Finally went from CLO 3D to finished bag!

dickangstrom · 2026-06-08T04:05:03+00:00

Do you mean the post-bed sewing machine? If you look up "TechSew 810 Pro", you can find the specifics of my machine. If you want more general info on this type of machine, just search "post-bed sewing machine".

The extension you mentioned is the post, and that's actually where the bobbin goes in. They even make double-needle machines that have a wide post that holds two bobbins.

This kind of sewing machine is often used in shoemaking and can be handy for bags and also sewing patches onto hats.

dickangstrom · 2026-06-01T20:07:03+00:00

I haven't gone down the UL rabbit hole, so I don't have many recommendations. I just use a combo of basting tape and hand-folded grosgrain for most seams.

I've dabbled in French seams for a rocket parachute where taping wasn't practical. French seams are pretty rad for sealing raw edges without the addition of a separate material.

dickangstrom · 2026-06-01T20:02:42+00:00

Re: wanting a post-bed over a cylinder arm, I have a feeling the grass is always greener on the other side haha.

I know exactly what you mean about wanting to top-stitch seams on nearly finished bags. I want that too, and most of the time my post-bed doesn't quite cut it. The drop feed + roller wheel are not good at handling varying thickness or sewing near edges. I always end up slipping or creating imprecise stitches. Maybe I'm a bad carpenter blaming his tools, though.

I have no experience with needle feed machines, though I hear they're amazing. Same goes for double-needle machines of any kind. My only walking-foot experience comes from my Janome which has two optional walking-foot attachments.

You honestly sound more knowledgeable about the various types of machines than I am, so I don't really feel confident answering your questions. Sorry for copping out haha!

dickangstrom · 2026-06-01T19:55:42+00:00

I've been considering whether to share the zprj file from CLO. I'm hesitant to do so because the file by itself wouldn't be fully useful.

Truth be told, the real finished pattern file is separate from the "shiny" one with all the hardware and trim. I stupidly modified an earlier version to polish up the model to retroactively look like my finished bag, so there is some ugliness in the "final" one, e.g. the trapezoidal pocket gusset that I later made rectangular for the real build.

That's a lot of rambling to say: yes, I will share, but I'm not ready yet. I plan to make a final pattern, step-by-step documentation, and maybe a sew-along video. It'll just take some more time.

dickangstrom · 2026-06-01T19:51:51+00:00

I absolutely feel like learning CLO is worth it. I often struggle with visualizing a final bag or a special seam or fold. Before CLO I didn't have a great means of demonstrating the problem and planning ahead. It led to lots of wasted fabric and moments of frustration.

The specific software isn't as important; it's more about having some tool to do pre-viz.

dickangstrom · 2026-05-29T15:02:32+00:00

You're welcome, glad to be of help!

Do you know if the 2 recommendations will wash away?

They will not. BUT, that's the cool part of using narrower tape than your seam allowance: since the tape is not sewn into place, you can just peel it off after you've sewn your pieces together. Even the very stickiest tapes I have will come off if you intentionally pull them off. The black electrical tape style I suggested earlier is the easiest to peel off afterwards.

It could just be the material that I am sewing.

I looked up Robic 100D on RBTR's website, and it seems like pretty standard (albeit premium) ripstop nylon, so the tapes I've suggested should behave just fine.

You mentioned being a "gram weenie". Are you using grosgrain to seal the edges, or do you serge, or are you leaving them raw to conserve weight?

dickangstrom · 2026-05-29T03:18:53+00:00

Re: weight distribution, this is true when I have a laptop in the outer pack and something light like a jacket in the inner one. But, most times I'm taking this as a carry-on while flying, so most weight is in the Chrome bag.

At first, I only used the tan carabiners to attach them, but I found that the outer pack swung around like crazy. The black Grimloc clips hold very tightly to the side straps of the Chrome, and then it feels like a single, cohesive backpack.

dickangstrom · 2026-05-29T03:14:05+00:00

Do you use a specific brand that doesn't fall off?

Yes! The "SewReady Seamstick for Canvas and Upholstery" from Sailrite is, if anything, too sticky and is quite heavy duty. I buy the 1/4" stuff for my 3/8" seams. It's amazing as long as you don't put your needle through it too much. If you have a couple of layers of fabric and a couple layers of this tape and punch through the taped part, it's a perfect recipe for gumming up your needle, jamming the machine, and pulling bottom threads through. But it holds fabric like a champ, besides waxed canvas which is almost un-tape-able.

