SharkWhisperer
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- Jan 27, 2021
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Picked up several yards of calendered 1.1 oz ripstop nylon from RBTR for chutes. Several questions:
1) Slice with scalpel/Xacto or cut with sharp scissors? Which leaves fewer frizzled edges? I appreciate that sharp and straight are key.
2) Alternatives to hemming edges to prevent unraveling? I have no sewing machine, so this will be by hand. Simple flat hexagonal parasheets, 12-30" for now. Gores and pleats will wait til I get some practice in. Given that I have no sewing machine, it seems I am relegated to hand stitching hems to reinforce cut edges? Is this always necessary with smaller chutes? Are there alternatives to sewing, e.g., solvents to meld edges, rubber cement to flexibly reinforce, heat melding of edges? What works besides sewing to flexibly reinforce cut edges?
3) Alternatives to sewing for anchoring shroud lines? Plan to use 100 or 250 pound kevlar lines. Are grommets a reasonable alternative to sewing/zig-zag capture of shroud lines? Other options?
4) Is seam tape/binding at hems necessary for these smaller chutes (30" max for now), or is this only necessary for larger chutes (thinking weight)?
And, 5, I guess: How quickly should I get on Craig's List and locate myself a decent used sewing machine, hah ha?!?
I'm all over Nakka's and others' chute design sites, have reviewed recent forum threads, and have a decent appreciation of the physics and aerodynamics involved (I've also skydived 6x), but right now just need to become proficient in handling ripstop...
Thanks mucho!
1) Slice with scalpel/Xacto or cut with sharp scissors? Which leaves fewer frizzled edges? I appreciate that sharp and straight are key.
2) Alternatives to hemming edges to prevent unraveling? I have no sewing machine, so this will be by hand. Simple flat hexagonal parasheets, 12-30" for now. Gores and pleats will wait til I get some practice in. Given that I have no sewing machine, it seems I am relegated to hand stitching hems to reinforce cut edges? Is this always necessary with smaller chutes? Are there alternatives to sewing, e.g., solvents to meld edges, rubber cement to flexibly reinforce, heat melding of edges? What works besides sewing to flexibly reinforce cut edges?
3) Alternatives to sewing for anchoring shroud lines? Plan to use 100 or 250 pound kevlar lines. Are grommets a reasonable alternative to sewing/zig-zag capture of shroud lines? Other options?
4) Is seam tape/binding at hems necessary for these smaller chutes (30" max for now), or is this only necessary for larger chutes (thinking weight)?
And, 5, I guess: How quickly should I get on Craig's List and locate myself a decent used sewing machine, hah ha?!?
I'm all over Nakka's and others' chute design sites, have reviewed recent forum threads, and have a decent appreciation of the physics and aerodynamics involved (I've also skydived 6x), but right now just need to become proficient in handling ripstop...
Thanks mucho!