If I'm going to sew some pigtails or put a few stitches in a spliced line, what kind of thread do I use and is it sold at arts and crafts stores?

I hate sewing buttons so this is really not my thing. I'm assuming they make a nylon thread or something for these purposes. Any particular weight better than another? Can I hand sew threw something with a spectra or nylon core?

I use spectra thread (old school spider wire fishing line) When I lock stitch spectra 12-strand single braid (AMSTEEL) loop splices.
Spectra is pretty easy to hand sew on, but Im working with larger stuff

amsteel strops

I use a polyester thread to sew the ends of the lines. Using regular cotton will break down in a short time. Nylon thread will work to, but wont last as long as polyester. Big thing I found is to go slow with the machine and keep the zigzag to the outer 1/3 of the sleeve on each side, that way you get most of the line in between the stitches.

I have been breaking lines lately, way to many brand new lines from different manufacturers, and after talking to a few line manufacturers came to this conclusion. Breaking a line any where from the knot of the sleeve up to 4" or 6" away is considered knot failure, it doesn't have to be the knot directly.
I found that using a overhand figure 8 is the best and easiest, and will not cause the sleeve to over tighten so you can undo it if you need to adjust the line length. It will not make the end weak as the normal overhand or figure 8 knot will.
They also say that sewing the sleeves is not good on the line material because it creates a weak spot everywhere there is a stitch through the line. Go figure.

Never use natural fiber thread. Always use nylon or poly.

Susan (npw goddess)