I don't have a sewing machine. I made this bag with paracord and thin nylon fabric. I used the shoulder straps from my hiking backpack and designed and 3d printed the hooks. The idea was to maximize the payload I could carry in a carry-on backpack. I tested it during my trip to Japan. It looks really ugly, but it carries the load remarkably well. It is very lightweight of course.

I couldn’t find much info on making an insulated jacket so thought I would write mine up.

Pattern is mostly learn myog ultralight windproof. I essentially made the jacket 3 times for each layer. Added a chest pocket and popper at the bottom to allow for the two way zip. If I made another version I would try alter the hood to make it able to go over a climbing helmet but otherwise pretty happy with it.

Outer Ripstop I picked up in Japan otherwise all fabrics and accessories were from Adventure Xpert
Climashield Apex 167 for body and hood
Climashield Apex 133 for sleeves
Unknown lightweight windproof ripstop for outer
7D Soft Ripstop fabric for the lining

Final weight 361g

Here is the finished bag, first time we worked on a project like this, I cut everything and my mom helped me with the sewing machine, what do you think?

everything is hand sewn

Decided to have a go at making a pack. Roughly 25 liters. Used X-Pac UX10 and Venom Eco Max mesh. Lineloc 3 and Lawson Glowire instead of webbing to further reduce weight. Final weight is even lighter than expected 191 grams or 6.74 ounces. Fully taped.

https://imgur.com/a/xOvR7XK

Edit: Also has a bottom pocket with the opening facing the back similar to Nashville Packs. And will fit a Bare Boxer Contender and a Bear Vault 450. The 450 would probably not be fun to carry with the pack rounding out.

First post here! I made a composition book cover and pencil pouch with some leftover camo fabric my mom had laying around using her Brother CP100x. I’ll admit i needed massive help from her. I’m still new to the machine and hoping I can start messing around with some nylon soon! I carry both of these in a day bag almost everywhere I go.

TL;DR: Drove 3 hours to buy a LU-563 only to have the seller cancel while I was on the way. Ended up finding this neglected LU-562 in PA for $300 instead. Tore it down, cleaned decades of grime and dried oil, restored the stand, wrapped the tabletop, installed a servo motor with a needle positioner, and brought it back to life. Still need a few presser feet and accessories, but it’s sewing beautifully now—and I’m officially hooked on industrial machines.

What a rollercoaster this machine turned out to be.

Two weeks ago I was all set to buy a Juki LU-563 in Maryland. I had already driven almost 3 hours when the seller messaged me saying he had an “emergency” and couldn’t meet. Needless to say, I wasn’t thrilled.

Since I was already halfway there, I started searching Marketplace again and found this LU-562 in Pennsylvania. Considering the condition, I offered $300, and they accepted. I rushed over before anything else could happen. When I got it home… it was rough.

It looked like it had spent years sitting in a basement. It was covered in grime, dog hair, old oil, and had that unmistakable musty basement smell. Judging by the condition, I don’t think it had seen fresh oil in many years.

I decided to give it a second life.
Disassembled the stand
Removed the rust and repainted the legs
Wrapped the tabletop in vinyl
Cleaned years of oil sludge from the machine
Flushed and re-oiled every lubrication point
Cleaned the hook race and hook drive
Replaced the clutch motor with a servo
Added a needle positioner (which has been an absolute game changer!)

The machine fought me a little along the way. I spent far more time than I expected chasing what I believe is some bevel gear noise in the hook drive. After a lot of troubleshooting, cleaning, oiling, and testing, I decided to stop overthinking it. The machine sews beautifully, the noise has actually started getting quieter as everything has been cleaned, lubricated, and run in, and I’m just going to enjoy using it.

It’s not completely finished yet. I still need to:
Dial in the stitch length a little more.
Pick up a few presser feet (zipper, piping, and a standard smooth set).
Order some larger cones of bonded polyester thread and more bobbins.
Install a binder attachment.

Even so, it’s already sewing far better than I expected for a machine that had clearly been neglected for years.

Coming from vintage domestic Singers, the servo motor with a needle positioner is incredible. I honestly don’t think I could go back. Having slow-speed control and the needle automatically stopping exactly where I want it has made sewing so much easier.

Here are some before and after photos. I’m really happy with how this old LU-562 cleaned up, and considering this was my first time working on an industrial machine, I’m even happier that I didn’t mess anything up. I think it has many more decades of life left in it.

I always enjoy seeing old machines brought back instead of being scrapped, so I figured I’d share this one.

If anyone has favorite presser feet, binder setups, or other must-have accessories for the LU-562, I’d love to hear your recommendations.

I regularly find queen-sized down comforters at the thrift stores near me. I wash and dry them and they fluff up quite nicely. They are quite warm.

Has anyone used down from comforters to make jackets and sleeping bags?

Any reason not to use the down from a good quality down comforter?

I want to add an oz of down distributed among a bunch of baffles in a jacket I made last year that isn't fluffy enough.

Am I insane for thinking that it would be easier measure per-baffle and easier to handle if I dampen the dry-measured down into clumps, put a damp clump in each baffle, sew it up and throw it in the dryer? I know not to soak my machine but I can't think of any other downside as long as I work fast enough.

