I noticed yesterday that the leading edge on my kite has a small amount (about 2 inches) of stiching that has come out. It looks to be double or triple stiched so what I want to do might just be over-cautionary..but whatever..

Looking to know what type of threading to use to restich this? Something I could buy at a standard fabic store or something like WalMart in their sewing area..

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

thanks.

b

Try dental floss...

Tough as nails.

and your kites will have a nice minty taste.

You want a heavy duty polyester that will not dry rot and is UV resistant. Unfortunately, I ripped the label off my thread so that is the best I can do.

You should be able to get it at your local Michaels or Jo-Anne fabrics.

About a month ago I noticed a similiar problem on my leading edge seam. I picked up some sail repair thread from West Marine. So far its been holding and is better than new.

This is the thread I use for an LE seam repair (heavier dacron repair)

http://www.sailrite.com/20204?sc=2&category=7313

For nylon in the canopy, I use this (lighter nylon repair)

http://www.sailrite.com/20201

As you can see from the previous post the correct stuff is called bonded polyester. Dabond is a brand name and the most common.

The V number is the thickness. I have used V46 for all repairs because that is what I had. You don't really want to use thinner thread for sail repairs because the thin thread can tear through the stitch holes (according to my friend the paraglider and kite maker).

You can buy it from Sailrite but those guys charge US$50 for postage outside the US. I get mine from a sail maker and you can usually get the end of a bobbin for a few bucks.

If you can't get bonded polyester then normal polyester thread is ok but has no UV protection. Upholstery thread is also good if you need thick stuff. You can get it from any sewing shop. Metler Metrosene Plus is ok and Gutermann is good.

Don't use nylon or fishing line. It's too slippery and the stitches bunch up.

I have used dental floss to hand sew a repair while on holiday (on an island in Fiji). I would not use it for a proper repair. It is not really all that strong and I doubt if it would go through a sewing machine.

BTW. I just bought my girlfriend a really good sewing machine for her birthday. I'm almost tempted to ding my kite so I can try it out.

Canopy is polyester. Use polyester thread.

Hey Dwight,
I did a quick search in Wikipedia. Turns out that Dacron is a manufacurer's trade name for the synthetic fabric called polyester.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dacron

As far as I know, most canopys are made of ripstop nylon.

Give it to your local sailmaker .
Thread for LE is Dabond antiwick V69 and V46 for spinnacker cloth

Can you use a regular household sewing macchine (like a Standard Singer Portable) to repair a kite using these threads?