Lyn St George

@Andrew. Bruce has posted some excellent reports on irons and I would consider his opinion definitive. You might also want to consider hot air guns, though not the one I reported on some months ago – this is one of many cheaper tools that don’t regulate the temperature and should not be considered.

Of the three ranges that Steinell make, their…[Read more]

Looking at the site you’ve linked to, he pretty much admits that the problems are down to poor workmanship and poor tools. The photo shows a seam that will not only leak but quite possibly tear apart under serious stress. The situation is much the same as with anything else you might make, be it tent, shed or packraft: you need to have the right…[Read more]

Thanks Bruce.
To my mind this is absolutely the right tool for any fabric that’s not UL, but it needs time to learn how to use it to the best advantage. I also have a little 700watt ‘solder re-work station’ thing which I tried once. Both temp and air-flow are easily controlled, but the thing is just a wimp, like using a candle when you need a…[Read more]

You can get masterseal 10’s from extremtextil.de in Germany. They currently have 23cm, 71cm and 91cm long zips. Or you can get superseals from lomo.co.uk, but these are much heavier and more expensive, more suited to the boat rather than the gear.

Cheers
Lyn

Just received some of these new red inflation and deflation valves, and I’m curious as to how well the deflation valves hold. I originally got these for dump valves on the reserve air bags in the tubes, but am thinking now of adding them to the main seats in the rafts and my new sleeping mat (rather than just holding the inflation valve open). On…[Read more]

Have you considered adding a spout to it, like the Exped Schnozzel Pump? The schnozzel comes out of the side, not the bottom, so you can rest the bag on the ground away from whatever is being inflated and just “fall” on it. After a hard day when you feel like collapsing rather than inflating your sleeping mat, being able to ‘collapse’ on the pump…[Read more]

I’ve started using my Jingda “leather” iron again after all. Having ground and filed the bottom flat and the width down to 24mm, it really is quite good. The minimal temperature drift and massive heat retention is excellent. As for the shoe on mine bubbling, it has to be poor metallurgy. I have to assume that it’s made from recycled alloys, and…[Read more]

Re the leather iron from Aliexpress mentioned in Comments.

I’ve just used mine in earnest (though not on a boat, alas) and have to change my opinion. The shoe is a solid lump of alloy, yet after a few hours it bubbled! See the photo. It looked like a chrome plating with bubbles, but after taking it all apart it is actually solid. The bottom of…[Read more]

I bought my MRS from the German store and got their Anfibio paddles too. For the new DIY rafts I have paddles from celticpaddles.com in Anglesey – they make a series specifically for packrafts, and these look the cat’s whiskers.

Aha – have just found a youtube video showing what you describe. So I guess this inner valve would also be ‘sticky and cling to itself’ as you mentioned before on your own gear. I’m dead keen on finding a replacement for zippers if possible, and was just thinking about making up a test rig of a bladder representing the hull with a ‘tube’ thing in…[Read more]

I made an air pillow once with a roll top, thinking that a dozen rolls ought to keep air in. It stayed up for a couple of hours but was always flat in the morning.

Thermarest have a new ‘speedvalve’ on one model Neoair. This looks like a roll top about 20cm wide. Towards the end of the video they say ‘tuck the black inner valve all the way…[Read more]

Check posts 2248, 2771, and 2901 for fabrics from Seattle and Rockywoods. There are many other posts here from people who have tried other fabrics and concluded that it was a mistake. Currently Matt is the only supplier offering the correct fabric to the public. I speak as someone who bought the wrong stuff in the past and will not again -…[Read more]

500den TPU Cordura from extremtextil

FYI: I have just made a test weld on this with a strip of Matt’s camo fabric, using the hot air gun, and can report that the result is perfect. The weld is very strong, and with no sign at all of heat damage to the fabric it can fairly be assumed to be the ’66’ variant. The TPU coating is thick and the cordura…[Read more]

For weight in the bow, I’m thinking that when the boat needs to be manoeuvrable in moving water then the pack should sit behind with me jammed back against it; but for better tracking on flat lakes and the like then the pack would be up ahead, sitting on the floor and leaning on the bow; when the gear needs to be certain of keeping dry then it…[Read more]

I see it as a valuable addition to the toolbox that will be used on other jobs too. I have the 1500W version but there is a 1080W version on ebay for the price of a Clover iron, though you need to get the 20mm nozzle separately. Anyone who’s done any gas welding will find this a natural tool to use, though you need to develop some specific skills…[Read more]