Australian Saddle - Replacing Girth Strap

[barra]

http://www.maclace.com.au/product.php?id=1010&list_page=1

Hemp thread is like the thread in the link although I'm sure that is linen

Barra

[amuckart]

Hi Barra,

http://www.maclace.c...010&list_page=1

Hemp thread is like the thread in the link although I'm sure that is linen

That's the stuff I use for shoes too. I got several 48-ball boxes of 1940s era "Acadia" brand #10 hemp from a guy on ebay a couple of years ago. It takes wax really well but it's a little weak for fine closing. I use 3 strands of it for round closing and I can break it pretty easily if I'm not careful. Not so much with the 7-9 strands I use for inseaming.

D.W over on the Crispin Colloquy uses unwaxed Teklon for inseaming his boots. He un-plies it and tapers the ends with a knife, waxes it and puts a bristle on just like you'd do with linen or hemp. I'm going to get some and give it a go. It's got a lot of advantages over hemp for anything but reproduction or restoration work. It's getting near impossible to get real long-staple linen any more. It's all processed on machinery geared for short-staple fibres like cotton.

There's no functional difference between linen and hemp. Once they're processed it's almost impossible to tell the difference between them, even with serious microscopes.