Ripstop on the Record

Latest Episodes:

From MYOG to Matador | with Sam Goodhue Nov 04, 2026

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Sam Goodhue started just like many of us: making ultralight backpacks, jackets, and quilts while learning through trial and error. Today, he's helping develop entire product lines sold in REI and shipped across the globe. Even though the scale has changed, the process still revolves around patterning, sewing, and experimenting with new ideas.

In This Episode, We Cover:

How Sam's experience at a gear repair shop shaped his future
What makes Matador's approach to product development unique, including why the team physically builds and refines its own prototypes
The small decisions that make several different products become a cohesive line with identical design language and undeniable functionality
Sam's experience with Carryology's Maker Mystery Box pack challenge

Guest: Sam Goodhue Lead Soft Goods Designer at Matador

Maker Mystery Box Ep. 3 with Matador

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Your Pattern Is the Problem | with Hailey Loudin + Dan McKewen Oct 21, 2026

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Whether you're developing your own gear or refining a favorite project, knowing how to build an accurate, repeatable, and clear pattern is an essential skill. Our guests share professional pattern-making techniques that will help you avoid common mistakes, waste less material, and spend more time sewing instead of troubleshooting.

In This Episode, We Cover:

The most common pattern-making mistakes
How to include seam allowances, symmetry, alignment, and the small details
Where to start building a pattern when you have a blank slate
The tools professionals use to develop patterns, including Illustrator, CLO 3D, and specialized pattern-making software

Guests:

Hailey Loudin | Dan McKewen

Products:

Annual Sale:

The 2026 RBTR Annual Sale starts October 26th! Everything on the site will be discounted.

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Designing Bags for LeBron, KD, and the Rest of Us | with Hrag Nassanian Oct 07, 2026

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What does it take to design bags for athletes like LeBron James and Kevin Durant—and what can the rest of us learn from it? After nearly three decades designing soft goods, Hrag Nassanian joins us to share the stories, lessons, and design principles he’s learned from creating products for some of the world’s best athletes, everyday users, and everyone in between.

In This Episode, We Cover:

The very specific featured KD wanted on his bag
What small ergonomic details immediately tell Hrag whether a bag was designed well
Why originality shouldn't be your goal
What changes when you go from making one bag to manufacturing thousands

Listen in for years of design knowledge and a look at how the lessons learned designing products at the highest level can make all of us better makers.

Guest: Hrag Nassanian | LinkedIN, Wayfinder

New Products: Zipper, Challenge ULTRA TenX

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The Stories Behind Our Most Popular Fabrics | with Carter Holland & Matt Evans Sep 23, 2026

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What do names like Venom™, MONOLITE™, and HyperD™, actually tell you about a fabric? We sit down with Carter and Matt to unpack the stories, materials, and decisions behind RBTR’s signature fabric lines, so you can better understand what you’re buying and choose the right material for your next project.

In This Episode, We Cover:

The stories behind some of RBTR’s strangest product names, discontinued favorites, and the decisions that shaped the fabrics makers use today
What actually defines the characteristics that connect the fabrics within each line
The yarns, weaves, coatings, and fibers behind these materials
How to decide when a more specialized or expensive material is actually worth it

Listen in for the product knowledge we usually take for granted, and leave with a better understanding of what these fabrics are, why they exist, and where they belong in your next project.

Matt Evans | Red Paw Packs

RBTR Fabric Glossary

New Products

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Fabric Trivia Goes Awry | with Matt Evans and Ryan Campbell Sep 09, 2026

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You can sew with a fabric for years and still be surprised by how much you don’t know about it. Ryan and Matt are back for a fabric quiz that digs into the specs, terminology, and secrets, while uncovering some surprisingly useful things to consider when choosing materials for your next project.

In This Episode, We Cover:

A surprisingly difficult fabric quiz covering everything from hydrostatic head and solution dyeing to UHMWPE blends, fabric weights, and warp vs. weft
Why some of the specs we obsess over may matter less in the real world than we think
The fabric application triad and the tradeoffs between price, weight, and durability when choosing materials for a project
A head-to-head backpack fabric draft where every point earned in the quiz becomes buying power for main, accent, stretch, and liner fabrics

Play along, keep track of your score, and see if your fabric knowledge can beat Ryan and Matt.

