Rick- Get a sewing machine. I have had a couple
different machines over the years and have saved a lot
of money. One key piece of equipment to get is a
hotknife. This will seal the edge of the sunbrella,
and you won't have to sew through as many layers. I
use a weller soldering pen with a round flat blade.
Make sure the iron is 40 watts, a 30 watt just wont
cut the fabric. I used to sew with an old Necchi
machine(vintage 1951), but finally gave it up after
trying with a walking foot machine. Lately I have
been using a Sailrite machine. It works pretty good,
but can be a bit "clunky" at times. I have had to
have it tuned once over the last 8 or 9 years. If you
can find a Reed's Sailmaker, they purr like a kitten.
But they don't have a walking foot ...Do yourself a
favor and get a walking foot machine, Sailrite,
Consew, or otherwise. The other issue to keep in mind
when looking for a machine is the length of the arm.
The longer the arm, the more material you can get to
the right of the needle. The smaller machines are
very portable, but can be a bit more challenging on
larger projects. My next machine will have a longer
arm, but I will still keep the smaller one for
cruising.

Here's a fond sewing memory...We were sailing from the
Dominican Republic back to the states through the Old
Bahama Channel. It was just after dusk, and we had
the wind coming behind us. The old genoa finally gave
up the ghost, and we suddenly had a 15 ft long tear in
it. Being the overly prepared sailors we were, we
broke out the sewing machine, extension cord,
sailcloth...Of course our progress slowed from 4 knots
to 1 knot without the genoa. As darkness settled in,
I could barely see with the decklight. Just as we
were ready to bring out more flashlights, a USCG
helicopter suddenly appeared over us and lit us up
with their spotlight. They thought we had stopped our
progress along the coast of Cuba to pick up refugees,
especially given the timing after dark. Judy answered
their questions over the vhf, and kept them on the air
long enough to let me start and finish the sewing
using their spotlight. If only I had a picture...
Jim

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Received on Mon May 8 09:49:59 2006