What sticks to a Darien

[ted]

Hi Folks - I have a nice old Aerostich Darien jacket that is my go-to summer jacket. The only problem is that it is a bit on the older side (17 years) and the velcro pieces that secure the shoulder and elbow pads on the inside have come loose and some have fallen off the jacket. Aerostich, Inc. refuses to work on the jacket because it is older than 15 years, and I am not ready (by a long shot) to retire it.

I did get some of the repair velcro from Aerostich and followed their instructions for ironing it on, but never could get it to stick more than a few tugs before it would start to come loose. So, before I resort to having the things sewn on, I am going to try and use glue to secure the replacement velcro strips.

Soooooooo.....

Anyone have experience using glue to secure velcro strips to a Darien jacket?

I figured I would try a few equally sized small pieces on the bottom inside to see which glue would stick the best. Candidates to test include Barge Cement, Gorilla Glue, Shoo Goo, GG hot glue gun, Bish's Tear Mender, and finally, the old Cub Scout reliable Badge Magic.

Comments or thoughts on using any of these to adhere Aerostich velcro to the inside of Darien jackets would be greatly appreciated. I anticipate getting some or all of the above and testing them all out in the next week or two.

Thanks!

Ted

 

[PoorUB]

Personally, I would take to to a seamstress or an upholstery shop and have the sew on what you need.

 

[pauls1150]

Have to agree with the poor urban guy... or take it to a boot or luggage repair place, since they'd have the "heavy" sewing machine.

 

[Paul_F]

Have to agree with the poor urban guy... or take it to a boot or luggage repair place, since they'd have the "heavy" sewing machine.

+1

I took my fourteen year old Motoport Kevlar riding suit, pants and jacket, to a dry cleaner who advertised alterations. With his heavy duty sewing machine he replaced a couple of sleeve zippers and all of the pant’s tired Velcro. As well he repaired the knee pad pockets that hold the knee armour. I supplied him the heavy duty Velcro from a fabric store.

In the past I’ve had my old fashion shoe repair shop replace the odd bit of Velcro but the dry cleaner’s fee was far more reasonable. I am totally pleased with his work and price.

 

[patm]

I wouldn't sew on the velcro unless you don't care what that does to the Goretex lining, because once perforated it will leak. And if care isn't taken when sewing, it will weaken the Cordura material. Considering the material is probably already weak due to age, UVs and chemicals, I wouldn't.

Velcro (brand) bands come with different glue backing, some are just peel off the back, others are heat activated. That should be good enough to maintain in place your pads. Make sure the material you glue on is clean and dry otherwise it won't stick on.
If you want to go the glue tube route, I would use glues designed to stick on to fabrics. Velcro has its own, a quick search shows it's available at homedepot
There are others, like Aleen's and Gorilla glue for fabrics. Just check the fine prints before in case it might affect the material.

 

[lee]

I wouldn't sew on the velcro unless you don't care what that does to the Goretex lining, because once perforated it will leak. .

I agree. Debbie used to do custom sewing and alterations and I asked her about glue or sewing.
She said it will be difficult to find a strong enough fabric glue that's stronger than Velcro.
She has used E6000. I guess you could give it a try. E600 will stand up to washing and drying.

As for sewing she said it depends on how the jacket liner is made.
The lining will need to be partially removed to sew on the new Velcro.
She said if the lining could not be removed her next thing to try would be to stitch the Velcro by hand.

She has sewn Cordura and said the needle will not damage it unless the Goretex is bonded to the Cordura.

 

[robsryder]

Like the OP I wonderd about velcro repair. I called Aerostich and asked for their recommendation. The lady answering the phone said that a heat-activated adhesive for velcro was used on the 'Stich suits. I was put in contact with the Aerostich repair dept. for more specifics and left a message - when a reply is received, I'll relay it in this thread.

It seems that this question arises from time to time and below are links to earlier threads that discuss this topic. I've no idea (other than the one from the Aerostich repair manual) which ideas are sound -

https://www.aerostich.com/pub/media/pdf/1060_update0214.pdf (suggests separate velcro repair [sending it in to Aerostich?? - maybe from an older manual when such repairs were taken])

https://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread.php?88898-Adding-Velcro-to-Roadcrafter

https://www.advrider.com/f/threads/attaching-velcro-so-it-actually-stays.60241/

https://www.stromtrooper.com/threads/making-velcro-work-again.141697/

 

[Paul_F]

I wouldn't sew on the velcro unless you don't care what that does to the Goretex lining, because once perforated it will leak.

In my case, I’m not too concerned about rain and leaks as it is a mesh riding suit. When it rains, I wear a raincoat over the riding suit. :smile

 

[robsryder]

The nice lady in charge of the Aerostich repair dept. called me back. She said that for unlined Aerostich suits, e.g. R3 and Darien, that individual pieces of the heat-activated velcro (use an iron to apply) are available for $5 each. It is necessary to call and ask for these velcro pieces as there isn't a specific part number.

One surprise was that Aerostich will take suits older than 15 years for specific velcro repairs. This includes replacing the "hook" part of the collar, sleeve, and main velcro closure.

 

[ted]

One surprise was that Aerostich will take suits older than 15 years for specific velcro repairs. This includes replacing the "hook" part of the collar, sleeve, and main velcro closure.

Thank you for all the replies, the E6000 particularly helpful as that will be on my “try” list!

For jackets older than 15 years Aerostich will indeed replace sewn on velcro, but they will absolutely not replace the heat-activated velcro for the inner shoulder, back and elbow pad anchors on Darien jackets. Since the Gore-Tex liner on Darien jackets is bonded to the inner fabric, they will not and do not recommend sewing in the replacement velcro.

I did have a great discussion with them about how to best clean and prepare before attempting the iron in, they would simply just not hold. They also mentioned that the reason they won’t do these repairs on jackets older than 15 years is the high level of heat they need to use and the length of time it needs to be applied will often damage the older fabric.

So, glue it is - let the testing begin

Ted

 

[lee]

For jackets older than 15 years Aerostich will indeed replace sewn on velcro, but they will absolutely not replace the heat-activated velcro for the inner shoulder, back and elbow pad anchors on Darien jackets.
Ted

Those pieces were probably attached before the garment was made and the pieces of fabric could be laid flat.
Getting a iron into the shoulder and elbow area would be difficult now.

 

[robsryder]

I have a one piece 'Stich purchased in 1996. I also have a newer Darien and one-piece 'Stich (still stiff!). But the old 'Stich hangs in the garage and is well broken in to me and gets more frequent use, i.e. wore it today. The new one piece 'Stich and Darien also fit well and perhaps I should increase my wearing of these items.

When I need to replace velcro on the old 'Stich I will likely use a belt and suspenders approach. That means that I'll use some type of glue and stitching with some seam sealer applied around the threads. I will be interested in seeing how some other experimenters fare.

 

[henzilla]

I saw the title and thought bugs!
Sounds like glues the way to go.

Back to bugs…almost season for these!

 

[179212]

What Sticks

If it is the aerostich yellow color, everything sticks except possibly Velcro!