chain stitch hemming

Originally Posted by Ludeykrus

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Old thread, but seems like I remember someone (whodini?) showing good roping on the hems of a pair of non-chainstitched jeans, disproving the myth that roping is a chainstitch-only benefit. That post had to be from a while back, though.

Yes, that was me. Don't remember where the post is but I have plenty of non-chainstitched jeans as well as chainstitched jeans that have roping. It has to do with how the fabric is slightly twisted when stitched.

I still standby my vote for people not wasting their time tracking down a Union Special unless it's part of the service. You're not missing out on a damn thing.

The stitching has broken a couple of times. This'll be their third time at my jeans since october or so.

I saw only one or two people who made an attempt to answer this guy's original question: Blue in Green, Self Edge and Blue Owl Workshop offer chainstitch hemming. - To get hems at these places as an add service (BiG and Blue Owl offer it free with purchase), you'll need to know the inseam length you want when you send them in. Shipping is on you, plus the $15-$25 charge. Insure your package and include instructions as well as thread color, if applicable (standard gold, colormatch, etc). Most local tailors will charge as much, so I find that it's worth it for a proper denim hem alone. - A denim hem will use up one full inch of material, fyi. Remember to request the hemmed material back for future patches. Union special is only one brand that makes a chainstitch machine. Singer does too. Professional grade ones can be had for $700-$1,200. Union Specials were the original tool used, and for many reasons purists appreciate the legacy, as well as the stitch quality. - Chainstitching is not as strong as a lockstitch (it can unravel) however the directional pressure and tautness of the stitch, working with the shrink/stretch cycles of the denim (not the fact that the thread is cotton or poly), helps promote roping of the hems. The stitch is more attractive to many when visible, like when cuffing. It is not the only way to get roping of the hems. - An animated link showing the difference between a chainstitch and a lock stitch is shown here.

Originally Posted by whodini

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I still standby my vote for people not wasting their time tracking down a Union Special... You're not missing out on a damn thing.

Apart from the fact the stitching looks different.

PLenty of modern jeans manufacturers (H&M, TopSHop) have chainstitched hems - but they look recognisably different from 50s hems, or LVC, or SC. Not nesessarily worse, but definitely different.

As for a standard stitch... I had my Lee 101 repros restitched just to get the chainstitch. A standard hem simply looks wrong on any classic post-30s design.

For the record, hemming is free at both SESF and SENY if the jeans are bought in-store and never use left over raw denim scraps to repair jeans, always use denim fusing material.

Originally Posted by Pablo-T

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. A standard hem simply looks wrong on any classic post-30s design.
Perhaps from a repro detail perspective but functionally speaking, and with all due respect, who gives a ****? As I said before, if it's a service that is provided as part of the original purchase (ie, Self Edge) then it's a great detail in the original spirit of the product. But give out general advice for tell some kid Podunk, KS or Papa New Guinea to read that his jeans don't look right because he didn't send them out to the right vintage machine is just a touch on the side of snobbish douchebaggery. Given that this is a forum with a healthy membership of people who spend $200+ buying a pair of pants, there's enough of that going around as it is; we should try to keep things in check at some point.

Originally Posted by whodini

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Perhaps from a repro detail perspective but functionally speaking, and with all due respect, who gives a ****? ...But give out general advice for tell some kid Podunk, KS or Papa New Guinea to read that his jeans don't look right because he didn't send them out to the right vintage machine is just a touch on the side of snobbish douchebaggery. Given that this is a forum with a healthy membership of people who spend $200+ .
I've certainly never advised anyone to buy a $200 pair of jeans. But to buy a decent pair of jeans, and then have the wrong type of hem for the want of an extra $10 or $15, is simply a waste of money, not "snobbish douchebaggery". When you come to sell your worn-in pair on eBay, as I do, you'll find you more than get your money back for a decent hem - no-one will pay as much for jeans that have been ruined by a cheap job. Ship, penny, tar. Edit, for people who care. Chainstitch on my SDA103XX by The Clerk, departmentofworks.com. He's in Brighton I believe, up at Greenwich Market many weekends & also does a postal service: Union Specials at Son of a Stag, Truman Breweries. They charge more, £20 as opposed to £18, but will do it while you wait:

Originally Posted by kiya

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For the record, hemming is free at both SESF and SENY if the jeans are bought in-store and never use left over raw denim scraps to repair jeans, always use denim fusing material.
That's great to know, Kiya. Is this a recent change?

