Best thread for top stitch

[unclelarr]

When I upholster both automotive and commercial seats, often times I eliminate the welting and use a top stitch instead.  For nearly all my applications, I have always used sunguard thread.  I've never had any issues with customers when I have used this product.  However, for a number of years I have done work for amusement parks and shuttle buses that get a high volume of use.  This is what I have discovered:  Some of the covers, after heavy use and needing re-upholstery once again, have came back in with virtually white top stitching where there was a lot of sliding on and off of the seat.  I'm  talking about even black thread eventually turning white.   I think I've seen this in green, as well as red before.  I don't think the color really matters.  It seems the tread starts out as white, gets dyed to whatever color its supposed to be, and then the dye sometimes fails under heavy use.  Does anyone have a better suggestion for thread?  I'm generally not looking for the heavier, thicker nylon thread that's being made to really stand out.  Some of the applications are often outdoors as well, and the nylon thread would probably fail prematurely.  Again, haven't had any customer issues yet, just looking to avoid them in the future.  Thanks!

[Mojo]

I would recommend Solarfix. It is a PTFE thread and probably one of the very best outdoor threads ever made. It is impervious to UV rays and most chemicals as well as pollution. It maintains its integrity and strength for years whereas Poly loses a big part of its strength in only 2 to 3 years. But the problem you may have is that it comes in limited colors. I use clear and black. Clear is a little deceiving as it really comes out white. The black stays black and shiny even after several years.

I believe that Sunguard is probably one of the best threads in the Poly line. I suggest you give MiamiMike a call and chat with him about your issue. He really is an expert on threads and fabric and can help you. He also has a large customer base so hears alot about issues and fixes of upholsterers problems.

In the meantime I will see about getting him to jump on here and answer your question.

Chris

[Miami Mike]

All polyester thread will fade from sunlight and break down from abrasion of people rubbing over the seam.  The other thing to keep in mind is that, if this is for amusement parks and other public applications there will be cleaning fluids involved in breaking down the thread.  In this case he mentioned only the color fading to white with no mention of thread breakage.  He is correct that the color does not matter except for black which is solution dyed, meaning that the color is infused into each of the fibers that make up the thread so it cannot fade.

Best options? Sunguard is one of the best made polyester threads, but dyeing colors still has its limitations.  He could use a white thread to begin with or use the solution dyed black that won't fade.  We are working on getting a few more colors made solution dyed, but the volumes are very high and it is expensive fiber.  We will let you know if we are able to get it done.  Chris was right about SolarFix® being a very good option, but the price may be prohibitive and abrasion will still be a longer term issue, though the vinyl will still need to be replaced sooner. 

I wonder why you do not use the welting which tends to hide and protect the thread.  Hope this helps

Thanks to my connection to help get the best answer as well.

[unclelarr]

Thanks Chris and Mike.  I appreciate the info.  As far as the amusement park and a lot of the commercial jobs, the thread losing its color doesn't really concern me all that much.  however, I also do quite a lot of automotive work, so that's where more of my concern comes in.  Not so much on, say, a general run of the mill truck seat repair, but more so on custom and collector car interiors.  In general, there should be less chance of a problem on these as the volume of use will be much lower, and they should be better taken care of.  At the same time, I want to be cautious as a customer may invest a good chunk of change in one of the interiors, and if there ever was such a problem, it could be a real headache to get straightened out.  Just trying to be cautious.

When I top stitch instead of using a welting, its probably because of one of two reasons.  If its a high use situation with people sliding sideways a lot, I may leave it off because I feel it will hold up better than with people sliding across the welting, which will be sticking up higher and may wear faster than the rest of the cover.  The other reason is just because it may match the style of interior better than using the welting.  Sometimes, in my opinion, using a topstitch instead of welting gives an updated sort of appearance.  Also, if you use a topstitch, the selvage edge will always behave itself inside the cover, whereas with the welting, you may have to fuss with the selvage to get it where you want it.

So, as far as durability and color stability, in a thread that has a larger color selection, it sounds like sunguard is probably as good as any.  I do need to have a good selection of colors.  Any other opinions, Jump in!  Thanks.