Hemming Heavyweight SoSo Denim Jeans with a True Chain Stitch
By Maurice Malone Published December 28, 2025
One of the most common questions we get is, “Can you hem this or that weight of denim with chain stitching?” Whether it’s a friendly mid-weight or a pair thick enough to chafe on sight, our answer stays the same: yes, we chain stitch heavyweight denim. We haven’t met a pair yet that we couldn’t hem.
There is one exception: denim blended with Kevlar. Not because it’s too heavy, but because it destroys cutting scissors. After a couple of sessions turning sharp shears into dull butter knives, we decided it wasn’t worth the constant re-sharpening.
Buyers of SoSo denim send us a steady parade of upper-weight jeans for hemming and tapering. Many have already noticed that SoSo often hems its extreme fabrics with a simple lock stitch. And honestly, that makes sense. Once denim reaches certain weights, like these 33 oz jeans, most factories stop attempting a true chain stitch. Their machines aren’t set up to drive through that kind of thickness, and reducing the bulk at the fold-over seam takes extra time production lines want to avoid.
We’re built for that kind of work.
Our custom-built Union Special 56300—outfitted with titanium-tip needles—is known around the studio as the Beast. It’s designed to plow through the heaviest heavyweight selvedge out there. On a busy Saturday, the Beast could sew through 100 pairs without hesitation. We keep a second Union Special set up in a standard configuration, but it sees far less action. Once you’ve sewn on the Beast, everything else feels like the understudy.
These 33-ounce SoSo jeans in the photo are the perfect example. The cutoff ring from the original hem is so dense, it can stand on its own. But even that kind of weight doesn’t slow the Beast. It just grabs the seam and lays down a proper chain stitch, the way it was meant to.
The result is a clean, durable, real chain-stitched hem, not the “fake chain stitch” some brands use on heavyweight jeans to avoid breakdowns and sewing errors. Fake chain stitching looks right on the surface, but it’s created by sewing a chain stitch through two layers, then locking the folded hem down with a hidden lock stitch—a trick you only notice once the hem is taken apart. We don’t do that. You get the real thing.
We run a true denim-factory setup. If you’ve got anything from lightweight selvedge to the most stubborn heavyweight jeans made, and you want them hemmed correctly, the Beast is always ready for the next challenge.