Jointing your bear with Loc-Line allows you to
bend and pose your creation in any position.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR
JOINTING YOUR BEAR WITH LOC-LINE
Jointing Head to Body - METHOD 1
Tools needed:
Loc-Line segments
(about 2 segments short of the body/neck length)
Loc-Line wrench
Setscrews or tapbolts with washers (W2)
Locknuts
Jointing washers and discs
Ratchet wrench
Allen key (for setscrews)
Nutdriver (for tapbolts)
When sewing
the head for use with this method, either sew the neck closed and leave a
small opening for jointing (just enough for a setscrew or tapbolt to fit
through) OR gather the neck edge closed, also leaving just enough room for a
setscrew or tapbolt to fit through. Leave an opening in one of the side seams
for jointing and stuffing.
Using Lock-Line wrench, remove top piece (small opening is on top) of Lock-Line from body piece.
If you are using setscrews, tighten a lock nut onto the end of a setscrew (the end without the hole) just enough so that the threads of the screw begin to come out the other side.
If you are using tapbolts, put a washer (W2) onto the tapbolt to keep it from pulling through the Loc-Line piece.
Push
the end of the setscrew or tapbolt up through the top of 
the removed Loc-Line piece.
The length of the screw should be at least 1 ¼² long. 1 ½² is
recommended. Note: Cotterpins may also be used to replace the setscrews or
tapbolts, but due to the constant bending and pulling of the Loc-Line, they may
not stay as tight.
Place a disc onto the end of the setscrew or tapbolt and from inside the body push it up through the neck joint hole. Put entire assembly inside body and push end of setscrew or tapbolt up and out the neck joint hole in the body. Now push the end of the setscrew up through the joint hole in the neck at the bottom of the head.
Reach inside
the head (through the hole left in the side seam) and put a disc, washer and
locknut onto the end of the set screw or tapbolt. Tighten the locknut from
inside the head with a ratchet wrench while holding the set screw from inside
the head with an allen key (or the tapbolt with a nutdriver). The head should
turn, but not easily.
Using the Lock-Line wrench, replace the top Loc-Line piece to the rest of the Loc-Line for the body.
Stuff the head and close the opening with a ladder stitch.
Jointing Head to Body - METHOD 2
Tools needed:
Loc-Line segments
(about the stuffed length of the body plus the ½ the head)
Sew head completely leaving the neck open. Run a
gathering stitch around the neck edge. Partially stuff the head.
Sew the body completely leaving the neck open and an opening in the back for jointing and stuffing. Run a gathering stitch around the neck edge.
Push Loc-Line segments up into the head about halfway. Work fiberfill around Loc-Line and firmly finish stuffing the head. Pull up gathering stitches around the Lock-Line to hold it firmly in place. Run gathering stitches around again to secure and tie off.
Push Loc-Line down from the head into the body neck opening. Pull up gathering stitches from the body around the same Loc-Line piece that the head is gathered around. Run gathering stitches around again to secure and tie off.
Note: Larger Loc-Line segments are recommended for this method because they give the gathered fabric more to grab on to.
Jointing Limbs and Stuffing Body
Tools needed:
Loc-Line segments for each limb
(about 1 segment short of the length of the arm or leg)
Setscrews
Locknuts
Jointing washers and discs
Ratchet wrench
Allen key
Barbecue skewer
When sewing your arms and legs, sew all the way
around your seam and cut a slit through the joint placement point for jointing
and stuffing. (Instead of leaving an opening in the back seam.) This allows
easier placement of the Loc-Line down into the limb.
You will need to put a hole through the smaller end of the top Loc-Line piece for each limb. The hole must be large enough for a set screw to go through and move comfortably.
Holding a barbecue skewer with an oven mitt, place the sharp end over the stovetop flame. When it gets hot enough, push the skewer sideways right through the small end Loc-Line piece. Prepare both arm pieces and both leg pieces in the same manner.
Firmly stuff a small amount of polyester fiberfill into the tip of the paw or foot.
Tighten a lock nut onto the end of a set screw (the end without the hole) just enough so that the threads of the screw begin to come out the other side. Place a washer onto the setscrew and push it through the hole you just made in one of the Loc-Line lengths. Place a disc onto the end of the set screw and push the other end of the Loc-Line down into the arm or leg. Stuff with polyfil around the Loc-Line. Too much stuffing will not allow the arms or legs to bend. Too little stuffing will allow you to feel the bumps in the Loc-Line through the fur. Bend the limb as you go to determine how much stuffing is needed. Close the opening with a ladder stitch stitching around the end of the set screw. Be sure the screw extends at the joint placement mark. Repeat jointing and stuffing process with the other limbs.
Using an awl, widen holes in body at joint placement
points for arms and legs. Push the end of the set screw (coming out of the arm
or leg) into the appropriate joint hole on the outside of the body. From the
inside of the body, place a disc, a washer and a locknut onto the set screw.
Tighten from inside the body by holding the end of the set screw with an allen
key while you tighten the locknut with a ratchet wrench. The arms should move
back and forth, but should stay in the raised position on their own. The legs
should move back and forth, but should be tight enough so that the bear can
stand or sit without falling forward.
Stuffing the Body
Fill the body with fiberfill, working the stuffing around the Loc-Line in the body and keeping it running through the center of your bear. Again, bend the body of the bear as you stuff to determine how much fiberfill is needed to still allow the bear to bend. Close the back opening with a ladder stitch.