Patching gi trousers

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[James Edwards]

Hi, I've done a quick look around but couldn't find the topic.

My cheap (but ever so comfortable) pair of gi trousers is wearing out at the knees. The reinforcement threads that form an 'x' on the knees have mostly gone and that's fine but one of the knees has what seems to be the start to a nice airing vent. The threads are still running across this small hole so it's not too bad..yet.

So how do people usually patch their gi trousers? Do you put a patch of white cloth on the inside? outside? or both? Or is there a fancier way of doing it? Tips on keeping the trousers intact after intense suwari-waza classes are also appreciated.

Thanks :)

[Pauliina Lievonen]

I usually sew a patch of white material (salvaged from an old pair of keikogi pants) to the inside. Actually I've done this to new pairs of pants to anticipate the problem. :)

Make sure the patch is big enough so you don't end up kneeling on the edges of it. What I like to do is line the whole inside front of the leg all the way from the ankle up to a bit above the knee.

kvaak
Pauliina

[Larry Cuvin]

+ 1 on Pauliina. If you want to try and keep your pants still comfortable at the knee, use soft but thick cloth and saw it inside the pants. Reinforce on the wearing edges and saw the edge of the patch as well. If your patch is too small, it will start wearing out on the next weak part which would be the edge of the patch. Making a patch big enough to be outside the knee "rough" zone is one of the key to lasting repairs.

Good luck.

[Janet Rosen]

Yes, sewn on the inside. Match the weight of the original fabric when choosing one to patch with. Like Pauliina, I would always make my patch large enough for the entire lower leg section.

[James Edwards]

Thank you very much for the advice!

All I need to do now is salvage some strong white material of some sort and get sewing.