Kevlar® — Eddington Thread Manufacturing (2024)

FAQs

What is the strongest thread for sewing? ›

Kevlar(TM) thread is one of the strongest and most fire retardant commercially available threads. It is about 2.5 times stronger than nylon or polyester, has almost no stretch, does not melt, and decomposes at 800F.

The material Kevlar® is made from combing phenylediamine with terephthaloyl chloride which results in polyamide threads.

Kevlar® is a durable, heat resistant sewing thread making it ideal for extreme heat and high stress situations. Kevlar® does not melt and will not begin decomposing until it reaches 800° Fahrenheit or greater.

Kevlar thread is a great choice for high stress applications including sewing seams on heavy-duty clothing, conveyer belts, harnesses, bags, reinforcing plastics, and other fibers. It is also used for high-temperature controls on model airplanes and rockets.

Kevlar is five times stronger than steel on a weight-for-weight basis, and it is also heat-resistant and flame-resistant. But how strong is Kevlar thread? It's approximately 2.5 times stronger than nylon and polyester.

Yes…. well most of them. The weave of most Kevlar fabrics are relatively loose because they are designed to resist abrasion or high speed blunt projectiles ie a bullet. But a sewing machine will get nowhere near the speed of a gun so the needle will just slip through the tough fibers.

The Kevlar (poly-paraphenylene terephthalamide (PPTA)) manufacturing process is expensive. There are also issues with application of concentrated sulfuric acid and maintenance of aqueous insoluble polymer during the twisting and combination process (Yang, 1992).

Kevlar production is expensive because of the difficulties arising from using concentrated sulfuric acid, needed to keep the water-insoluble polymer in solution during its synthesis and spinning.

Keep Your Kevlar Dry

Avoid getting vests or other body armor wet, if possible. If you do come into contact with water, the material will be weaker until it dries out. And, if Kevlar is exposed to water often enough, the fibers of the material may eventually weaken and break down.

What happens if you touch Kevlar? ›

Do not touch moving threadlines of KEVLAR® fiber. Entanglement with this high strength fiber can severely cut or even sever fingers. During a fire, these KEVLAR® products are unlikely to pose a respirable fibril hazard, but may release toxic and irritating gases, much like those of wool.

Kevlar^® is inherently flame resistant—protecting against thermal hazards up to 800 degrees Fahrenheit. Additionally, Kevlar^® fibers won't melt, drip or support combustion.

The MG-3DW-7 is a heavy duty hemming and seaming machine. Because it is designed with extra space between the needle plate and presser foot, it is primarily used for heavy or dense fabrics and is perfect for sewing materials such as kevlar or nomex.

Spider silk has a higher tensile strength than nylon and greater toughness than Kevlar, and has long been of interest to material scientists.

Kevlar® thread has become known for many advantageous properties. First, Kevlar® thread is typically more than twice as strong as polyester or nylon threads. Second, Kevlar® thread has very little stretch, which helps hold a very tight seam.

Extra Fine Threads (UNEF)

Extra fine threads or UNEF threads have more threads per axial length compared to fine threads. Extra Fine threads deliver the highest strength through having the greatest shaft diameter but are the slowest to tighten.

Size for size, a fine thread is stronger than a coarse thread. This is both in tension (because of the larger stress area) and shear (because of their larger minor diameter). Because of the smaller pitch, they allow finer adjustments in applications that need such a feature.

The strength of the polyester embroidery thread is 7 pounds. The Limp Monofilament Fishing Line is made by melting and mixing nylon polymers. The Fishing Line has the most tensile strength and can hold up to 8 pounds. Tensile strength is the measure of stress needed to break a material by stretching.

Nylon is an example of 'synthetic fibre' which is used for 'making parachutes and ropes' for 'rock climbing activity'. Much more weight is required to break the nylon thread to show that nylon thread has a greater strength that the cotton thread.