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Why Better Makers Learn to Repair | Maddy Hem from Black Bear Gear Repair Aug 26, 2026

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Repairing gear requires a different mindset than making it from scratch. But one of the greatest benefits of sewing skills is being able to get more out of the things you already have. Our guest breaks down how to confidently tear into finished gear, diagnose what actually failed, and make repairs that can keep your favorite equipment going for years.

Here's what we cover:

What you need to look for before grabbing the seam ripper
Why sometimes the best repair starts by seam ripping something that isn't broken
The repair-specific tools and tricks worth adding to your sewing kit
What years of repairing failed gear can teach us about better design
How repair can make you a better gear designer

Whether you do this for environmental reasons or to have fun, gear repair has some tangible benefits to makers of every skill level.

Guest:

Maddy Hem from Black Bear Gear Repair

New Products:

X-Pac®UX20ST

1.8 oz Venom™ Ripstop Hybrid Nylon 6.6

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Inside X-Pac’s Newest Fiber Technology | with Taylor North + Yann Jacquet Aug 12, 2026

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Technical fabrics are changing fast, but what’s actually driving the next generation of materials? We sit down with Taylor and Yann from X-Pac® to go behind the laminate and talk hyperTEC, UHMWPE, sustainability, and where performance fabrics are headed next.

In This Episode, We Cover:

Why the industry is shifting back toward high-performance materials—and what that means for the fabrics makers will see next
What makes the new hyperTEC line different, including 100% UHMWPE face fabrics, UHMWPE X-Ply®, and the development behind them
The surprising truth about “recycled” fabrics, including why two materials carrying the same certification can contain drastically different amounts of recycled fiber
What makers misunderstand about laminates, delamination, and the decades of development happening behind fabrics that might look deceptively simple

Listen in and get a rare look behind the materials you’re cutting, sewing, and building with every day.

Products: VX21OE, UX10, X11 | Shop All X-Pac®

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Making time for making after work | Mark Schatalow Jul 29, 2026

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Many of us don't make it to the sewing machine until 8 or 9 p.m., after a full day of work. By then, it's hard to think like a product developer (and even harder to stay creative). Marc Shatalow joins us to share how he balances a full-time job with a growing bag brand, along with the design process, production habits, and mindset that help him keep creating without burning out.

In This Episode, We Cover:

How to balance a 9-to-5 with a bag company—and why small, consistent progress beats marathon sewing sessions
Marc's workflow for designing new bags, from paper models and 3D CAD to finished prototypes
Production habits, lean manufacturing ideas, and shop tweaks that save time without sacrificing creativity
Honest conversations about pricing handmade work, building products people value, and why following your curiosity often leads to your best designs

Listen in and discover why building a successful maker business isn't about finding more hours, it's about optimizing the time you do have.

Marc Schatalow | Mrs. Marc Bags

Products:

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How the Pros Build Tech Packs | with Jenna Lagonigro Jul 15, 2026

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Great products don't happen by accident. They happen because someone obsesses over hundreds of tiny decisions that most never notice. In this episode, Jenna Lagonigro pulls back the curtain on how professional products go from sketchbook to production line, sharing the design principles, development process, and tech pack secrets that every maker can apply to their own projects.

In This Episode, We Cover:

How to build your first tech pack
Why empathy is the best skill for product designers
What professional product developers do to choose fabrics
Behind-the-scenes insights from overseas factories and sample rooms

Listen in and start thinking like a product developer. The way you approach your next project may never be the same.

Guest:

Jenna Lagonigro
Product Developer at: Moment and Long Weekend

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Why this guy cuts up $400 backpacks | Kenn Walker Jul 01, 2026

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Most people see a finished backpack as the end of a project. Today's guest sees it as the beginning. Kenn Walker is a modification expert, known for taking a scalpel to the seams of $400 backpacks and making them even better than before.

From his background in parachute rigging to turning a World Cup soccer ball into a bag, Kenn brings the kind of creativity and problem-solving that every maker can learn from.

In This Episode, We Cover:

Which techniques Kenn uses to confidently seam rip and modify finished bags
The one tool Kenn cannot live without
How he turned custom modifications into a thriving business
What parachute rigging taught him about sewing, load paths, and building gear that lasts
Kenn's favorite shop hacks, machines, and workflow for tackling one-of-a-kind projects

Kenn Walker is a Custom/Modification Designer | Instagram | Website

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