Blood boiling, must.. kill.. sewing machine!

[Ramblinrev]

Most likely you are bending the needle with pulling the fabric (easy to do when you are trying to stitch something as heavy as an old sleeping bag). The needle hits the throat plate and busts. How many pieces is it breaking into? If it is more than one then it is almost certainly hitting the throat plate. If it is only one piece then you might be suffering from too light a needle.

Make sure all your needles are sharp and new. Especially if you are using an open pack of needles you got with the used machine. Some people will change needles and put them back in the case. In that situation you never know what you are getting or how new it is.

[Ramblinrev]

I use bigger needles when I have thicker thread, not -always- for thicker fabric...just personal preference/usage.

Kermegan I agree with you but with a couple of caveats. Old sleeping bags and other recycled projects can often have dense spots that will dull and snap a needle pretty quickly. If it's good fabric you can get away with a smaller needle. But for recycled projects I will often use the largest needle in my arsenal just for added umpph.

[Porkroll]

I busted a few needles myself, because I was trying to pull the fabric, instead of letting the machine move the fabric for me. I'm getting better, I think. I am definitely addicted.

[Lonely Raven]

I forgot that I switched to the straight plate and tried to do a wide Zig-Zag with a 90 needle. Yeah, that was my dumb move for the month.

[Pro Vagabond]

I actually bent a needle, but it didn't break. Switched it out with a heavier needle and kept on going.

Stick with it and listen to the veterans and you'll be fine. I find if I take a day off from a project and come back the next day, I'm less apt to take a sledgehammer to the thread injector!

Frustration makes the final success even more enjoyable!

[benjamman]

my mum when i was growing up had an old toyota sewing machine that she hated , you could hear her screaming through the house "THAT **** MACHINE" a phrase that became a family joke , it use to love to tangle, chew, brake needles and then lock up , i learned to sew on it and it was a pain in the ***. im convinced that some sewing machine nomater what you do to them are just EVIL

[creativeKayt]

Ditto what everybuggy else has said. Also, go a little bit slower speed than you normally might when sewing through thick stuff.

My best to you. I hope it resolves. Sometime, though, I take these little thread injection failures and obstacles as a sign to stop for the day or, at the very least, take a break from it. Stuff starting to break usually means I'm tired and in need of a hangin' nap.