Kitebuilder.com

robkite · Joined: 30 Apr 2004 Posts: 79 Location: Olympia, WA

Kite squid requested that Kleppin start a topic on a couple of tools. Well I'm not Kleppin I happen to have both of the tools. So I thought I would take some pictures and share these tools.
Here the second tool. Technically it is call a binding attachment. The one I have I purchased at a local Comercial sewing machine place for about $30
The attacment screws to the base plate of the sewing machine. It takes 1 inch material and folds the edges toward the center of the 1" material then does a second fold down the center and the output is fed into the needle. This attachment is very cool but can take some getting used to and can be fussy to set up which is why I kept my old machine and just leave it set up. The neat advantage of the one that Ralf brought from Germany is that the attachment swings away from it's attachment plate. this allows using the machine for other things and not have to reset the attachment. Here Are the pictures. I also have an attachment that just does a single fold with one inch tape.

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Robkite
Rob Pratt
robcp@msn.com
Ft Worden Kitemaker conference web site: www.kitemakers.org

gmakleppin · Posted: Wed Jun 23, 2004 12:00 am Post subject:

I learned an easier way to mount the tool from Marzlie Freeman. Just use blue tape to attach it to the machine table, then it is not in the way when you need to change threat, feet, etc. If you actually attach the thing, it does not swing far enough away.

One really great thing about the binding tool is that it uses strips of straight-cut Ripstop (no need for bias-cut) to go around curves like those in banners. I had to see it to believe it.

You can either buy rolls of 1" fabric, or you can cut your own. That way you are not limited by color or fabric weight. It does not matter if the edges of the strips have little glitches like tags that are left when your cutting wheel did not go exactly straight. If you do it that way, cut several strips the whole width of your fabric; sew them end to end (making sure the seams are all on the same side); and then roll the results on any type of spool. I like to use something that holds a static charge as a spool because it holds the fabric better. I happened to have a plastic tube that something came in, and using the outside of that worked great,

I've found that one way to hold the resulting spool for sewing is to drop it over the stick on a counter-top paper towel holder. That way you are not chasing it all over the room. Marzlie Freeman has a similar gadget that holds spools of many types. It also looks like a paper towel holder, but the spools go over a horizontal rod rather than a vertical one.
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Kitesquid · Posted: Wed Jun 23, 2004 7:26 am Post subject:

so it it is a swing away 1" binding attachment.

I have 1" binding attachment but it does not swing out of the way.

I have not used mine yet as I recently got it.
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VR/
KiteSquid
AKA TakoIka
AKA Harold
King George VA

P.S. Yet another post by the Squid..... Shocked

Doesent he ever shut up???

P.P.S. The wind is like the air, only pushier.

gmakleppin · Posted: Wed Jun 23, 2004 10:11 am Post subject:

I'm sure that you will find lots of uses for the attachment. It is well worth the price ($70-$75 for the good one). I am particularly fond of using it to edge curved pieces, something that has been a near imposibility without the tool. Also, Jerry now uses it to make matching attachment loops for bridles, etc. Let me know if you find more uses for it.

robkite · Joined: 30 Apr 2004 Posts: 79 Location: Olympia, WA

Tape is fine so long as you can dedicate the machine to the task. but with the screws, I find that the alignment is easier if you are going back and forth between sewing tasks. Of course when I got my second machine that wasn't a problem.
Also when I went to the sewing machine store they were out of that size of screw for the Pfaff base plate so the repair guy sent me to a commercial fastenings store called Tacoma Screw they sold me a bag of fifty screws for what the Pfaff store was going to charge me for 2.
_________________
Robkite
Rob Pratt
robcp@msn.com
Ft Worden Kitemaker conference web site: www.kitemakers.org

gmakleppin · Posted: Wed Jun 23, 2004 11:26 am Post subject:

No problem going back and forth with the swing-away attachment plus taping it to the sewing table rather than screwing it to the machine. I just swing it over whenever I need it and never have to change anything. Also do not need to deal with that blasted little screw!

marty · Joined: 22 Jan 2004 Posts: 128 Location: Arlington, MA USA

I just bought one of these on ebay. Hopefully it will work.
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Gentle breezes...

Marty Sasaki
Arlington, MA USA

gmakleppin · Posted: Sat Jun 26, 2004 7:49 pm Post subject:

Just a hint--when first starting to feed the strip through, cut the leading edge to a point. Then, sew the strip a little ways without trying to put the fabric inside it. That gives you something to pull on when you actually start to sew the binding on the fabric and gives you much better control.

kiteguy · Posted: Sat Jun 26, 2004 10:27 pm Post subject:

I got one of these from Willie Koch when he was at Ft Worden teaching a class. I managed to get one from him for $60. The holes do not match anyplace on my machine, and I have to hold it in place with tape when using it. This makes it very hard to set up and adjust. So, I rarely use it.

It is about as easy to use a bias tape folding device that I found at Hancock Fabrics that folds material into double fold edging material. An iron and ironing board is used with it.
_________________

Dave Ellis
Kites + Kids = Education

gmakleppin · Posted: Sat Jun 26, 2004 10:52 pm Post subject:

The two problems with using the tape foldering devices mentioned by kiteguy are: First, getting heat of any sort near Ripstop; and 2) must use bias-cut strips to go around curves while you can use straight cuts with the attachment I use. Actually, a third problem, at least for us, was dealing with the very slippery fabric in trying to control it long enough to do anything with it.

Solutions to using the attachment kiteguy has, which is the same as the one I have: check out thrift shops to get a second machine as Rob Pratt did and leave it set up at all time with the attachment. We bought an adequate machine for $10 and they threw in two other non-working machines for free because they did not know how to fix them. Jerry looked at them and all that was wrong was that they had their needles put in wrong! They aren't what we want to use for general kitemaking, but are great for setting up with special feet/attachments.

Also, having to tape the attachment, rather than screw it down, was not a problem for us--we prefer it as it gets it out of the way better when we are doing other things. As long as you swing it out of the way, you never need to change the adjustments once you get it set up. For us, it is working well.

Tools are my "candy store" items--when I see them on sale, I tend to buy them all, and I hang out at sewing expos looking for new ones. Some of them, I use right away as they solve a problem I already had. Others I do not even think of until I've painted myself into a corner and need to find a new way to do things and then I remember that I bought something that was supposed to help with that!

The best way is to watch others use the tool to see how they use it and then use your own throught process to see if you can improve on it. For instance, I'm finding that I use many of my foot attachments in a totally different way than I was taught was "proper."

Bottom line: No tool is uniformly useful to everybody--depends on how often you need its special features, how much you are willing to practice to learn best how to use it, and how you prefer to do things. For me, I eventually end up using every tool I get--just not always the way I first saw it used.

Everybody is different, so, whenever possible, borrow before you buy!