T&T: Bimini fabrics

[Keith]

There are lots of ways, some simple to very sophisticated. First, there is 
heat welding. There are things like bar sealers that press down with heat to 
melt the fabrics together. There are continuous band sealers like the 
Doughboy that weld together rolls at a time. There are even little hand held 
hot air welders that can be used in the field.

You can also solvent weld PVCs and Hypalon. Just glue it together. Some seam 
constructions are better than others. A simple overlap will work, but a butt 
splice is better (two large pieces butted together with a strip sealed onto 
either side of that seam). An overlap with one additional piece over that 
exposed edge is kinda in the middle.

One of the failure modes for coated fabrics is water wicking in the scrim 
layer and eventually delaminating the fabric. That's why a butt weld works 
better.

You could search for things like "pond (or pit) liner fabrication", "pool 
liners" etc. to learn more and find the equipment used.


Keith
_____
Only a fool becomes embroiled in an argument on a single-handed boat.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Albin43SDtr" <Albin43SDtr at comcast.net>

>>These fabrics weld easily, yielding permanent and waterproof seams.
>>Stitch holes don't elongate and the fabric doesn't fray on the edges
>>so hems can be single folded.
>
> How are you "welding" this fabric? How sophisticated are the
> tools/equipment and technique?