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Picking the right sewing thread can speed up your sewing process, prevent reworking of seams, and keep your customers happy. Outdoor, industrial, and commercial applications require high-quality, heavy-weight, and heavy-duty threads that last.
Read on for a rundown of various thread types and their recommended uses in these markets to determine the best quality thread for your project.
➤ Colors fading or bleeding into the fabric?
Find a thread that's solution-dyed, treated for UV resistance, bonded, or anti-wicking. These will help defend against sun and moisture to keep the color in the thread, even in marine conditions.
➤ Needle heat from your sewing machine?
Use a thread that's lubricated or specially engineered for high heat and high-speed machine sewing.
➤ Fraying or breaking?
Fraying typically occurs when there are burs on the sewing machine needle. Breaking typically occurs either under fraying or because the tension is wrong. Fraying and breaking can also occur from the needle getting too hot in high-speed sewing machines – but this is highly unlikely with a lubricated thread.
➤ Thread retaining water? Leaky seams?
Choose an anti-wicking, swelling, or monocord threads that fill the seams when wet to prevent leakage.
➤ Shrinking, expanding, or warping thread?
Select a thread that's heat set to minimize shrinking and expanding.
➤ Deterioration from mold, mildew, or chemicals?
Lubricated, coated, or bonded threads defend against these external factors.
➤ Untwisting, raveling, or knotting thread?
Monofilament thread provides one uniform strand, which means no untwisting. Bonding and lubrication also create a smoother surface to prevent knotting and abrasion.
➤ Looking for a subtle or invisible seam?
With so many thread color options available, you can usually color-match your fabric. You can also try a thinner thread for a finer seam or a clear thread for an invisible seam.
➤ Difficulty with hook pickup?
Try a thread with twisted yarn to improve hook pickup.
➤ Thread falling off the spool?
Aruvo thread features a unique snap base to prevent thread from falling off the spool when taken off the sewing machine.
➤ Stiff thread?
Find a single-ply thread with light bonding that provides both strength and flexibility – or thread with a soft finish.
Industrial threads come in a range of sizes. Generally speaking, the larger the size, the thicker and heavier duty the thread is (which means more noticeable seams).
Thread weight is the thickness of your thread. Thread weight can vary from fine thread to medium weight to heavy-duty weight. Heavier threads are coarser and work best for thicker fabrics.
Here's a quick breakdown of the different terms for sizing thread:
For example, here's how we would read the sizing for PremoBond thread # 543012:
Commercial (V) size 92
Denier size 810
Needle size 120
Tex (T) size 90
Ticket (metric) size 30
There's a lot of variation in thread, depending on what you use it for. The notes above are good general rules to follow when selecting heavy-duty or industrial threads.
Make a decision? Choose from over 350 choices in thread and bobbins at Trivantage to tie up your next project.
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