What should the machine be set to?
Her machine
- Model
- Janome RE1306
- Type
- Mechanical (no circuit board)
- Stitches
- 6 on the dial, plus a 4-step buttonhole
- Widest zigzag
- 5 mm
- Motor
- 60 W
- Bobbin
- Front-loading, under the slide cover
- Also has
- Reverse lever, drop-feed lever, free arm, thread cutter
- Plate marks
- 10 · 15 · 20 mm
This guide uses straight stitch, zigzag and the buttonhole, which are on every RE1306. Check the pictures on the dial for the other stitches. Specs from Janome's RE1306 brochure.
Getting over thick seams
- Slow right down near a thick seam. For the last few stitches, turn the hand wheel towards you instead of using the pedal.
- If the foot tips up at the front and stalls, fold a scrap of the same fabric and slide it under the back of the foot so the foot sits level.
- Hammer thick seams flat with a mallet or the back of a spoon before sewing over them. It works well on canvas.
- If the needle stops in the fabric, don't force the wheel. Lift the foot, ease the fabric back, and check the needle for bends before carrying on.
- Three layers of camper canvas or anything with webbing sandwiched in is past what a 60 W machine likes. Sew those by hand with a saddle stitch.
Seam guide
The engraved lines at 10, 15 and 20 mm measure from the needle. Keep the fabric edge on a line and watch the line, not the needle.
The magnetic guide Cale printed sticks to the steel stitch plate. The white bed around it is plastic, so the guide won't hold there. Keep it off the bobbin slide cover or it has to come off at every bobbin change.
4-step buttonhole
- Mark the buttonhole length with chalk: button width plus button thickness.
- Step 1 on the dial sews the first long side. Stop at the end mark.
- Step 2 bar-tacks the end. Four or five stitches is enough.
- Step 3 sews back down the other side. Step 4 bar-tacks the start.
- Put a pin across the end, then cut the slot open with a seam ripper so you can't cut through the bar.
When it sews badly
- Loops underneath: re-thread the top with the presser foot up, so the thread seats in the tension discs.
- Skipped stitches: new needle, and the right type for the fabric.
- Thread snapping: check the spool isn't catching, then loosen the top tension one number.
- Bird's nest at the start: hold both thread tails for the first three stitches.
Which stitch, and how
Solid pink thread is on top. Dashed thread is underneath the fabric.
Canvas repairs with curved needles
A curved needle goes in and comes back out on the same side. That makes it the tool for canvas that's still on the camper, cushions that can't come off, and anywhere you can't reach behind.
How to drive a curved needle
- Hold the needle near the eye. Push the point in straight down.
- Roll your wrist so the needle follows its own curve. Don't push straight forward or it bends.
- When the point comes back up, grip it and pull it through along the curve. Use needle-nose pliers on thick canvas.
- Take small bites of 5–6 mm. Big bites pucker and pull out.
Curved needles with a triangular point cut through canvas and vinyl more easily. Round points slide between the threads of woven upholstery fabric. Kits usually have both.
Thread for outside
- Use: UV-resistant bonded polyester upholstery thread. Wax it so it doesn't tangle or wick water.
- Longest-lasting: PTFE thread (Tenara is one brand) doesn't break down in the sun. It costs more and suits annex and roof seams.
- Avoid: cotton thread outside. It rots and mildews.
- Length: work with about 1 m of thread at a time. Longer lengths fray from being pulled through canvas again and again.
- How much: hand stitching uses about 3× the seam length, and saddle stitch about 4×.
Spacing that holds
- 4–5 stitches per 25 mm.
- Keep 6–10 mm in from any edge or fold.
- On a patch, sew two rows: one near the fold, one about 10 mm inside it.
- Start and finish with two backstitches. Hide knots on the inside, never on the weather side.
Making it waterproof
- Cotton or poly-cotton canvas: wet the repair and let it dry fully. The fibres swell and close the needle holes. It may drip at the first rain, and that's normal.
- Synthetic canvas, PVC or ripstop: needle holes don't close on their own. Paint seam sealer along the stitching on the outside.
- Always let canvas dry fully before packing it away. Folded damp canvas grows mildew within days.
Get a canvas shop to do it
- Tears through zips, or zips that have lost teeth.
- Damage at a corner that's under tension, like pole pockets or guy-rope points.
- Anything that needs eyelets punched.
- A tear longer than about 300 mm in the roof.
Guardian Campers' own service centres at Rockhampton and Caboolture are the first place to ask for matching canvas.
Made to measure for the camper
Pick a pattern and enter measurements. It works out every piece to cut, how much fabric to buy, and checks her kit for what's needed.
What she already owns
Patterns check this list. Anything on it shows as "In kit" and anything missing shows as "Need". The more exact the names, the better the match.
Paste a whole list
One item per line. It sorts them into groups by name. You can fix any in the list afterwards.
On the go
Save a pattern here with its measurements and cut list, then track it through to done.
Backup
Her kit and projects are saved in this browser on this device. Clearing browser data wipes them, so copy a backup now and then and keep it in a note.