my gear maker stopped picking up bobbin thread. switched needles ,thread, and bobbin. no luck. cleaned it all out ,inspected everything, seems normal. Is bobbin race junk or timing off? and adjusted tensions up and down on top and bobbin.
my gear maker stopped picking up bobbin thread. switched needles ,thread, and bobbin. no luck. cleaned it all out ,inspected everything, seems normal. Is bobbin race junk or timing off? and adjusted tensions up and down on top and bobbin.
Ambulo tua ambulo.
what led up to this? Middle of a project? Just changed bobbin? Hadn't been used for a while?
What make/model of machine? Where in this process did you adjust the bobbin tension?
I may be slow... But I sure am gimpy.
"Bless you child, when you set out to thread a needle don't hold the thread still and fetch the needle up to it; hold the needle still and poke the thread at it; that's the way a woman most always does, but a man always does t'other way."
Mrs. Loftus to Huck Finn
We Don't Sew... We Make Gear! video series
Important thread injector guidelines especially for Newbies
Bobbin Tension - A Personal Viewpoint
white Jean Machine, switched to purple hammock project for daughter. switched to purple guttermans and new bobbin. stitched about four feet and stopped picking up the bobbin.
Ambulo tua ambulo.
And switched needles.
Ambulo tua ambulo.
It is unlikely the timing is off unless you whalloped the dickens out of the mechanism. I would completely unthread the machine... including removing the bobbin from the case. Then I would rethread the machine from scratch. While you have the bobbin out of the case make sure it is wound properly. If the layers of winding bind you can break the thread.
Put the bobbin in the case and pull on the loose end. Sometimes bobbins will bind particularly if they are 1) older bobbins and starting to wear. 2) Plastic bobbins and wound too full so the bulge. If that pans out put the bobbin in the machine making sure the bobbin unwinds the right direction.
Pull the bobbin up with the needle if possible. If it will not pull up the then make sure the needle is the proper style for the machine. Most likely it will take one of the universal needles but there are exceptions. If the thread pulls up then you have a problem wihich is probably due to the bobbin itself. Wind a new bobbin with the purple thread and see if a new bobbin will help.
Adjusting the bobbin tension is rarely needed or desirable. There is usually enough flexibility in the spool thread tension to take up any difference. If you adjusted the bobbin tension before this happened go back to your previous setting. It does not sound like a tension problem as those usually result in poor stitch quality rather than no stitches.
If you have done all this then make sure the needle is installed in the machine properly. The flat side needs to be positioned properly. Check the manual to find out the proper winding direction for the bobbin and the proper position for the needle.
If none of this works... report back and we'll move on.
These would be the most likely causes.
I may be slow... But I sure am gimpy.
"Bless you child, when you set out to thread a needle don't hold the thread still and fetch the needle up to it; hold the needle still and poke the thread at it; that's the way a woman most always does, but a man always does t'other way."
Mrs. Loftus to Huck Finn
We Don't Sew... We Make Gear! video series
Important thread injector guidelines especially for Newbies
Bobbin Tension - A Personal Viewpoint
No walloping occurred, changed and wound two separate bobbins, pulled it apart- bobbin race and plate - and cleaned and reinstalled everything. I was sewing earlier today and worked fine, stitch quality was good, etc. stitches on purple fabric were looking bad- loose, hence the adjustment of tension, bobbin seems wound good and smooth. Brand new needles. universal. went thru the manual front to back with no troubleshooting guide to this particular problem. machine has been well cared for and has been running and stitching like a champ. till now
Ambulo tua ambulo.
Does the bobbin thread stay the same length or does it break off? Does it stitch at all and then stop or it don;t stitch at all?
I may be slow... But I sure am gimpy.
"Bless you child, when you set out to thread a needle don't hold the thread still and fetch the needle up to it; hold the needle still and poke the thread at it; that's the way a woman most always does, but a man always does t'other way."
Mrs. Loftus to Huck Finn
We Don't Sew... We Make Gear! video series
Important thread injector guidelines especially for Newbies
Bobbin Tension - A Personal Viewpoint
it wont stitch at all. the needle goes down and wont pick the thread up off the bobbin I put for different spools and bobbins on now and have rethreaded it carefully each time. everything is normal, except the fact that it will not grab at the bobbin.
Ambulo tua ambulo.
Visually check and make sure the bobbin shttle is rotating. I assume this is a vertical bobbin machine but either way you should be able to watch the go-roundy thing go around
If that is not happening then a linkage between the drive shaft is bad.
If the shuttle goes around try to visually inspect the slip join of the mechanism. The neddle moves down and makes a loop under the bed whcih the bobbin then moves through looping the thread. Visually inspect this porcess if possible. Two things are likely happening.. 1) the needle is not going down properly either because the eye is facing the wrong way or the length is wrong. OR the thread on the bobbin is properly engaged in the bobbin case eother because the bobbin has bulged or is not set in the case properly or the bobbin is too wide for one reason or another and is not allowing the case to seat properly.
Timing is like the timing on an internal combustion engine. It usually will not suddenly go out of whack unless one of two things happens... a massive trauma to the
mechanism breaks something or a piece catastrophically fails from wear. It doesn't sound like that is the problem unless the bobbin shuttle is not going around.
It sounds more like an alignment issue between the needle and the bobbin and that is either a worn or badly wound bobbin or a needle that is not properly aligned or positioned. If the neelde is not seated all the way up in the holder it can happen. Even the best will sometimes skew the needle wich then loosens up just enough to drop enough to mess things up. Or the needle is bent, too short or improperly aligned. If these are not the source of the problem you have exceeded my ability to help diagonose the issue. It may be time for a trip to your friendly neighborhood repair guy.
Edit: I am stone cold sober and ther are so many typos in that I don;t feel like hunting them all down so I'm just gonna leave it. Sheesh.
I may be slow... But I sure am gimpy.
"Bless you child, when you set out to thread a needle don't hold the thread still and fetch the needle up to it; hold the needle still and poke the thread at it; that's the way a woman most always does, but a man always does t'other way."
Mrs. Loftus to Huck Finn
We Don't Sew... We Make Gear! video series
Important thread injector guidelines especially for Newbies
Bobbin Tension - A Personal Viewpoint
tried two new needles and made sure they are set up to stop-pin, bobbin race rotates as normal....... dont need a repair cost... but. thanks
Ambulo tua ambulo.
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