Nov
24
sewing machine does not work instead of sewing the clothe it makes a lot of knots?
Filed Under Decorating & Remodeling
my sewing machine is kind of new but now when i sew the needle stays in one place does not move back and forth just makes knots in that one spot what can I do
By: sparkles
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By: sparkles
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5 Responses to “sewing machine does not work instead of sewing the clothe it makes a lot of knots?”
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Send me an e-mail and I will see if my wife can help you when she is available.
Take all the thread off the machine and try to run it by itself. Your needle should be moving up and down now. Rethread the machine using the instructions, being very careful not to set the spool of thread the wrong way. The thread may be stuck in the “thread catcher” groove. Also make sure you’ve threaded your bobbin correctly. That’s where most of my knots came from. Sometimes it’s just best to scrap it all and start over. You’ll get the hang of it!
I have this problem a lot too. With my machine (a Brother) it is a problem with the tension on the bobbin thread (I can always tell it is the bobbin thread by the machine grease that is on the thread). On my machine the is adjustment is made by loosening or tightenting the screw on the bobbin shuttle. I have found the proper tension difficult to achieve and if anyone so much as sneezes in the room with my machine it is off again. It is the source of much unhappiness with my particular machine.
You may instead have a problem with your upper thread tension which is adjusted by controls on the face of the machine. Try finessing the tension and see what happens, and of course, as suggested by the other readers, run your machine with no thread to make sure that it is running smoothly. Then check that your machine is threaded correctly and that the thread is not catching anywhere it should not.
You say the “needle stays in one place” and “does not move back and forth”. Are you sewing a zig zag stitch (the needle will move left to right)? Or is the needle not moving up and down (the thread is tangles and the needle cannot move)? In the latter case (the needle not moving up and down) gently pull the fabric away from the machine, cut the threads. Then, gently pull the threads from the machine. Open the bobbin compartment. Check that all threads are cleared from the underside of the machine. Remove the bobbin and rethread it before replacing it securely. Then rethread the upper portion of your machine. Check the tension on the threads with a test piece of fabric.
If the needle should be moving left to right (as in a zig zag stitch) and it is not, first check the settings on your machine. Sometimes a control may get bumped and set to another type of stitch without your notice. If this is not the problem, your machine may need service. And of course, check the operation manual. Sometimes there are little tricks particular to the make of machine.
Finally, undo the knotted seam on your project and then give it another go. Good Luck!
I have this happen alot, may be thread tension but also here is my secret::::sometimes the needle is going to shallow down or to far down so I adjust the needle in holderthingy and try again. It works with old sewing machine ( I think they had different needle legnths) so try that too
Sounds like you’ve got a thread jam going on. Take all the thread off of/out of the machine. Get out the lint brush you got with the machine and clean out the grunge and bits of thread and lint in the bobbin case area and under the needle plate.
Drag out the manual and oil with sewing machine oil (not 3-in-1 or WD-40) per specifications.
Put in a new needle of the right size and type for the fabric you want to sew (if you are unsure, use a size 80/12 universal point needle — it’ll sew most things ok). Bent, burred or just plain dull needles can cause all sorts of sewing gremlins. Make sure the needle is correctly oriented — needles are not symmetrical and a needle in backwards gives you no stitching or skipped stitches.
Now we’re going to do a couple of tests with the sewing machine unthreaded. Grab a sheet of paper — a piece of junk mail, one of those subscription cards that fall out of magazines, a piece of newspaper, something like that. We’re using paper because it’s easy to see what’s gone on, and it’s stiff enough to not give feed dogs any real grief nor get sucked down the needle slot.
Put the paper under the presser foot. Set the machine for a straight stitch, length about 3 mm or 8-10 stitches per inch.
On some machines, this will be a zigzag stitch of width 0, length 3mm or 8-10 spi. Now sew, without touching the paper. Is the paper being transported by the feed dogs? Are the holes evenly spaced? If so, we know the feed dogs are working (they can be dropped on many machines) If the paper isn’t moving, is the presser foot down? Are the feed dogs up? Is there a presser foot pressure adjustment on this machine? (if so, it might need to be increased a bit). If the presser foot is down, the feed dogs are engaged and there is indeed pressure on the presser foot, and the paper still doesn’t move, you probably need a repair. See your local repair person or talk to the nice folks over at the yahoo group “wefixit”.
If the paper moves, let’s continue testing: Set up for a zigzag stitch, length 3mm/8-10 spi, maximum width. Again, working
just with the paper and not touching it, sew. Are you getting two rows of holes punched in the paper? Are they evenly spaced?
If not, it’s repair time. If you are, it’s time to thread up.
Following the manual, put a bobbin in the bobbin case filled with standard sewing thread (not topstitching or embroidery thread or upholstery thread — you want the stuff usually sold as “dressmaking thread”) and put the bobbin case in the machine (assuming it’s one with a removeable bobbin case). Thread the top of the machine, making sure the presser foot is up. This opens the upper tension disks and allows the thread to enter the tensions. You can put the presser foot down to give yourself a little more room to thread the needle. Make sure the thread take up lever (the jobbie that bobs up and down in time with the needle) is in the uppermost position. Some machines do this automagically, with others you have to use the handwheel on the right. Turn the handwheel in the proper direction. Set the top tension to “4″ if you’ve been changing that — 4 is normal for most fabrics.
Now, fetch up the bobbin thread: pull a 4-6″ tail of top thread through the needle, and using the hand wheel, bring the needle down then back up again. The tail of the bobbin thread should come with it. Pull out 4-6″ of thread from the bobbin, too.
Pull both the bobbin and top thread tails behind the presser foot.
Put the fabric under the presser foot and use the handwheel to drop the needle into the fabric. Lower the presser foot.
Use your left hand to hold the thread tails behind the presser foot. Use your right hand to make 1-3 stitches using the handwheel. Now you can drop the thread tails and continue to sew. Use your hands to guide the fabric, not push or pull it under the needle — the feed dogs know what to do.
Did you get a good zigzag? If so, the problem you’ve been having is operator error most likely. Not hanging on to the thread tails is a good way to get a thread caterpillar forming on the bottom of the fabric, and it eventually brings the machine to a halt as the thread jam forms.
Now try again with the straight stitch. If the thread jam forms this time, is the fabric you’re using kind of flimsy and getting sucked down into the needle slot? If so, putting a strip of tissue paper or newsprint under and/or over the fabric can help. Or if your machine allows you to position your needle for a straight stitch, try putting it a the far right or far left of the needle slot.
Always, always, start with needle into fabric, presser foot down,
1-3 stitches with handwheel, then sew.
Besides the thread caterpillar thread jams I mentioned earlier, you might see a few other problems:
Loops on the underside of the fabric all the way down the seam mean that there’s not enough tension on top — you didn’t get the thread in the tension, the tension is dirty or rusted, or you didn’t get the presser foot down before starting to sew (a common issue when you’re working with something thick, like jeans hems).
Loops on top mean that the bobbin tension is too loose or you haven’t gotten the thread into the tension or there’s lint or a bit of thread in the tension and it needs cleaning. The second problem is most common. Bobbin case tension rarely needs to be messed with by the user unless you’re doing something odd like using a very heavy thread for bobbinwork (and embroidery technique). Normally, all the tension adjustments you’ll make for ordinary sewing are done with the top tension only.