Tear in Gor tex pants question

[coldfeet]

Time to fix my small war wounds glissading last winter at the gathering....how to fix 2 or 3 small 2 inch tears?

Do i send them out to North Face?
Local tailor?
Just keep the duct tape on?
Anything else?

Thx for advise

 

[MEB]

I've always used duct tape to repair my tears.....it's held up pretty well too! I've thought about sewing them up myself but that would just be too much work for me!

-MEB

 

[Neil]

I take my gore-tex xcr pants to a specialty repair shop. They have a license from Gore-tex to use a special machine that applies a new piece of gore-tex on the inside and closes the wound very effectively. Costs a bit more than duct tape but is duct tape guaranteed to keep you dry?

 

[linehant]

If one or more mountainwear fashion mavens is objecting to the shabby appearance of your duct tape repair, you might try replacing it with rip-stop repair tape.

The stuff works well enough (I've used it on pants, jackets, and gaiters) and looks a bit nicer than duct tape.

You'll likely find a supply, in a kaleidoscope of colors, at an outdoor retailer near you ( EMS, Ragged Mountain, the Mountaineer, etc. ).

 

[BadgerGirl]

rip-stop repair tape

How does it hold up in the wash? Duct tape doesn't do too well.

 

[deadpoint]

duct tape on the inside of the garment to close the hole and align the material.
on the outside an even coating of tent seam sealier over the hole and the surrounding area for about 1/2 inch.

 

[Rick]

I ordered a pair of Goretex XCR pants on closeout from LL Bean about 3 years ago. when I got them they had a big slit (about 2.5 inches) long on the hind end. I called Bean and found out they were the last pair in stock. Bean gave me a choice to send them back for a full rfund plus shipping or get a $50 gift certificate.
I took the $50 and headed to REI where I bought this Goretex Patch Kit for $9.00.
I rounded the corners and followed the instuctions and the patch has been perfect ever since. no problems, no peeling it is just fine. (I couldn't find the kit at REI online, but this link shows the same kit for $2 less than REI.)
Good Luck

 

[una_dogger]

My fix

I have a rip in mine and I just duct taped it until I could sew the tear. Then I just duct taped over the seam I sewed. Not the prettiest thing to see, but it's workin'!

 

[coldfeet]

Thx for the info folks...think I'm going to try the gor tex patch. I did learn that it's very important to wear gaitors when using crampons Lucky I didn't slice my leg open. Rookie error!

 

[randomscooter]

two words- Seam Grip

It isn't just for tents. SG can be used to repair nearly any rip and tear. A couple of examples

1) I wear Tingley rubber boots over my hiking shoes in muddy weather and winter. Problem is that they are a bit fragile and get ripped when bushwhacking. I've repaired tears as long as 6" and they are still holding after 3 years of pulling the boots on and yanking them off. I've even repaired a large hole where the rubber got completely torn off and lost in the woods. I just put a temporary piece of backer masking tape, filled the hole with SG, and removed the tape afterwards. Result...a little clear "window" into my boot that is still holding.

2) my Marmot precip has gotten shredded on Santanoni Peak a few times, and my dog pulled it through the window of her kennel and proceeded to eat it once (a 1" square piece of fabric from that episode was never recovered...wonder where that went? ) How to fix? Again, SG to the rescue, and I took a piece of old pillowcase to cover the 1" hole, then smeared SG over the cotton fabric to waterproof it. Still holding.

 

[KMartman]

Time to fix my small war wounds glissading last winter at the gathering....how to fix 2 or 3 small 2 inch tears?

Do i send them out to North Face?
Local tailor?
Just keep the duct tape on?
Anything else?

Thx for advise

I might actually ocntact North Face FIRST, as they are pretty good with product replacement. I mean it is a "lifetime" warranty...its SOOO worth a shot..never know they may outright replace them if you have a "decent" story.

They've replaced mine before from ski edge tears...

Just a thought.

M

 

[mediclimber]

I use Deadpoint's method but I also put a piece of ripstop tape over the outside.

 

[ripple]

I tore to sheds a TNF mountain light jacket. It was not covered under warrenty, but they did fix it as good as new, for 30 bucks. Much better then dishing out for a new one. For small tears I use the duct tape method and replace it as needed.

 

[Jean]

I've torn my goretex pants a few times with crampons. I have fixed it cheap by sewing the tear and applying silicone on top. The stuff you use to seal the seams on a tent works perfect. Not pretty but effective.

 

[Mr. X]

I would sew them with a light weight fishng line, or other type of nylon thread. I view duct tape as temporary.

 

[canoehead]

there is gore-tex tape out there, try that.
i got a rip in my TNF shell while at 18,000' and did not have to worry about my coat becuz i new i had the tape in my repair kit

 

[linehant]

>>How does it [rip-stop repair tape] hold up in the wash? <<

Wash?! My SHELL pants????

Ummm... this is probably a "guy" thing, but... never even THOUGHT about putting my gortex pants in the wash. If they get dirt on 'em I just wipe it off.

And, come to think of it... the only time the jacket has gone into the wash is when it was time to renew the DWR; figured I might as well clean it before spraying it.

But.. to your question. The jacket has several spots of repair tape and has been in the wash a couple of times. The repair material appears to have survived agitation without loosening or loss.

Someone else mentioned the possibility of sending the item back to the mfgr for a "real" repair. I took that approach after putting a LARGE hole in the back of an LL Bean Gortex jacket. Bean charged me $20 to replace the entire panel. The result looked good as new.