Just a quick note tonight folks! Really.
One the the biggest problems I find that people have with “newer” sewing machines is a terminology problem.
“Automatic”
In the car world, an automatic transmission shifts for you. It automatically does what you would have to do manually otherwise.
Automatic as far as your tensioner is concerned is Continue reading Automatic Tension isn’t.
In the last post, we talked about ways that thread nests can be solved from a user point of view. Today, I’m getting into the slightly more technical ways that the nests happen and how to deal with them, or when to take it in for service.
Continue reading Out of the nest – Ditching the Thread nests part 2
One of the most common issues that people bring machines to me for is tension.
The thing about it is that – in most cases – the tension issues are really not something that I need to address as a technician . Don’t get me wrong, there are some legitimate issues – mis-assembled tensioners or severely clogged up tensioners – to name a couple. Continue reading Fly little nestling – Ditching the Thread nests part 1
Note: This post is some of what we’ll be going through in the class I’m giving in William’s Lake next month.
The 401A, 403A, 411G, and 431Gs along with the 500A and the 503A (or the J version) are possibly some of my favorite Singer machines. There are a few more in this series as well, like the 401G and the 421G but I’ve honestly never laid hands on either of those models. These machines are all fundamentally the same with some small differences. They are all “Slant-O-Matics”, meaning that the whole stitching mechanism is tilted a little and angled toward the user to make the needle more visible.
Today, I’m going to talk a little about the differences and also about the one thing that makes some people shy away from these machines – the cam stack and stitch selectors are frozen. It’s typically easy to fix, so I want you all to know how to take care of it.
Continue reading Stuck in the Middle – Frozen Slant-O-Matics
I received an email from Roger about a month or so ago that asked for clarification about one of the posts I made last year. The post in question is Common Thread – Evaluating the Real cost of thread
Did I mention that I love hearing from readers? Even if it’s questioning what I’ve written, I enjoy the conversation. 🙂 Feel free to comment below or drop me a line. I always answer, even if it’s not right away because I’m perpetually behind on email.
The question Roger asked made me realize that I might have been guilty of a little thread “geek speak”. He emailed me to ask what I meant by “cross wound” or “stack wound” thread. The two other questions I also inferred from that question were “what’s the difference and what does it mean to me?” 🙂 
Continue reading Standing at a Crossroads – Thread: Cross Wound vs Stack Wound
Since I brought the B-Line frame and the Juki home some months ago, I’ve managed several projects on it. I enjoyed every single one of them, but there was one thing I couldn’t enjoy and neither did Ryan – the noise.
Note: This post can still apply to you if you don’t quilt on a frame. For instance, my Singer 301A is incredibly loud when doing FMQ as well.
Doing feathers and straight lines with the Juki made such a racket, that I couldn’t quilt at night once Ryan went to bed. It sounded like a jackhammer. Ryan’s even told me that he can hear the machine outside when I use it!
Yesterday, it was time to service the Juki again, and while I had it off the frame, I took the hopping foot off to clean the fuzz out of it, and I ended up running the machine without the foot. What a lovely sounding machine….
Wait,.. what? How could I love the sound off the frame, but hate it on the frame?
Update 06-30-2016: The latest batch of Singer Lube I received from the supplier is no longer suitable for use in Singer motors. As such, I’m recommending the use of Petroleum jelly.
People far smarter than me are recommending it and White Sewing machine motors of the same time period used it.
Over the last few months, I’ve been hearing that Singer Lube / Lubricant / Motor Lube (S2129) is getting really hard to find, especially here in Canada. This has been my experience as a consumer as well. Walmart used to carry it, but no longer. I believe that it may have been at Fabricland at one point. Also, no longer. With the loss of the Singer store in Edmonton, there were no longer any options I was aware of in my area. Continue reading Greased Lightning – Singer motor lube in Canada
*Note: The photo above is of a mis-assembled power connector. This is an example of what not to do, or Love becoming Electric – which is the topic of this conversation today.
Today, I want to talk about the electrical connections in your vintage machines. In particular, the topic will be when you’re using the machine and you feel a tingle, or a light shock, or buzzing sensation. Continue reading Love becomes Electric – Electrical Safety and your sewing machine
You may have noticed in the previous post about tension that we didn’t even test sew the machine.
Yet. We will test sew it, but not just yet. You see what I’m trying to do is get the machine to a point where it’s in the ballpark first, then the rest is just small tweaks. The goal is to help you rule out the big problems, the ones that require repair, or in drastic situations, possibly a trip to the sewing machine spa.
Consider this statement:
Tension too tight on the top can also be tension too loose on the bottom. Top Tension too tight does not automatically mean bottom tension is too loose.Tension too loose on the top can also be tension too tight on the bottom. Top Tension too loose does not automatically mean bottom tension is too tight. Continue reading Bobbin’ Along – bobbin tension
Possibly the most common reason a machine ends up on my bench is for tension. Usually bird’s nests. The thing is easily 80% of the time, there’s nothing really wrong with the machine that a repair person needs to look at it. Sometimes it’s basic maintenance, sometimes it’s because someone told you at some point “DON’T YOU TOUCH THAT! EVER!”
I’m sure that the people who’ve said that meant well, but today I’m going to show you how to manage that dial properly and what to do when it’s not proper. Continue reading Fragile Tension – Tension does not have to equal stress (Updated with a video)
