Making your own cockpit tent.

[boatmike]

This is an Aquastar 33 Mobo with a fairly large aft cockpit. I currently have a cockpit tent that was "designed" and made by the previous owner but it is simply awful. I have redesigned the stainless steel work to incorporate a rear arch that will incorporate lifting tackle for my rubber duck and carry other stuff and now wish to have a cover made that will incorporate seperate roof and side sections using this and the boat structure as a frame. My question is, we ony have a fairly light domestic sowing machine and am not sure it will handle heavy fabric like this or the load imparted by the need to sow in heavy zips and plastic windows. There are several suppliers of fabric on the net and it does not seem terribly expensive, but will the poor little machine handle it???? Anyone done a similar job and have any hints, tips and advice? I have had several quotes to make it for me but they run into 4 figure prices. It questions the sense of either buying or hiring a machine..... What say the folorum?

 

[alahol2]

It depends on the machine. If it has metal gears there's a good chance it will do the job. We have an old domestic machine that will handle about 5 layers of acrylic without too much difficulty. We have made dodgers, stackpack etc.
Search 'heavy duty' or 'semi-industrial' sewing machines on ebay and you will find hundreds. For a job likely to cost four figures you could afford to splash out on a decent machine. The only real problem with doing the sort of job you are looking at is being able to stuff the bulk through the arm of the machine.
The ideal machine will have a walking foot

 

[wipe_out]

You could probably get a cheap-ish heavy duty machine on ebay.. I have considered it but don't know how to sew..

 

[TeamSpirit]

To give you an indicative cost of materials for a vessel of your size, thread (get UV resist v69) , material, windows, fittings, webbing etc it will easily exceed £600.00 , plus stainless tubing as required, the time will be equivalent to about a weeks work, you will also have to add in the time to do some trial fittings possibly as many as three before you will be happy to finish off the bottom edges, so have to plan this time into do the trimmings and stitching etc.
Investing in a machine will mean that you will end up with a better product but this could be as cheap = £75 ish but you can pick up some decent industrial machines for less than £200 on flea bay. So 4 figures may sound more reasonable.
We added window mesh to improve longevity from UV light and add to privacy, and all sides can be lifted individually, worth a thought if you DIY ?

 

[ffiill]

I use my wifes old Berneta domestic dress making machine which will happily sew acrylic covers etc-just make sure you use the right sort of needle and size-as I recall I use a 100 jean needle with a hard setting on the foot plus standard light sailmaking grade polyester thread.
Try Points North fabrics for material;zips;needles etc etc
They were /?still are associated with Mouse sails on Anglsey
www.profabrics.co.uk
However sewing is a skill and you need to plan seams etc in advance so they blend together properly.
Great thing about acrylic though as well as being light and easy to sew is that it creases with an iron very easily when creating seams,adding zips etc.so I find with preparation that I can "free sew" it without the need for tacking or pinning.
I do usually cheat slightly in that if I am replacing a worn out professionally made item I unpick it to use as a pattern and see how it was put together in the first place.
Acrylic canvas costs about £13 a meter 5foot wide so not that expensive and is reasonably UV friendly unlike polyester thread.
My stack pack covers are about 10 years old and whilst suffering from physical wear are not rotten unlike most of the thread used to sew them together by a well known reputable sail maker.

 

[boguing]

I'll second the 'walking foot' recco. Bought a Singer one for my machine (tiny domestic) for less than £20 as a last resort when trying to sew leather.

Unbelievably good.

You're probably asking a lot if the machine is as old as mine, so get a workshop manual and give it a service first! That too made a heck of a difference to the stitch quality.

 

[JClarkes]

Just make sure you do everything right from the start and no short cuts.

* Bar work - They should all have a slight bow along the top to allow rain to fall off either side. If your bars are straight then no matter what canopy you make it will not work for long. String up your bar work to get the heights the way you want them then tie in place.

* Template - Not sure if you are going to template the canopy or design without it, but it would be far easier to desgin and stitch from a template section by section

* Windows, zips, buckles, velcro, pockets, bar pockets, holes, all to be drawn onto the template.

* Template design is then to be touched up and measurements all correct. Sections match up etc....

* Sewing - your main problem with a non industrial machine will be the amount of excess pulling under the machine. It all depends on what type you have. You wont just be sewing through canvas, but also windows, windows seal tape, velcro, also on your corners and frame areas you will want to double up material as reinforcements as these areas have a lot of strain.

* First fit - this is very important to get right as once you start attaching your fasteners into your canopy they really need to be in the right place and you will be left with holes or patch work if not done right. Material should all be tight, no wrinkles and sagging.



Obviously there is a saving to be made on designing your own canopy and manufacturing it, but even the pros come up against problems as a lot of designs are different. The stitching would be the hardest part I reckon and the designer and stitcher will have codes and logos for different parts of the canopy which only they know. So is not as if you could do a template and give to a stitcher as they may not know what you drawing means.

I think its great your wanting to try it yourself but the money could mount up if your first fit doesnt not go to plan. Stackpacks, dodgers, window covers are straightforward, maybe try a small thing first and see how you get on, but the pros charge sometimes 4 figures because it is a big job and will last for years.

