Fabric stretching device

[Anonymous]

As many of you know, i like experimenting with adding silicone coatings thin enough to fabrics that the fabric retains some air permeability.  But my previous method of doing so is a bit of a PITA, and i don’t really get the fabric stretched out sufficiently enough.

So i’m looking to create a simple and cheap way of doing so.  So far the idea is, get two wood boards for each end that are approx. 60 inches long (about the fabric width of most fabrics), drill some holes through both pieces (about every foot or so), put some gorilla tape on the ends of the boards that the fabric will be sandwiched in (for extra friction and to protect the fabric).

Clamp the boards tight with clamps, weave some rope in the holes on each end of the set of boards, tie one to a tree.

Here is where i’m a bit stumped, i want to be able to pull the fabric very taut and stretched. Is there some kind of inexpensive hand crank winch, pulley, or some similar device i could thread the rope through on one end to able to get it this tight, rather than trying to muscle it around a tree?

[R]

Ratchet strap.

Or: get a stick or bar a foot or so long, place one coil of rope around it in the middle of the segment you want to tighten, then rotate the stick like a propeller, with the axis of rotation perpendicular to the rope. The twisting will tension the rope.  When adequately tight, secure one end of the bar to the tensioned line to keep it from untwisting.

Rather than sandwiching the fabric between 2 boards, you could fold the end over and sew a sleeve to slide a single board through.  Then poke holes in it to thread the rope.  Cut the sleeve off when done.

 

[Clifford Deakyne]

Come along, more leverage and force than the ratchet strap.  If the length of stretch desired exceeds the come along, a ratchet strap can be used to hold the stretch while resetting the come along.

Twisting the rope as mentioned above might twist the fabric as well if not stabilized.

[Anonymous]

Thank you Rene and Clifford for the suggestions.

The Come Along tool looks very promising, especially since simple ones can be purchased for as little as 15 dollars. Pretty much exactly what i was looking for. :)

[Author]

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