TM 10-8400-203-23
15-5. REPAIR AND MAINTENANCE OF BODY ARMOR – Continued
(1)
(2)
Small holes or tears. When repairing a small hole or tear in the outer shell of a vest in which the Kevlar
ballistic insert is not damaged, the repair may be made on the outer cover without removal of the
Kevlar ballistic insert. Repair the hole or tear in the outer cover by drawing the edges together and
darning by hand.
Open seam and broken stitches in outer shell and components. When it is necessary to repair an
open seam or broken stitching all sewing, except emergency repair, shall be machine sewn. Open
seam or broken stitching may be made in all areas of the vest except the pockets, pocket flaps,
grenade hangers, patch, shoulder rifle butt lower and flap, front closure outer. Stitching on replace-
ment sections and restitching of seams will be the same as an original construction.
Adjust thread tension so that there will be no loose stitching or excessively tight stitching resulting in puckering of
the material sewn. When restitching an open seam or when a thread breaks during normal stitching, backstitch
not less than 3/4 inch. For stitch type illustrations, see Federal Standard 751. In general, stitching will be
performed with nylon Type 1, Class B conforming to V-T-295 or polyester, Type 1, Class 1, Subclass B, conforming
to V-T-295. All threads visible on the exterior of the vest shall be Olive Drab S-1, C.A. 66022. Thread size shall be
as specified in Table 15-2.
Table 15-2. Stitching Instructions
THREAD SIZE
LOCATION
General
Bartack – pockets & pocket flaps
Bartack – Grenade hanger
Overedging
Labels, make pockets and pocket flaps,
hem and attach pencil pocket
Velcro fastener tape, except all front
closure hook and pile tapes
STITCH TYPE
301
Bartack
Bartack
502,503
504 or 505
301
301
NEEDLE
E
B
B
B
B
B
BOBBIN
E
B
B
B
B
B
STITCHES
PER INCH
8-10
28 per tack
42 per tack
6-10
10-12
8-10
15-7