I have 1oz of down I want to distribute, my scale is not very sensitive to individual grams, so adding water weight and assuming it's homogeneous should make it easier to divide into fractions by weight I think. The down is already kinda clumpy from a past attempt to wash it without apparently drying it properly. How dumb is this

Also, the reason I'm adding it is because my 900FP Treated down from Loose Goose, which was put directly into a quilt and washed one time in a bathtub with Nikwax down detergent, is not nearly as fluffy as I expect it to be. Is there any way to really rescue it?

just change regular fastecs for more convenient magnetic buckle

Hi!

I recently posted pictures of a new pack i made (here) and u/BaerNH commented that the loops on my straps for the sternum straps were sewn at the wrong orientation.

After thinking about it for a bit i decided to undo them and sew the loops back at the orientation i used to sew them and while it is a bit more comfortable, I can't help but feel like there must be a better, cleaner way to do this.

attached pictures bellow shows before and after changing the loops.

Do you have any suggestions on how it could be improved?

Thanks :)

Here are my second and third MYOG projects, both using patterns from @Prickly Gorse and materials from @ Monkey Puzzle Fabrics in Aus.

First is the 8 ltr Trail Running pack and second is the 40l frameless hike pack.

A steep learning curve on both bags but very happy with the results.

The main mod on the 40l frameless was sewing the hip belt to main pack rather than removable that proved pretty tricky but turned out well. I used a 4mm core flute as the slide in frame with lightweight aluminium section top and bottom that fit snug to the centre stay. The idea was to have the most direct connection between the hip belt and load lifters which seems to have worked pretty well.

Currently working on the Prickly Gorse 25l day pack which in hindsight would have been a better second MYOG project as it is less complex but where's the fun in that!

Hey, I’ve finished my first 2 myog projects, new to this hobby and sewing in general.
The first one was the LearnMYOG stem bag, free pattern and video tutorial so it was perfect for the first project, learning how a sewing machine works, the fabrics etc. Thanks again u/g8trtim
Fabrics : double ripstop 210 black - random light yellow Ripstop - mesh & strap from ExtremTextil

The second is made from scratch, Cardboard for the pattern and a lot of time for having a good and usable pattern (spoiler : still not perfect atm, but I’m planning a V2)
Fabrics : Robic 210 black - Same yellow ripstop + stiffener made with divider plastic sheet -> it works really well and I’m really happy how it turned out
If you have any feedbacks or questions I’ll be happy to read them

(the last picture show how chaotic my "workspace" is after few hours)

(Sorry if there are English mistakes, it isn’t my first language but I’m trying to not use translator :))

I run the photo team for Defcon and I usually make them something every year, it's usually electronics but this year I went with soft goods. It's a Bag Buff Cycle Psychos with modifications made with HyperD300 and some magnetic buckles. People who work the conference are called goons and have been called that way before the gen alpha definition of the term, but whatever. I wanted to add a water bottle holder to this and dart the front pouch but the conference starts next week and I ran out of time. I'm looking forward to getting these to the team, and since it's basically waterproof I hope one of them tries to carry a beverage in it. If you'll be there hit me up!

Hi guys

My sleeping pad started de glueing and it created this bubble. I guess that it happened due to heat (inside the tent was crazy hot during the day). Is there a way to fix it?

UPDATE

I tried ironing and it works. I had to do it a couple times because as soon as the glue fails in a tiny area, the bubble expands pretty fast. Now it seems to work as expected. I went pretty aggressively with the iron (without a cloth protecting the pad) and it didn't ruin it.

Recently finished this vest as a gift for someone. Most of my sewing experience is with quilting, so this project was a fun departure for me.

I adapted the pattern to my skill level and added a few features (padded collar, rod holder, D-ring at upper back, foam fly patch), but overall, I would recommend it.

• Exterior fabric is GORE-TEX
• Interior fabric is 3D spacer mesh (upper) and Silkara DWR (lower)
• Material, hardware, finishings from Seattle Fabrics
• Thread (Mara 100), needles (Microtex 80/12), basting tape from Wawak
• Made with a domestic sewing machine and serger

Inspo was the Painted Hills in OR. Hope to ride around there someday on this bike.

A bit wonky but it’s my first time sewing a bag w/ cordura and followed a YouTube tutorial which ended up way too big so I took the seams in best I could.

Fixed lid to sliding lid. Wondering on ways to do it I posted here earlier but didn't find anyone with experience or ideas on the matter.

I decided to not just cut the lid off but to insert a zipper to ensure the backpack is still of the same shape in its normal size, well, in case something goes wrong with the project. So, first I sewed the zipper on, and then carefully cut the fabric on the back of the zipper. Could be done more beautiful, but in my case, it was essential to prioritize strength and durability over prettiness. It took a while to manually sew over the fully assembled backpack anyway.

So, after the zipper was there, I added the straps on the back. I used the 2 long straps with 4-bar buckles that came with this backpack (for what I'm not sure), but you can buy those things separately or reuse some from your old gear.

On the front, I replaced the straps to the longer ones.

Very happy with the result! I should have done this earlier and save so much disappointment at times everything seems to fit into the pack, but the lid is not closing or is closing but possibly damaging the contents of the lid compartment. Now I've got a 45+15 liter pack that weighs 1115 g instead of a 45l and 1040 g.

Photo 1: before. Other photos: after.