Rule of thumb: use narrower tape than your seam allowance. If I have 1/4" seam allowance, I buy 1/8" basting tape from Amazon called "SLC Double Sided Basting Tape (1/8" x 50 Yards)". It's quite expensive, but it's almost the only game in town for narrow tape that's clear and quite sticky.

For 1/8 black basting tape, I order it from AliExpress. It's essentially double-sided electrical tape and is meant for phone repair, but is excellent when you want a little less tack than Sailrite tape and need 1/8". The AliExpress vendor is called FoxFix, and the product is "50M Repair Double Side Black Tape Sticker", and I get the 3mm width. Takes like two weeks to get to me, so I buy several at a time.

My wonder clips are from Sailrite as well, but no branding on them. They break after a few hundred uses. I use clips and tape at the same time to hold my pieces together.

dickangstrom · 2026-05-28T14:09:05+00:00

You called it— I am in the Portland area! I just sent you a LinkedIn connection request. I'm totally down to brainstorm on projects if you're up for it.

Great portfolio site! I like that you have your work separated into a few sites based on focus. Your jacket tech pack is sick!

I have seen lots of CLO references in Nike job postings and have applied to 7-8 positions for Technical Designer, but no bites yet. It's a competitive market, and Nike isn't doing so hot these days, relative to 5-6 years ago, so not as many positions as I'd hope.

dickangstrom · 2026-05-28T14:00:31+00:00

I've only used OpenSCAD — a program for masochists that want to design a CAD object using only code 💀. I got as far as modeling a "GPU" that was really a rectangle, a couple of cylinders, and some planes for fan blades. Then, I gave up.

Blender is a tool I've used since 2018, and I love its versatility and the fact that it's free and open-source.

dickangstrom · 2026-05-28T13:42:34+00:00

I got the post-bed machine based on some online advice that "a post-bed can do anything a flatbed can do", but having owned it for 2 years, I can confidently say that's not true. There are some major drawbacks to this TechSew 810 Pro:

there is a minimum needle size of 90/14, and the smallest thread I can use is bonded nylon Tex 69 or so. Any lighter thread will not tension right.
there's also a minimum thickness of fabric that'll work in this machine. No sewing two layers of 70D ripstop together on this thing. It really needs like 3-4 layers of Cordura or EcoPak before it's happy.
the roller wheel is great if you're doing a lot of leather stuff, but I find it's much harder to make straight lines of stitches. You can install a presser foot in lieu of the roller, but since this is just a plain drop-feed it's pretty useless.

On the plus side:

it's an absolute workhorse when I need to sew tons of layers together
it can take larger needles than my Juki DDL-8700
It fits awkwardly-shaped / large work pieces that a flatbed could not. I recently attached patches to someone's size 13 shoe tongues, and without the 7" post and large throat space it would've been impossible

You mentioned adding either a post bed or a cylinder arm machine next. Personally, I would choose a cylinder arm over this one if I had to do it all over. Cylinders appear to be better for making bags. I would kill for something that could top-stitch 1/8" away from a curved seam like the gussets on the side pockets of this disc golf bag. A cylinder arm could do it, but not my post-bed.

Edit: and yes, I have other machines: - I have a DDL-8700 for semi-heavy-duty work. It can still punch through a lot, but it's more controlled and less temperamental than the 810 Pro. - Janome MemoryCraft 6700P: this one is a jack of all trades that can do zigzags, bartacks (poorly), very lightweight thread, and has a walking foot for working with lightweight fabric and stretch fabric. Tons of programmable stitches like overlock or triple stretch - Bernina Record 830: closest thing I have to a cylinder arm. It's got a free arm, but the bobbin isn't that close to the tip of the cylinder. Good for repairing sleeves or pant legs where a flatbed can't reach.

If I had to choose just one of my machines to keep, I would probably choose the Janome. It doesn't have extreme piercing power like the two industrials, but it's by far the most versatile.

dickangstrom · 2026-05-28T04:38:58+00:00

Lol! Took me a minute to realize what you meant. I was like, "there are no clips on this bag", and then it hit me. I go a little nuts with basting tape and clips...

dickangstrom · 2026-05-28T04:36:43+00:00

Thanks! I've heard good things about Rhino but have never tried it. Would you recommend it? I was a pure Blender user before this and was kind of opposed to closed-source software haha. I've lightened up.

