Sewing has so many different methods. It is OK if you don’t
know them all, but if you work in the apparel industry it is a good idea to at
least know some of the basics. Today, let’s take a moment to learn a little
more about the meaning and process of bartacking.
What is a bar tack stitch? A bar tack stitch is
basically a tight zigzag that is repeated back and forth over itself to
reinforce a piece that is sewn together.
Bar tacks may be sewn by hand, using whip stitches, or by
machine, using zigzag stitches.
The process for sewing a bar tack is essentially to sew
several long, narrowly-spaced stitches along the line of the bar that will be
formed, followed by short stitches made perpendicular to the long stitches,
through the fabric and over the bar. The bar commonly varies between 1⁄16 to
1⁄8 inch (1.6 to 3.2 mm) in width and 1⁄4 to 3⁄8 inch (6.4 to 9.5 mm) in length.
In some garments, such as jeans, the bar tack will be sewn in
a contrasting color.
Similar stitches to the bar tack include the arrowhead tack
and crow's foot tack.
Chances are that if you've ever seen a pair of blue jeans,
you've seen a bartack.
Learn more about sewing in our
education section. You may want to go specifically to the seams
& stitches section.
You can find bartacking machinery from many of the industry
leading sewing machine
manufacturers. For example, Juki
offers the following models of computer-controlled, High-speed, Bartacking
Machines:
LK-1900B Series
The machine achieves sewing speed of 3,200sti/min. The
machine's starting, stopping, thread-trimming and automatic presser lifting
speeds have been increased to significantly shorten total cycle
time.
LK-1901B
The machine is provided with a material-drawing mechanism
which draws the right and left parallel portions of an eyelet buttonhole near to
one another. The machine performs bartacking with the right and left parallel
portions of the eyelet buttonhole drawn near to one another after the buttonhole
is clamped under the work clamp foot, thereby finishing highly durable and
well-tensed eyelet buttonholes.
LK-1902B
The machine is provided as standard with six different linear
bartacking patterns. Since the sewing size can be easily changed, the optimal
number of stitches and sewing size can be speedily selected according to the
belt-loop width. If the normally used patterns are assigned to the patterns
keys, a desired pattern can be called up or changed with single-key
operation.
Learn more about bar tack stitches in our apparel definition section.
Learn more about bar tack stitches in our apparel definition section.
You can learn more about the above mentioned equipment at the
Juki sewing machine website. If you are a fashion designer that prefers to sew
by hand, you are welcome to buy needle and thread and work on your sewing
techniques by hand instead.
