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Learning how to work with webbing is a useful skill, but many industrial design programs don't cover how to work with flexible materials. And if you've ever seen a production facility cranking out say, MOLLE systems for military bags, it's easy to get intimidated out of ever attempting to work with the stuff.
It is possible, however, for someone with average manual coordination to design and construct their own webbing projects using simple, affordable materials and a borrowed or thrift-store sewing machine that's been set up properly. For the design student on a budget, or the industrial designer who wants to dip their foot into the webbing pool without investing in expensive machinery, we put together this series of videos to help you get started.
In Part 1, we cover some basic materials, hardware, and terminology you'll need to know. Webbing comes in a lot of different types, and it's better to know exactly what you're working with. (It also helps to know exactly what the hardware parts are called, so you can Google for suppliers and variants.) Lastly we've included costs. Since local prices can vary, we've used the online supplier McMaster-Carr as a baseline.
Lightweight Polypropylene - 1" wide - $0.25/foot on McMaster-Carr
Extra-Strength Cotton - 1" wide - $0.82/foot on McMaster-Carr
Ultra Abrasion-Resistant Nylon* - 1" wide - $0.93/foot on McMaster-Carr
*NB: Ultra Abrasion Resistant Nylon is not suitable for the methods we will use.
Plastic Squeeze-Release Buckle - for 1" webbing - $5.74/10-pack
Plastic Feed-Through Buckle - for 1" webbing - $5.68/25-pack
Nickel-Plated Steel D-Rings - for 1" webbing - $6.22/10-pack
*Slide-Bolt Spring Snap with "Strap-Eye" - for 1" webbing - $2.56/each
*Also called "Swivel Snaps" or "Snap Hooks"
All of the links above are to McMaster-Carr, an American website. If you are outside America and know of sources local to you, please help out our international readers and sound off in the comments. Also pipe up if any of these parts are known by alternate terminology in your neck of the woods; we're pretty sure you Australians refer to these things as like, "chadwozzers" and such.
* * *
» DIY Webbing Tutorial on a Budget, Part 1: Materials & Hardware
» DIY Webbing Tutorial on a Budget, Part 2: Tools You'll Need
» DIY Webbing Tutorial on a Budget, Part 3: How to Set Up Your Sewing Machine for Webbing
» DIY Webbing Tutorial on a Budget, Part 4: Learning the Crucial "Box X" Stitch
» DIY Webbing Tutorial on a Budget, Part 5: Putting It All Together
I’m a lapsed industrial designer. I was born in NYC and figured I’d die there, but a few years ago I abandoned New York to live on a farm in the countryside with my wife. We have six dogs.
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DIY Webbing Tutorial on a Budget, Part 1: Materials & Hardware
Super helpful series and pretty stinking funny to boot. I paid $5.50 for my picker so I am a verified idiot (though that was after 10% sales tax ;-).
You can get products at a fabric store to prevent fraying, or you can just use clear nail polish.
I've used them quite often. Never let me down and seem competitively priced.
Point: Single-handedly, the female buckle is easier to release from male than vice versa.
"Squeeze-release" buckles are correctly named Side Release Buckles
"Feed Through" buckles are correctly name Ladderlocs
There is good quality polypro webbing out there as well, so don't right it off completely. Applications that are going to be in contact with water frequently can benefit from polypro's advantages over nylon in this situation.
Love the video as well...it's sharp, down to the point yet still sympathic.
Very time efficient presentation of the contents :)
the two big sites for outdoor/technical fabric/haberdashery are:
http://www.profabrics.co.uk/
and
http://www.pennineoutdoor.co.uk/
they are good if you need technical specs on the stuff you are buying, but you can't beat ebay for range.
http://exploriment.blogspot.ca/2013/03/diymyog-material-sources.html