested, I can send pics of the top and other instructions 
for using Shelterite.

Oh, we have a great deal of Captain's Navy Sunbrella from which we plan to 
stitch up several things with the remaining quarter of a mile of Gore-Tex 
thread. Soft, toss-around cushions, carry-all purses for the ladies and my 
own cunning invention: a hand-stitched, handsome duffel with Cigano's logo 
on it and a note on the guest invitation card to bring no other luggage.

Regards,

Larry & Teri Brown
MV Cigano, 47' Prairie Sundeck
(still glued to the dock in Covington, LA)