We Don't Sew... We Make Gear update...

[Ramblinrev]

I am cameraless at the moment.

I cannot get the stitch to look right. the bottom thread isn't pulling up enough. More tension should help this but things don't change when I adjust it.

And I don't seem to get much variation of stitch length no matter how I adjust the foot pressure (which isn't very clearly explained in my book) My machine has a "snap" feature. It sounds like you should release the top and then push it down with the work in place.

My machine has a dial to adjust foot pressure, with a range of "normal , silk and darn".

Both of these features produced results as predicted with thicker material (2.2 oz. PU coated three or more plies)

Here's the link to the manual
http://bypatrice.com/sewing/deluxe_manual/

Thanks for listening
Grinder/Tom

The bottom thread is not being pulled up sounds like a top thread tension problem to me unless you have been messing around with the bobbin tension. The top thread tension is controled by that little round set of disks on the side of the machine. Make sure that is threaded properly. If you have been messing with the bobbin tension then you need to loosen that screw up to reduce the bobbin tension. If you haven't messed with the bobbin tension don't start now. Make sure the bobbin case is threaded correctly. The bobbin in the wrong way will really foul things up.

IMPORTANT in setting the thread tension make sure the presser foot is down. Otherwise there is a mechanism that will nullify any change you make and return to the default or previous tension.

Stitch length is not related to the presser foot pressure. Stitch length is controlled by the lever on the front of the machine. There is a circular plate that rotates to help maintain constant setting, plus to make sure the reverse stitch is the same length as the forward stitch. Set that lever where you want it to be and set that plate to keep it there.

The dial does not adjust the foot pressure but rather controls the feed dogs. Embroider removes the dogs from operation allowing the fabric to be slid around at will. Very nice for darning and decorative work. Silk would seem to raise the feed dogs about halfway or so to prevent them from damaging the fine silk texture and fabric. I would think normal would be an appropriate setting as nylon is less prone to damage than silk..

Not sure how much that helps. But that's what it sounds like to me. The machine was probably set up for the heavier weight fabrics and need the adjustments tinkered with to handle the light weights. It should do so with a minimum of trouble given the ability of the machine to deal with fine silks.

Try those ideas and let me know how they work.

[Grinder]

I may be guilty of adjusting the tension with the foot up. I can't remember for sure. I did read that that is the correct method, but haven't internalized it yet.

I'll keep on practicing.

Thanks
Tom/Grinder

[catnip]

Smaller needle, lighter weight thread for sewing the 1.2 oz stuff. I used a size 16 needle and that was overkill on 1.2, probably a little too heavy on the 2.2 coated ripstop (for a G4 pack). I think a size 11 or 12 needle would be better with regular old Guterman's polyester thread.

[Ramblinrev]

smaller needle would be fine... but the issues grinder expressed were not needle related. That's why I didn't comment on that. The needle size has more to do with how big a hole you punch in the fabric and how much seam sealing you need to do. Less to do with stitch length and tension although the thread size can affect the tension. In the case of grinder tho.. not as likely since the top thread seemed to need more tension and a thinker thread should have accomplished that by default.

Upholstery thread is certainly overkill for 1.2 ripstop but would likely be a handling problem in my experience. YMMV


The needle also needs to be very sharp. Synth fabrics dull needles rather quickly. Much faster than natural fabrics. So a super sharp needle is very important to piercing the fabric cleanly and not having it bunch up in the throat plate.