There are many other parts to the above but just pointing out a few basics and tips. Personally I would contact your local cover maker for a job like this, its depends on many factors and how nifty you are with a sewing machine.

All the best

 

[sailorgirl]

If you decide to go ahead and do this yourself then make a pattern using the existing tent by undo the stitching and then use the pieces and /or plastic sheeting. If your other half is a dressmaker she'll probably have some idea about how to improve the "fit". Canvas is expensive so measure several times before cutting.

For assembly I'd recommend getting a sailmakers machine with a walking foot or a heavy duty domestic one (usually an older domestic sewing machine). I have a Sailrite which is a portable machine and it happily sews through several layers of canvas and acrylic window or canvas and zips or leather.

And double sided tape is very useful for tacking things together before sewing much quicker than pins and then tacking!

You might find this blog useful too (not mine just one I follow): http://a2baker.com/seamlesssailorblog/


Would love to see how you get on.

 

[GrahamM376]

...Try Points North fabrics for material;zips;needles etc etc
They were /?still are associated with Mouse sails on Anglsey
www.profabrics.co.uk

Profabrics/Points North is now at Tattenhall nr Chester, quicker service than when operated by Mouse. I think that side of the business was bought out.

 

[PetiteFleur]

If you decide to go ahead and do this yourself then make a pattern using the existing tent by undo the stitching and then use the pieces and /or plastic sheeting. If your other half is a dressmaker she'll probably have some idea about how to improve the "fit". Canvas is expensive so measure several times before cutting.

For assembly I'd recommend getting a sailmakers machine with a walking foot or a heavy duty domestic one (usually an older domestic sewing machine). I have a Sailrite which is a portable machine and it happily sews through several layers of canvas and acrylic window or canvas and zips or leather.

And double sided tape is very useful for tacking things together before sewing much quicker than pins and then tacking!

You might find this blog useful too (not mine just one I follow): http://a2baker.com/seamlesssailorblog/


Would love to see how you get on.

I made my own spray hood and cockpit cover a few years back and I strongly recommend making a pattern using cheap polypropylene material. It's not recommended to use an existing cover as the pattern. Use double sided tape to hold the seams together. Look at several professionally made covers to get an idea of shape and construction. Make several fittings before final stitching. I used a Singer 20U semi industrial machine which has both straight and zigzag but no walking foot, but I did not find it a problem. After getting the machine I slowed the speed down by changing the pulleys which was much better for a beginner(my wife won't use it as she says its (still) too fast! - on the other hand she won't let me near her new sewing machine.....) It easily copes with 5/6 layers of acrylic canvas. Use the correct needle and bonded polyester thread, there is some new thread on the market which is totally rot proof but eyewateringly expensive - from memory it's called Tenara? Good Luck!

 

[GrahamM376]

To give you an indicative cost of materials for a vessel of your size, thread (get UV resist v69) , material, windows, fittings, webbing etc it will easily exceed £600.00

Don't know where you get the £600 from but ours cost me nearer to £250 for materials excluding the stainless for the frame. Our Sailrite has more than paid for itself on various jobs.

 

[William_H]

I think that you will find a domestic sewing machine is OK for the job. Acrylic fabric is relatively easy to sew compared to sail cloth. You will soon know if the job is too heavy for the machine. You can't get the needle to penetrate or it is difficult to get the needle to withdraw and it tends to lift the foot. Lubrication might make the sewing easier.
One poster mentioned plastic versus metal gears. Machines I have fiddled with don't have plastic in the main drive chain to the needle but rather to the feed jaws. Yes the plastic gears do fail not from overload but simply old age. Anyway good luck to the OP. I think the difficulty will be in design and cutting out sewing will be the easy part. olewill

 

[KellysEye]

I agree with the replies particularly the walking foot and a metal sewing machine, Jane used a Sailrite machine. Think carefully about the canvas and thread, the best canvas for longevity is Sunbrella, available from www.sailrite.com. Claims are made that the same/similar material is sold in the UK but I wouldn't trust that. The thread to use is Dabond UV resistant thread.

 

[boatmike]

Since posting this I have been away from home and the computer but having now returned I would like to thank everyone for their very helpful advice. What I will do is get several quotes from professionals before pricing the job for DIY. Then I will look for a fleabay machine and see what the total is to see if the saving is worth the effort. Thanks again to all

mike

 

[Viking]

Saw a tent/canopy maker, over here, plan one for my friends boat. If you have the metal frame work, great! What he did he tape the metal frames in position, So it missed winches etc. and how it would fold away correctly. Once he was happy. He taped the frame work in the up position with a the tape which he arranged it as a profile of the canopy and tent. He then used a thinnest clear plastic sheet to HALF the tent ei. Port side only say, then with a marker, he marked were the edges would be, where the framings lay. He then took it 'plastic sheeting' with over trimmed edges. This became the template with the framing marked so he could see where the framing slots had to be and where windows /fold-up flaps could be and of course the fixing points and any straps etc!
He also made one for me. But mine was a standard patten, because of the stanchions, backstay etc. But it folds away into a bag, with tent, light weight folding style 'hoop' frames (2) 3 large roll up windows, each sjde and rear erected, with practise, 6/8 minutes. Cost £900.