A lot of people here have extensive knowledge fixing cars, trucks, and other machines. Most of them have tools and many have lots of spare parts, which are awesome!
How many of us know how to sew and repair by stitching? Did you have a good sewing kit and supplies including patches, fabric glue, etc?
Do you have a plan for improvising for sewing when you don't necessarily have your preferred materials (e.g. keeping a sail needle in your kit and use fishing line or dental floss in lieu of thread)?
Can you stitch leather?
I can sew well enough to replace a button, repair a ripped seam, and other simple things. I have a small kit that I have with me where I live now, but the tiny spools of thread are of unknown quality. I prefer to use really heavy duty thread for repairing seams in high stress areas, so I need to build a new supply of that.
Question: what is a compact method for keeping a reasonable supply of threads in a small kit? Right now I have a few sewing machine bobbins, but they won't hold very much heavy duty thread. Full spools are bulky. If there were something as flat as a sewing machine bobbin, but larger in diameter, it would be ideal. I'm thinking of winding heavier thread around a short section of dowel rod, which would same some space over the full spools and would fit in loops in my little Maxpedition pocket organizer nicely. Bank line is thick enough that I can just store hanks of it like mini para cord.
I need a proper awl and supplies for stitching leather and other heavy materials. And a good quality stainless steel thimble (the plastic thimbles in cheap sewing kits are crap).
The tiny scissors in pre-built kits also tend to be crap. I keep a Victorinox Super Tinker in my sewing kit for the scissors and other tools.
All of this is good for everything from SHTF to ripping the "crotch seam" of your pants when you squat. Gear and skills that are good for both every day and for emergencies are GOOD PREPS.
How many of us know how to sew and repair by stitching? Did you have a good sewing kit and supplies including patches, fabric glue, etc?
Do you have a plan for improvising for sewing when you don't necessarily have your preferred materials (e.g. keeping a sail needle in your kit and use fishing line or dental floss in lieu of thread)?
Can you stitch leather?
I can sew well enough to replace a button, repair a ripped seam, and other simple things. I have a small kit that I have with me where I live now, but the tiny spools of thread are of unknown quality. I prefer to use really heavy duty thread for repairing seams in high stress areas, so I need to build a new supply of that.
Question: what is a compact method for keeping a reasonable supply of threads in a small kit? Right now I have a few sewing machine bobbins, but they won't hold very much heavy duty thread. Full spools are bulky. If there were something as flat as a sewing machine bobbin, but larger in diameter, it would be ideal. I'm thinking of winding heavier thread around a short section of dowel rod, which would same some space over the full spools and would fit in loops in my little Maxpedition pocket organizer nicely. Bank line is thick enough that I can just store hanks of it like mini para cord.
I need a proper awl and supplies for stitching leather and other heavy materials. And a good quality stainless steel thimble (the plastic thimbles in cheap sewing kits are crap).
The tiny scissors in pre-built kits also tend to be crap. I keep a Victorinox Super Tinker in my sewing kit for the scissors and other tools.
All of this is good for everything from SHTF to ripping the "crotch seam" of your pants when you squat. Gear and skills that are good for both every day and for emergencies are GOOD PREPS.