DIY wing tutorial - very picture heavy.

[raftingtigger]

Finally found the material I used. Coated Fabrics. Pretty much what we discussed (the 600 D version). $8 per yard. 1 yard will make 2 bladders. The fabric looks and feels likes Cordura. The comment on very cold temps is for temps well below freezing.

 

[raftingtigger]

Latest wing was made by my mentee with no prior sewing experience. We did the PVC glue with safety seams and it worked well. It took most of the day to make, but between steps he also made 4 very nice weight pockets and some other odds and ends. I demoed each step and then had him do his own work. He had a few places (mostly on edging) where the seam had to get ripped out and redone - but so was one of my edging seams.

 

[Tom_Ivan]

A really great tutorial Tigger!

I'm doing some DIY wing experimentation myself and I'l like to add a small word of warning.

That PVC coated material is a layer of PVC coated on one side of the layer of fabric. You need to ensure that both PVC layers are on the inside when you try to bond them. If you don't the material will not bond and you'll get horrible melted plastic all over you wife's iron and bloody great telling off!

Enjoy

 

[raftingtigger]

A really great tutorial Tigger!

I'm doing some DIY wing experimentation myself and I'l like to add a small word of warning.

That PVC coated material is a layer of PVC coated on one side of the layer of fabric. You need to ensure that both PVC layers are on the inside when you try to bond them. If you don't the material will not bond and you'll get horrible melted plastic all over you wife's iron and bloody great telling off!

Enjoy

Tom, Some roses, a nice dinner out, and a new iron should set things right with your wife.

For all you others out there - a piece of printer paper between the iron and the fabric goes a long way to preventing such messes. Using PVC pipe glue (make sure it is still wet when assembling) removes the need to play with the wife's iron (and ire ;-)).

 

[EireDiver606]

Part 2.

Next sew on the decorative binding to make your wing look professional. Go slow, stop and pull out stitches if needed, and get it looking good. Fold the bias tape over the edge of your wing and sew a med-large length straight stitch. Overlap at the end. Don't forget to flame seal the start and end of the bias tape.

View attachment 420735

View attachment 420736

Now punch holes for and set your grommets where you want them.View attachment 420737

Finished wing
View attachment 420738

This wing passed a 24 hour leak test and is currently packed in my bag for my Bonaire trip in 2 days. It is my backup, but will see service there.

This is about the 6th or 7th bladder I've made of ever improving techniques. To date, none have been removed from service for failure - just for newer designs.

Lastly, for the lawyers: THIS IS AN ENTIRELY AT YOUR OWN RISK PROJECT.

Awesome ingenuity

 

[Caveeagle]

Tom, Some roses, a nice dinner out, and a new iron should set things right with your wife.

For all you others out there - a piece of printer paper between the iron and the fabric goes a long way to preventing such messes. Using PVC pipe glue (make sure it is still wet when assembling) removes the need to play with the wife's iron (and ire ;-)).

I used to get in trouble using the iron to apply monokote covering on my RC airplanes.

They make really nice irons for that purpose. I bet they would work well for this

 

[JamesBon92007]

Tom, Some roses, a nice dinner out, and a new iron should set things right with your wife.

For all you others out there - a piece of printer paper between the iron and the fabric goes a long way to preventing such messes. Using PVC pipe glue (make sure it is still wet when assembling) removes the need to play with the wife's iron (and ire ;-)).

How wide of a bead of PVC glue are you using? 3/4" or so? Do you weight it while it's drying? Have you tried ironing it to dry (set) it? Do you apply the PVC cement to one side or both? It seems like it would be very easy to make reinforcement rings for the inflator hose and dump valve using these materials.

I tried out my old Voit vest and it worked great but then suddenly died of old age. I bought a new Zeagle back wing which is fine but I really want to make something more similar to the Voit vest and backpack which was almost like having no BC at all, took up very little room in my carry-on, and had very little drag in the water.

 

[raftingtigger]

JamesBon92007, Slobbery wet. I would do it in sections. Areas that weren't wet when pressed together needed more glue - but that was easy. We used weights while it dried - actually a top and bottom cardboard cutout of the glued area and weights on the cutouts. That way the weight was evenly distributed on the glued area only. Heat gun might be another way. Take a scrap of material and experiment. Go with what works for you and then please report your results. This is still an ongoing experiment.

 

[Scuba_Aaron]

Hate to resurrect such an old thread but I had some questions.
I am about to attempt this as the sidemount wings are frickin outrageously priced. I don't have a model to trace, could you provide some basic measurements of the one you have listed in your OP? What is the lift capacity if you might have measured this? I didn't see that you placed the inner parts of the valves in before you glued and sewed the halves together. I am assuming you did this because you wouldn't be able to shove the parts through such a small hole.

Thanks a bunch!!

 

[raftingtigger]

I don't have a model to trace, could you provide some basic measurements of the one you have listed in your OP? What is the lift capacity if you might have measured this? I didn't see that you placed the inner parts of the valves in before you glued and sewed the halves together. I am assuming you did this because you wouldn't be able to shove the parts through such a small hole.

Thanks a bunch!!

The pictures with the grid in the background can act as a template. Each square is 1". Take a piece of graph paper and sketch it out approximately.

I have not measured the lift capacity. But it works for me in Cold (50F) water, drysuit, and 25# of ballast.

The valves are inserted after the wing is finished. They DO fit through the holes. Holes should be just large enough for the screw part to fit through. By folding the hole in half and putting the valve half on edge you can work it through.

If I were to make a new one I would:
Glue, then sew everything except about 6 inches on the bottom. Turn it inside out and Aquaseal the seam from the inside and let dry for 48 hours. Turn back right side out and glue and sew the last 6 inches. Then take a brush and finish Aquasealing the seam from the inside and prop the bladder open and dry another 48 hours. Then finish as before.