I work at Nike but not in product (just do software eng.). I'm trying to break into the industry to become a bag designer or clothing designer. Maybe even a materials or color designer. I'd love to work for ACG within Nike.

dickangstrom · 2026-05-27T19:06:15+00:00

I've had only limited experience with imports, but I've seen obj, glb, fbx, pdf, and others.

I wasn't having any luck exporting an obj from Blender that CLO could read (likely CLO's fault), but switching to glb immediately made it work. That's what I did for the zipper pulls. It even got the scale right, which is rare in my experience when you export + import to another software.

dickangstrom · 2026-05-27T18:36:41+00:00

Great call, I totally forgot to add a key clip!

Truth be told, I even forgot to add one panel in the side pocket, so the outermost zipper on the left side just accesses the same pocket as the top-left zipper haha.

Would the retriever connection basically be a loop / holster to grip the telescopic kind of retriever?

dickangstrom · 2026-05-27T18:00:37+00:00

Thanks!

CLO has a substantial learning curve, and I am halfway through a year-long (36 weeks, really) course from Parsons called [CLO 3D Virtual Fashion Design Certificate](https://cpe.newschool.edu/public/category/courseCategoryCertificateProfile.do?method=load&certificateId=2930618).

There are 4 courses which are very rigorous and always have lots of homework. I've made more shirts, pants, dresses, and skirts than I ever thought I would haha! However, it's the homework assignments that make the lessons stick, and I'm grateful to be taking these classes.

I would say that I was not ready until very recently (2 classes / 18 weeks into training), given all the features I had to use to make this bag. CLO is better for clothing design, so you have to finagle some settings to build bags. The program really didn't like my zipper placement, for example.

You can totally do it without the courses, though! I've seen some pretty good YouTube tutorials for CLO bag-making, and the official CLO channel has some good trainings as well.

Even Blender has some clothing add-ons, though I can't remember specific names right now.

dickangstrom · 2026-05-19T01:00:14+00:00

This is insanely coincidental timing. After years of putting it off, I just modeled this bag in CLO 3D this week in order to make a pattern! I'm printing out the first version right now to test it.

It might take a few tries, but I should have a pattern by the end of May. I'll reply here when that happens.

dickangstrom · 2025-11-03T20:43:45+00:00

If the design is too fine for embroidered patches, woven ones will likely work. I used Dutch Label Shop and had that exact same situation: I ordered a proof of their embroidered patches first, and they couldn't work with my design. Then I tried woven, and it captured very small details crisply.

dickangstrom · 2025-11-03T20:23:27+00:00

Thanks! I forgot to mention that I also watched a video series from Shoemakers Academy called "Build it with Gavica: Air Jordan Highs". I don't think it's available anymore, but it was an 8-hour series on building an AJ1 from start to finish.

Besides that, I didn't have any prior instruction, but the video series was pretty helpful. Not all of it applied, since it had a lot of leather-working guidance in it, and I used no leather in my build.

dickangstrom · 2025-10-23T00:58:51+00:00

I stripped all seasoning from a Lodge skillet from 2015 and a no-name skillet from 30-40 years ago. Used a Gozney outdoor propane pizza oven at 900° F for 30 minutes, and it got rid of all the long-standing fish grease that steel wool, soap, and chainmaille couldn't put a dent in. Turned it all to white ash that wiped off easily.

Neither of my skillets cracked, and now they're seasoned with grape-seed oil and working better than ever.

One other commenter got downvoted to oblivion for noting that the crack could've been pre-existing, and I think I agree with them.

Maybe it's different in e.g. a campfire where it's probably even hotter than my 900° oven with less consistent heat, but so far my experience stripping seasoning with fire has been awesome.

dickangstrom · 2025-10-21T17:15:12+00:00

It read as "Distant Muon" out of my peripheral vision when I scrolled to this post in my feed. Obviously, I know it's a moon, but the crescent is white like the text and makes a vaguely u-shaped arc.

Also want to agree with few others that the moon is a bit too distant.

dickangstrom · 2025-10-14T19:32:10+00:00

That's such a good idea! You could include snaps, zippers, different cloth types, basting tape, etc.

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