Sewing machines...

[DesertAlbin736]

Good idea on those grab handles as well! I bet I’ll have plenty of scrap as I ordered a yard of material for the mast cover. Please post pics after you get yours made. I am currently thinking a slip on cover with snaps mounted on the mast will be good.

Our masts look to be roughly the same shape. For some reason I can’t post pics and keep getting error messages.

I'm thinking along the same lines. I used Velcro to hold he grab rail covers in place. See my note about posting pictures on the exhaust renovation thread, it's an easy fix. My next up priority project will be making a cover for my Gig Harbor dinghy that can be put on and taken off while the dinghy is hanging on the davits. This video for a Sunfish sailboat is close to what I'm planning with openings for the davit falls, except with two zip open collars for the davit falls instead of one for a mast and no pocket extending over the stern for stowing spars.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrhtFxvC7Wk

[SalishAire]

Back to the original question: Is a Sailrite worth the money. Our current count is 4 sewing machines (a Phaff for quilting and other "common" projects - it has a walking foot but just isn't made for canvas work, an OLD singer 3/4 size we keep in our camping trailer - very limited with its straight stitch but it is a worker!, a serger , and the Sailrite) . The Sailrite is VERY VERY heavy to lift (get the case!) but it does everything it claims to do. That little tiny motor just chugs through anything (usually faster than we would like). We did not get the heavy balance wheel and as of yet have not found a need for it. Summary: yes we are glad we purchased the Sailrite and would make the same decision again only faster after having used it.

[DesertAlbin736]

It's always fun thinking of new canvas projects to come up with. With the exception of the windshield cover & one of the wheelhouse side window covers I've added or replaced every bit of canvas on the boat. That includes handrail covers, roof hatch covers, cockpit enclosure, a stub mast cover, dinghy cover, re-designed driver seat, bench seat cushions, and most recently a cover for my 2.5 HP Tohatsu 2 stroke dinghy motor using my last bit of left over Sunbrella. The Sailrite machine will hold its value well & more than pay for itself vs cost of a paying a professional. Those Sailrite how to videos are invaluable.

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The motor cover was made from small left over pieces of Sunbrella along with 1/4 inch s/s grommets and cord I had on hand for the drawstring. I'm almost out of the 1750 yard spool of Helios PTFE thread from Sailrite that cost $110. That's how much sewing I've done with our Thompson.

When we do our road trip to Tonawanda, NY next month we could easily route though Columbia City, IN for a stop & visit at the Sailrite plant on the way out.

[Dieselram94]

After having bought the sailrite machine and using it, I absolutely would recommend one. I have completed a few projects already and will keep this machine forever. It will pay for itself many times over.

[DesertAlbin736]

Wow, that looks like the super duper $1,095 Ultrafeed model!

If I hadn't found the used Thompson, which is quite obvious what the Sailrite machine designs are based on & maybe even the actual manufacturer contracted by Sailrite, I would probably have bought a Sailrite machine. As it is I've completed just about every project I've wanted to do for the foreseeable future. That said, I'm not letting it go. For my purposes I don't really need zig zag capability, which I would need for doing sail repairs. I wonder if the Monster II balance wheel they sell would fit on my Thompson? I don't see why it wouldn't. Not that I have a need for one unless I got into some projects with more layers of fabric that my stock Thompson could handle. The basic sewing table would be a nice addition if I had room to set up a full time dedicated sewing loft and/or or room to store the table when not in use which I don't. So I just use our kitchen dining table with a 3 x 6 folding table set up along side as seen in this photo with the borrowed Sailrite machine on a sewing table that I used to do the first cockpit enclosure project back in 2015. Luckily we have this large great room country kitchen with lots of room to set up a temporary "loft". Rick "WillieC" has been here to visit, so he knows what our setup looks like.

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[Dieselram94]

It is the $1,095 machine with zig zag. It was about $100 more to get the zig zag and I would like to buy another sailboat someday when my two youngest kids get older, so I went ahead and made the jump. I looked for used machines and got frustrated, so I just bought new. From the research I have done the monster wheel will fit on your Thompson machine. I’m thinking about getting one for mine, not that it’s needed at all, but it would just complete my machine. My sewing skills are just beginning, but I did make a new cover for my cuddy cabin, and a cover for the Albin’s new mast that snaps on and slides on and off easily.

[nebulatech]

Nice work! I'm definitely jealous of your new machine

[DesertAlbin736]

LSZ1 is certainly a good investment & not likely to depreciate hardly at all since they have a good reputation and backed up by a good company plus they're built like Sherman tanks. And if there's a chance you might be sewing on sails in the future, either making repairs or sewing new ones from scratch using a kit or pattern then heavy duty zig-zag stitching is a must.

The next possible big project for us would be a full boat cover to protect our boat from all the time it sits out in the hot desert sun (117 degrees outside today as I write this). Winterizing & shrink wrapping is not an issue here. Best bet might be to find a commercial marine grade ready made boat cover as close to the correct size as possible similar to this general size available in the $300 to $350 range & modify it as necessary. I'd have to set up tables & the machine in the garage to work on that. Making a Sunbrella cover that size from scratch would be hugely expensive in materials & I'm not even sure a machine with a small arm length like mine could do the job.

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It's so hot here in metro Phoenix area today it's barely tolerable to be outside and do anything for more than a few minutes at a time let alone go inside the boat cabin. It's like walking into a blast furnace wall of searing heat. And don't touch any object dark colored or made of metal that's been in the sun! The A/C is running almost nonstop 24/7 with overnight lows in the upper 80s & not dropping below 100 until midnight or later. If ambient temperature is 117 outside it's sure to be over 130 inside the boat. Lord help us if the power went out. We're taking La Dolce Vita up to Flagstaff at the end of this month to park it at our friend's acre yard for a few weeks until we're ready to head east around the last week in July. After that we won't be back until late October. Flagstaff is close to 7,000 feet elevation so it's cooler & breezier up there, but still close to 90 deg high today & the next few days. But nights up there do cool down into the low 50s and Flagstaff highs are expected to drop back closer to a more seasonal norm of low-mid 80s next week once the near daily afternoon monsoon season showers start.