Originally Posted by mlyngard

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That's great to know, Kiya. Is this a recent change?

Nope, jeans bought in-store always come with free hemming.
Jeans bought online are charged $15 for hemming (we can't offer free shipping AND free hemming)

Originally Posted by kiya

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Nope, jeans bought in-store always come with free hemming.
Jeans bought online are charged $15 for hemming (we can't offer free shipping AND free hemming)

Ahh, understood.

Originally Posted by Pablo-T

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I've certainly never advised anyone to buy a $200 pair of jeans. But to buy a decent pair of jeans, and then have the wrong type of hem for the want of an extra $10 or $15, is simply a waste of money, not "snobbish douchebaggery".

When you come to sell your worn-in pair on eBay, as I do, you'll find you more than get your money back for a decent hem - no-one will pay as much for jeans that have been ruined by a cheap job. Ship, penny, tar.

Edit, for people who care.

Chainstitch on my SDA103XX by The Clerk, departmentofworks.com. He's in Brighton I believe, up at Greenwich Market many weekends & also does a postal service:

Union Specials at Son of a Stag, Truman Breweries. They charge more, £20 as opposed to £18, but will do it while you wait:

an extra £2 for while you wait service would be incredible. sometimes waiting for a hem job you know takes 30 minutes, but sometimes they give you a turnaround time of a ******* week?

Originally Posted by Pablo-T

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I've certainly never advised anyone to buy a $200 pair of jeans. But to buy a decent pair of jeans, and then have the wrong type of hem for the want of an extra $10 or $15, is simply a waste of money, not "snobbish douchebaggery".
Regardless of your previous advice, $2-300+ jeans are the norm around here. If $200 for jeans is that outlandish of an idea for you, imagine what Joe Schmo is thinking with photos of 20 quid hem jobs.

"Wrong" isn't black and white here. You may have a personally-vested interest in the matter but the bottom line is that it is an aesthetic detail. I liken it to buying a classic car: some people prefer the convenience and practicality of buying after-market products but you can't chide them for not spending the extra effort to find and purchase the original parts.

Lighten up.

Originally Posted by Pablo-T

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When you come to sell your worn-in pair on eBay, as I do, you'll find you more than get your money back for a decent hem - no-one will pay as much for jeans that have been ruined by a cheap job. Ship, penny, tar.
That's great because that actually plays back to my classic car analogy. People WILL pay for the original article. But how many people on this forum, let alone in the world, actually do what you do?

You've given your own advice the proper context. In a broader sense, using words like "decent" to describe a chainstitched hem while calling anything else "ruined by a cheap job" appears brutal. But that's frankly silly when next to no one purchases their jeans with the idea of reselling them worn in the future.

Originally Posted by kiya

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Nope, jeans bought in-store always come with free hemming.
Jeans bought online are charged $15 for hemming (we can't offer free shipping AND free hemming)

Next question - how much does it cost to hem a pair I bought online, soaked and then bring in to SENY? And how much for non-SE jeans?

Originally Posted by alliswell

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Next question - how much does it cost to hem a pair I bought online, soaked and then bring in to SENY? And how much for non-SE jeans?

$15 for online bought jeans, $25 for jeans not bought from us.

I thought Levis weren't chainstiched?

anybody got pics side by side of chainstiched versus non to see how wrong they look?