Ripstop Nylon

[Dan00001]

I've bought 10m of Ripstop Nylon parachute material. I was wondering if anybody had made anything out of this material before and looking for ideas of what to make. I'm definitely going to be making some liners/dry bags and I was also thinking about making a 3m x 3m tarp. The material is so lightweight I think it would be ideal. It will need waterproofing, however. I was thinking of getting some Fabsil.

Thanks.

 

[Pattree]

I was thinking of getting some Fabsil.

Good thinking!
Seam seal?

 

[Dan00001]

Good thinking!
Seam seal?

I need to do more research, I might get some seam tape although the British army liners don't appear to have any seam tape, and they work well. But the whole material will need waterproofing as parachute material isn't waterproof, oddly.

 

[Dan00001]

This material is not a pleasure to handle nor work with. It's such a lightweight material. I had no idea what parachute material would be like, but I assumed it would have been a heavier weight than what it is.

I'm going to use this little pouch, that I quickly made, for a while to see just how durable this material actually is.

 

[Kepis]

I made a quilted underblanket for my hammock from ripstop, filled it with feathers from an old duvet (what a right mess that was lol). as you say it's a pain to work with, but you soon get used to it, lots and lots of pins was the answer for me, then slow and steady.

 

[Dan00001]

I made a quilted underblanket for my hammock from ripstop, filled it with feathers from an old duvet (what a right mess that was lol). as you say it's a pain to work with, but you soon get used to it, lots and lots of pins was the answer for me, then slow and steady.

I'll sew more of it. My sewing machine likely needs tweaking also, the tension for example, needle size and thread are all set up for sewing heavy cotton canvas. Not that I know a lot about setting up a sewing machine, but I'm guessing I could probably do with a thinner needle, lower tension and I'm not sure if different thread will make any difference.

 

[Pattree]

You probably know this already but - well, others might not.

I use an old hand cranked sewing machine so I can make it work at my sort of speed. I call it Pearl.

If the thread on whichever side of the fabric is running in a straight line through the loops from the other side then your tension is wrong. Ripstop is so thin that it takes micro-adjustment to get the loops inside the seam - just patience on a practice piece.

Certainly you’d benefit from a finer needle. Mine was set up for leather and left there - it didn’t help me to mend my tent!!!

 

[billycoen]

Make a zoot suit.

 

[Toddy]

Finer needle, and find a nylon type thread. Polyester, if you've got a fine one works well.

Ripstop is good stuff, but it's easy to make a mess of seaming it. Don't rush it, plan ahead, keep it tidy. It's surprisingly robust for material that's so fine and lightweight.
It does well with flat felled seams (like the ones on denims) or French seams sewn flat.

Wash in waterproofing (nikwax) works fine on it too but spray on fabric makes life easy.

If you can check with your supplier they might know if it has a UV rating, or if it's 'stablised for UV damage'.....that can matter. If it degrades in sunlight, you might get a year our of it if you're lucky.

M

 

[Dan00001]

Thanks, Yes I believe the British army liners are flat felled.

The material is genuine MOD, but it is advertised as..

'This is a factory clearance fabric and whilst it is new there may be slight imperfections in the weave which means this fabric is not ideal for parachute manufacture and should not be attempted'
Would it be safe to assume that it's probably not going to have been treated, if the material was deemed unsuitable for use?

 

[Toddy]

Might or might not.....if it's 'loom state', as in just off the loom, with nothing done to it (you can sometimes smell that on a fabric, it smells of the oil they use to lubricate the looms, a bit like wax jacket fabric)...then that's the only stuff that will be on it.
It it has been run through the cleaning/treatment tank and rollers before inspection, then it'll be just like good ripstop, just there's sometimes a skipped thread in the weave, and you can hold yours' up to the light and check it over for that. Occasionally it gets badly hooked onto the tenters (the lines of wee holes at the edges of some fabrics) and that can make a mess enough that they won't put it forward as perfect too.
If the bolt was mishandled and somehow was torn or slashed, that also makes it seconds.

Often it's very simple things that won't matter to folks like us, but do matter in factories where they're making stuff that someone's life will rely upon.

