Patches or Embroidery? - Team Juicy Racing's Racing School and Race Series Forums

arig · #1 07-08-2005

i just got off the phone with sparco usa regarding patches or embroidery for a drivers' suit. the rep said that embroidery that is done after the suit is made really compromises the integrity of the suit. if a suit is going to be embroidered, it really should only go through the top layer of the suit and not all 3 because if it goes through all 3 layers than heat can pass through the suit. he really couldn't quantify the compromise difference in an embroidery that was a pro driver's sponsors or just some of us that have 4 small patches like skip barber race series, quaker state, bfgoodrich and dodge but he definitely said that once a suit is completed(putting all 3 layers together) sewing patches on with nomex thread is the better option. also, he said that a patch that had a nomex backing is better than one without b/c the patch could melt. in europe, they mandate that all patches must have nomex backings so there definitely is something to that. another thing he thought of was that if a patch doesn't have a nomex backing, it may help to sew it on with regular thread and it may be possible for the thread to burn off and the patch to fall off before it starts to melt.

birkmama · #2 07-08-2005

I would support the non-nomex backed non-nomex-thread solution. But whatever you decide, you should always consider that you are basically sitting on a bomb loaded with an entire two gallons of highly explosive pump fuel.

arig · #3 07-08-2005

a lot of people have told me that there really is no need to wear all that fire retardant stuff since the likely hood of 87 octane igniting in the formula dodge is nil. but still, i like to know that if the planets do align like so, then im prepared.

sydude · #4 07-08-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by birkmama

I would support the non-nomex backed non-nomex-thread solution. But whatever you decide, you should always consider that you are basically sitting on a bomb loaded with an entire two gallons of highly explosive pump fuel.

dalyduo · #5 07-08-2005

Oh Mama... You'd be surprised how uncomfortable just a quart of pump fuel can make you feel if trapped upside down in an open wheeled racer while that little ol' tank your sittin' on top of leaks itself all over your nicely nomexed ass.
And that's before it catches fire!

Quote:

Originally Posted by birkmama

I would support the non-nomex backed non-nomex-thread solution. But whatever you decide, you should always consider that you are basically sitting on a bomb loaded with an entire two gallons of highly explosive pump fuel.

MJAmok · #6 07-08-2005

I watched Bobo's car burn at LRP.

Never worried about what anyone thought of my Nomex again.

birkmama · #7 07-08-2005

Michael, you are in the wrong thread, I am taking stabs at you elsewhere. Catch me

No, seriously nomex is a good thing. But if you want to live by the rules, then don't put any patches on, unless they are put on the top-layer by the manufacturer. BTW, I already have found out that Nomex is as permeable as cotton for liquids, so that is not really a benefit against fuel spill.

But now let's imagine the fuel is already seaping through the layers in the upside down car, and you are getting so nervous that you break wind and the fuel ignites. Will the resulting fire now be trapped in your suit??

Other than that, I would think that - serious again - a cotton thread is better, bc the patch will fall off rather than ignite while still patched on.

Guys, just keep the shiny side up, OK?

dalyduo · #8 07-08-2005

Oh Golly Gosh, Birky Mama. My wind has never spontaneously combusted before but perhaps yours has. I am not an expert on such things. However if my tail was soaked with gasoline strapped upside down in a racecar and it caught fire, I'm sure I would quickly displace and extinguish any internal flammable gas with fast moving solid matter.

Quote:

Originally Posted by birkmama

But now let's imagine the fuel is already seaping through the layers in the upside down car, and you are getting so nervous that you break wind and the fuel ignites. Will the resulting fire now be trapped in your suit??

birkmama · #9 07-08-2005

Daily, I am totally at ease establishing that I am the expert of the uncontroled winds (in a wider defined transcript: Kamikaze) while you are in charge of the upside down cars.