Re-stitching leather wheel

[Lady Lou]

Our leather steering wheel on the boat is coming losing its theading and I have decided to repair before all the 'cotton' thread completely comes out! And I am not helping it stay together, I like to pull out the broken threads! Does anyone have any suggestions on the best type of cotton to re-thread? I Have found some at West Marine but before I purchase, I would like to make sure I am using the correct and, of course, best product! I have watched some videos on "youtube" but they only show the technique (which is helpful) but they don't tell you what products you will need to complete the task! So, thanks in advance for any suggestions!

[zeehag]

try goretex thread instead of cotton.
dont go to worst marine unless ye LOVE paying retail plus 400 percent..lol
any fabric store or online order the thread.....online might be a lil less stressful as ye dont have to run allover hell to find it.

[Lady Lou]

I have done some research on this product Gore Tex and it sounds incredible and pricy! I cannot find it in my home town anywhere, so I guess I will be ordering online... My husband loves to do things right the first time, so I believe he will be pleased to here of this product, sadly, we just had the dodger restitched and being novices and not asking the appropriate questions, I am now wondering what thread our sailmaker used on the re-stitch job! Anyway, thanks again! Laura

[Khagan1227]

Try amazon for the gortex thread, I usually find what I need there. Seattle Fabrics may also have it.

If you used a quality sail maker, they probably used quality materials.

[Jim Cate]

FWIW,

I've put leather covers on several wheels, and have always used waxed nylon or dacron whipping twine. It has outlasted the leather in all cases.

While the Goretex or Tenara are great materials, but are VERY slippery. This means that if your wheel stitching comes loose anywhere it will loosen clear around the wheel. Frankly, it doesn't seem worth the trouble and expense to use these high tech materials in this application. For covers and the like it is really great, though. Our boom bag is now almost nine years old and the Tenara stitching is still intact and good looking. Many canvas workers won't use it though, for its slipperyness makes it difficult to get stitch tension consistently correct.

Cheers,

Jim