Bagpipes bag sewing
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Martino
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- Tell us something.: Hi, i am Martino from Italy, i love irish music and i play uilleann pipes and other bagpipes, I'm here because I'd like to learn something about reed making and chanter making, and in general learning new things about bagpipes making and maintenance, thanks, ciao, Martino
Bagpipes bag sewing
hi everyone, recently I've been trying to make my own bagpipe bag, I found the right leather, glue etc, but when I tried to sew it (by hand) it was a total disaster... I followed the advices I found online (video on YouTube etc) but nothing to do, I tried to make a bag without sewing it and it seems to hold the air better than the two previous ones that I tried to sew by hand, but I realize that in any case the sewing is necessary, could you tell me if it is possible to sew the bag by machine? Is there an "entry level" sewing machine to sew leather bags of this thickness? Where can i buy it? any advice is welcome, thank you very much, Martino
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MichaelLoos
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Re: Bagpipes bag sewing
Hand sewing is (of course) entirely possible, it is time-consuming, hard and boring work, nevertheless you need to pay full attention to every single stitch.
If you follow instructions be sure you follow them exactly, any shortcuts might (and most probably will) lead to failure.
For low to medium pressure bagpipes, an old treadle sewing machine might well do the job, for high pressure bagpipes like GHB I wouldn't trust these, for those IMO there is no way aroung hand stitching.
A welt is absolutely necessary, an internal strip (although not essential) makes for more reliable airtightness - of course, it also makes work harder as it means you have to stitch through five layers of leather altogether (the two layers of the bag leather, two layers of the welt, plus the internal strip). You will probably want to pierce the holes before stitching, the awl used for this should not be thicker than the sewing needles, and the thread should be doubled so it is in fact thicker than the needle. Also the thread should be generously waxed. The needle points should be blunted.
The way I lokk at it is (I may be right or wrong): the actual airtightness is provided by the glue, the stitching is necessary to take the tension off the glued seam. However, stitching creates a line of holes which need to be filled, welt and internal strip help a lot to minimize the effect of the holes (ideally to the point where the effect is zero).
For mouth blown bagpipes, some sort of bag seasoning is indispensable, it will however NOT cure faulty sewing. Bellows blown pipes may or may not require seasoning, depending on the type of leather used.
If you follow instructions be sure you follow them exactly, any shortcuts might (and most probably will) lead to failure.
For low to medium pressure bagpipes, an old treadle sewing machine might well do the job, for high pressure bagpipes like GHB I wouldn't trust these, for those IMO there is no way aroung hand stitching.
A welt is absolutely necessary, an internal strip (although not essential) makes for more reliable airtightness - of course, it also makes work harder as it means you have to stitch through five layers of leather altogether (the two layers of the bag leather, two layers of the welt, plus the internal strip). You will probably want to pierce the holes before stitching, the awl used for this should not be thicker than the sewing needles, and the thread should be doubled so it is in fact thicker than the needle. Also the thread should be generously waxed. The needle points should be blunted.
The way I lokk at it is (I may be right or wrong): the actual airtightness is provided by the glue, the stitching is necessary to take the tension off the glued seam. However, stitching creates a line of holes which need to be filled, welt and internal strip help a lot to minimize the effect of the holes (ideally to the point where the effect is zero).
For mouth blown bagpipes, some sort of bag seasoning is indispensable, it will however NOT cure faulty sewing. Bellows blown pipes may or may not require seasoning, depending on the type of leather used.
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Moof
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Re: Bagpipes bag sewing
Most modern domestic sewing machines would struggle with this, they don't have the punching power. For the most part they won't even sew doubled-up denim.
I have a 100-year-old tailor's machine that might manage it, depending on the leather thickness, but to be sure I'd use an industrial machine. A cobbler's machine would do it, of course, but the holes might be a bit big with the needles they're used to using – you'd need to find someone who'll listen to advice and understand that the wrong needle could wreck the bag.
If you don't want to involve a cobbler or a tailor but know of someone with an old cast-iron machine you could practise on with scrap leather to find the optimal needle size, stitch length and thread tension, that'd be your best bet. It doesn't matter whether they're belt driven, hand cranked, or have been fitted with motors, most of them have a lot more oomph than anything made after the 1970s. If you can find an old machine with feed dogs you can raise and lower (these are the ridged strips on the needle plate that move the fabric forward), it might make it easier.
I have a 100-year-old tailor's machine that might manage it, depending on the leather thickness, but to be sure I'd use an industrial machine. A cobbler's machine would do it, of course, but the holes might be a bit big with the needles they're used to using – you'd need to find someone who'll listen to advice and understand that the wrong needle could wreck the bag.
If you don't want to involve a cobbler or a tailor but know of someone with an old cast-iron machine you could practise on with scrap leather to find the optimal needle size, stitch length and thread tension, that'd be your best bet. It doesn't matter whether they're belt driven, hand cranked, or have been fitted with motors, most of them have a lot more oomph than anything made after the 1970s. If you can find an old machine with feed dogs you can raise and lower (these are the ridged strips on the needle plate that move the fabric forward), it might make it easier.
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Martino
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- Tell us something.: Hi, i am Martino from Italy, i love irish music and i play uilleann pipes and other bagpipes, I'm here because I'd like to learn something about reed making and chanter making, and in general learning new things about bagpipes making and maintenance, thanks, ciao, Martino
Re: Bagpipes bag sewing
thank you Michael and Moof for your very kind answers and advice