DIY: Framebag - which material would you choose - a guess between two extremes: sewable and robust ..

good evening dear friends,

currently planing to create a framebag - and found a nice introduction here:



the question is - well i decided to sew the thing: if you would you sew it - which material would you choose. Note - not every sewing machine is strong enough - so i think i have to choose a material with that in mind.

i need your advice: note: i have some materials to choose:

Codura FLAT 430 g :: Grammatur (gr/m2) 430: 8 € /m



Codura FLAT 270 g

waterproof Kodura-Stoff PVC FLAT 600D - many colors 7,19 € /m

Codura FLAT 270 g waterproof Kodura-Stoff PVC FLAT 600D -

Kodura 1680D 11,97 €/m



The question is: which one would you choose!?

witdth (cm) 150

Grammatur (gr/m2) 430

Glasur FLAT PVC

i guess that i would choose light material - whats your guess!?

btw: - i have seen the offers over there - some times they are pretty expensive

cordura - some of them are 40 - 60 Eur /meter : this is very very much - compared to the above mentioned pinapin-offers. What do you say here!?

love to hear from you

I learned to sew in my summer job as a parachute rigger with the U.S. Forest Service. I've been sewing for several decades, and have a heavy duty machine. I had a friend who's company made all kinds of outdoor gear, and had contracts for different things like making rain gear for the Postal Service. I could buy cordura, pack cloth, rip stop nylon, and other outdoor fabrics from him when his workers had bolt ends or large pieces of scrap for 0.25 cents a pound. I still have several large tubs off material in my garage.

I made these panniers about 25 years ago to provide heel clearance on our road bikes. The bags on top the rear racks are used in climbing, but used here to carry our camping gear. The panniers were made with pack cloth.




I would use pack cloth. It is lighter then cordura. If you want to use cordura I'd suggest the lighter fabric.

The black duffel bag is a commercially made bag. I made the yellow one in the middle, and it is made out of a light weight nylon taffeta. I've used it as checked baggage on several flights as well as train travel. It is still holding together.

What are you going to put in it? A sleeping bag requires only a very light bag, though waterproof is a consideration. A stove and a tool kit probably require heavier cloth. Another consideration is how often are you going to use them? And are you willing to replace them? I have a set of Bob Beckman panniers that are heavy Cordura. The waterproofing has worn off the insides, but the fabric and the zippers are still 100%. If I could get a canvas worker to copy them in modern materials, they would probably weigh half as much. I might have to replace them every 5 years.

Hi, see the recent "Stealth Camping at Reserve..." for a pic of our tandem with the frame pack that we designed and sewed. We used standard waterproof cordura from Rocky Fabrics. Also bought zippers, Velcro, thread and other stuff from them. Sewing the cordura needs a thicker needle. We made a cardboard template for the sides. If you are more curious, I can provide the exact fabrics we ordered. We were far more concerned with durability than weight.

I have done very little sewing in the past few decades. That said, I sewed a lot of my camping gear back in the 1970s and 1980s. At that time finished goods where quite expensive compared to the cost of materials. Companies like Frostline and Holubar were making kits for sewing camping gear etc. I was using a vintage Singer sewing machine.

My experience was that fabric like pack cloth was pretty easy to sew, but cordura was quite difficult where you had seams crossing seams where you could have quite a few layers for the needle to get through.

I think of Cordura as the fabric you want for abrasion resistance, but if you do not need the abrasion resistance, you are better off sewing with pack cloth instead.

Good luck with your project.

I don’t know what the material is called, but I’ve only been able to find it at Walmart and I’ve only been able to find it in black. One side is similar to denim and the reverse side is waterproof vinyl like substance. It’s fairly lightweight but very durable. I’ve been using it for about 8 years now making all of my own bags.





Not pictured are my rolltop fork bags that complete my setup.