So, sometimes we win and end up with really good fabrics, for a lot cheaper than we might otherwise be able to acquire them
Look carefully, measure twice, cut once, kind of thing

M

 

[lou1661]

I got some similar stuff with the same description a few years ago. Mostly used it for turning into bags to assist with packing. If I remember correctly I did use some to make a gathered end hammock.

Louis.

 

[Dan00001]

Yeah, it's cheap. I paid £15 for 10m x 1.4m

 

[Toddy]

At that price it'd be almost a crime not to try making stuff from it

10m is big enough to make lightweight tarp, hammock, windbreak, etc.,

 

[Dan00001]

Yeah, exactly.

I do fancy trying a square tarp, I gyess it work out somewhere around 2.7-2.8m square which would be bigger and lighter than my army basha.

 

[C_Claycomb]

I have used this stuff and something similar from Extremtextil (the latter wasn't calendered)

WINDPROOF RIPSTOP NYLON

Ultra lightweight ripstop nylon. Also referred to as parachute fabric the ripstop grid integrated within the material provides it with extra strength and resistance to tearing. This fabric has a very tight weave providing excellent wind resistance. Its texture is similar to that of silk. Not...

www.profabrics.co.uk

If this is the stuff you have, it is hardly worth making a tarp from it. What I have was calendered, so might be down proof, but not all ripstop like this is. If one side is shiny and one is matt, that is a sign it has been through the heated rollers involved in calendering. It makes it a lot less breathable, but is not waterproof.

Seam sealing will be pointless, even if you Nikwax the material, it will not be waterproof enough that the seams are the week point.

It will fray like crazy over time, so when you make your carry pouches, be sure to turn all seams, in fact, you might want to do an extra fold because the fabric can have a tendency to pull open at the stiches and if your rolled seam is a bit small you can end up with it pulling apart anyway.

The lack of waterproofing can be good, it means that it dries fast. I made a small bag for my wash kit, it doesn't matter that it gets wet, it dries as does the contents. I am partial to zippered pouches, like the Kifaru Pull Outs and stuff by Tuff Possum, but have made them only in silicone, PU and Sil/PU coated material. I used the uncoated fabrics to make clothes stuff bags in my hammock, and some other stuff sacks. A downside of the uncoated fabric is that it breaths enough that you cannot squash the air out of a bundle and have it stay that way while you pack, the way you can with proper roll top dry bags.

It will make a good gear hammock with a no3 zip running the whole length. Dead simple to make, changes the hammock camp experience significantly.

Guterman Sew All will be fine. No70 needle.

Good instruction sources:

Jellyfish

https://www.youtube.com/@jellyfish450/videos

Red OLeary

Tacblades DIY projects

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLx2N6LS-zPj5e3Qtw-Y2u-a4xLnMJQaG0

Jason of All Trades

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvZ5V0bfiAfRxicVyP2qUrqtBT1QqSoNv

 

[TLM]

Nylon should only be sewn with nylon thread if the seam is put under stress, if not it does not matter. Polyester thread is stiffer than nylon so it has a tendency to draw stitches open if strained.

 

[C_Claycomb]

Nylon should only be sewn with nylon thread if the seam is put under stress, if not it does not matter. Polyester thread is stiffer than nylon so it has a tendency to draw stitches open if strained.

Which direction are you talking about stressing the seam, in line or perpendicular? What weight fabric is that advice issued for? Where is this information from?

What about thin nylon thread stretching as it runs through the machine and causing the super light fabric to pucker up?

 

[C_Claycomb]

Further to the above. This:

Nylon thread

is nylon thread good for sewing hammocks? this is for upholstery the gal at joanns said it would be better than polyester. Also got some scrap piece of ripstop to practice learning the sewing/embroidery machine. Dang thing looks like you need a college degree to use it sheeesh

www.hammockforums.net

 

[TLM]

It is a problem if the straight stich thread is tensioned lengthwise with the base fabric. Zikzak stich generally is free of this problem as it is difficult to stress it all in tension.

I think I got this from some old parachute manual.

Basically it is good practice to use materials of equal stiffness in high strain structures because that is one way to avoid stress concentrations.