Underside of fabric is all knotted up on bobbin side
Consult your owner's manual.
If you haven't installed a new needle, do so. A bent or damaged needle can cause problems. Also check to be sure your needle is installed correctly. There is a flat side of the needle that must be facing a particular direction when installed in your machine. If facing the wrong way, then the needle is not centered on the needlebar and could cause misalignment with the bobbin.
Make sure the upper threading has been completed properly. (Be sure to raise the presser foot BEFORE you thread.) If you skip or thread the guides in the wrong order, the top thread will frequently create a thread mess under your fabric.
If you forget to lower the presser foot before beginning to stitch, you will also get a thread mess under your fabric because the top tension has not been engaged until the presser foot is lowered.
Top thread problem, Not enough tension on top=loops on the bottom of the fabric; too little tension on the bottom = loops on top of the fabric. Yes, I know it seems backwards. See: http://www.picturetrail.com/sfx/album/view/22521551
Dollars to donut holes, you either threaded the top of the machine with the presser foot down (it has to be UP to let the thread into the top tension), or you're trying to sew with the presser foot still up (which is an issue common to people trying to sew bulky seams).
Take the thread off the top of the machine, take out the bobbin case and give the machine a cleaning, rethread the machine, fetch up the bobbin thread and hold the bobbin and top thread ends together under and behind the presser foot for the first 2-3 stitches of each seam.
SOURCE: needles keep breaking & bobbing wont feed thru
First try taking your bobbin case right out of the machine (not sure if this model has a top loading or front loading bobbin, but your manual will help you here) and floss out the tension slot with a piece of strong thread. Don't use waxed dental floss, but non-waxed would work okay. (The bobbin case is the piece that the bobbin sits in.) Look around while you have the machine open and remove any fluff and thread you can see - TURN MACHINE OFF BEFORE DOING THIS! Replace bobbin case. Replace bobbin and make sure it "clicks" into the tension slot.
Then unthread the top of the machine, clean the tension disks by passing a folded dollar bill (or any paper money, depends on what country you are in) through the disks in the direction you thread the machine. Do this several times. Re-thread making sure you follow the correct thread path.
Make sure the needle plate is on firmly.
If after all that it still won't work, I'm sorry to say that it sounds like you have a misaligned needle bar. This commonly happens after you have a major thread snaffoo and needle breakage. The needle gets caught in the thread knot, pulls to the side and breaks but if it gets seriously caught it can pull the needle bar out of place. You cannot put the needle bar back in place yourself - it's a job for the workshop. Don't sew on your machine until it is fixed. The noise you are hearing is likely to be the needle striking against the needle plate or even the bobbin. Your timing will probably need re-setting too and this needs to be done by a qualified technician.
If you really need to sew before you can get your machine into the workshop, and if you can move the needle position on your machine by pressing a "sideways" button of some sort, you could try to get the needle in the centre yourself using this feature. This will not help if it is the timing that is the major problem.
Pam M.
SOURCE: espree embroidery machine knots up the bobbin thread
If you are using a standard top tension of 4 or 5 and this problem has developed over time, the most likely cause is lint deposited between the tension disks....... if the top tension is loose, or in the tension spring of the bobbin case if the bottom tension is having troubles. In either case you need to remove the lint......
Raise the presser foot and with a length of scrap fabric, use an action like flossing your teeth to get between the top tension disks......in extreme cases a probe (old needle) may be used very gently to remove thread and lint, but be VERY careful not to scratch the polished surfaces.
I have also written a tutorial on tension balance which may be of further assistance, particularly for bobbin tension issues:
Please TRY the solution BEFORE giving your considered rating.
Ensure that all is clean and free of lint and jams, this is the most likely cause....now for tension troubleshooting .......
This solution is for tension problems...if you cannot form any sort of stitch, the issue is quite different, so please let me know if you need a different problem solved.....
It is quite long, but just work through each section in order.
The "knotting up" can reveal a lot. If you have loose threads on one side or the other, the tension on the opposite side will be the culprit.
QUICK SUMMARY FIRST:
Ensure sharp new needle,
Thread guides and Bobbin are Clean & Clear of lint
Set Top Tesion to 4 ....then....
Balance Bobbin to suit.
TOP THREAD TENSION:
If the looping threads are on the underside as you sew, it is the top tension. Top tension ought to be between 4 & 6 (this variation to allow for the different weights of fabric in your
projects).
IS YOUR NEEDLE SHARP ?
If you are using a needle that has seen quite a deal of work, or you suspect it may be blunt, change it for a new one !
TOP TENSION & GUIDES:
Make sure that when you thread the machine the presser foot is up so the thread goes between the discs and not to one side, top tension between 4 and 6, and that you have threaded through all the guides, including the last one, usually on the needle arm, just above the needle clamp.
It may be there is lint trapped between the discs, this will keep them slightly apart and reduce the actual tension, sometimes dramatically.
If tensions appear correct, and the thread is definitely in the channel between the discs, but still too loose and looping, try raising presser foot and remove your thread.
Now, with a 2" (50mm) wide strip piece of fabric 8 - 10" (20 - 25cm) moistened with methylated or denatured spirit, gently insert the fabric strip and clean between the discs with
a see saw / to and fro action.
In the worst cases, gentle use of a needle to pick & remove the jam may be necessary, but be very gentle and make sure the tension is set at Zero and the presser foot is raised, (to
disengage tension plates).... do not gouge or score the plates, they need a polished surface to work correctly.
BOBBIN TENSION:
Far less common, but if the loose threads are on the top, it is bobbin tension that is loose, it too may have lint in the spring and be giving a "false" tension.
I would not recommend fiddling with bobbin tension without good reason, it may end up with missing small screws and spring pieces, however, you can take the needle plate off to clean
the hook race area (where bobbin case sits)
...this is just good housekeeping, my wife does this every time she replaces the bobbin....
just take it out and clean the bobbin case and the fixed metal hook race with a small brush to remove lint. If there is a significant amount of lint, use a vacuum and small brush to get the worst.
Then wipe all this area with a cloth or cotton bud (Q tip) moistened (not soaked) with methylated spirit, especially if there appears to be fine dirty deposits....oil and lint combine to conspire against you.
If it seems likely that you ......really ....do .....actually .....need .....to adjust the bobbin case, first check there is no lint trapped in the metal spring where the thread is tensioned.
TOP LOADER:
Drop-in Bobbin case will look similar to this image with the tension screw in the middle of the metalwork....
...the other screw at one end is holding it all together, so beware....it is not a tragedy to undo the whole lot and clean it, but very gingerly and lay the bits out in sequence and orientation, or you risk tearing your hair out !
FRONT LOADER:
....this is a bobbin case from a front loading machine and works in a very similar fashion to the top loader with drop in bobbin, again, if you dismantle it, take care so you can put it all
back properly.
FINISHING UP
GETTING THE BALANCE RIGHT:
When you are certain there's no trapped lint in top tension or bobbin, set the top tension to 4 and the bobbin tension to a point where you just begin to feel resistance.
Try using good quality thread of contrasting colours so you can more easily spot the changes.
Set your zigzag to one width less than maximum (eg. 5 of 6 ...or... 4 of 5 etc) and sew a sample for a few inches and check the result.... adjust the bobbin tension screw very little at
a time, perhaps 1/16 of a turn.
You may find you are playing with this balance for some little while and if you are putting the needleplate on and off each time begin to think it cannot be correct to do this.....BUT....it is,
and eventually, you do get a "feel" for the correct tension and then it happens quite quickly.....as a user you won't be doing it very often unless there is lint built up (or are there small hands at work around the house !?!?!)
OTHER ISSUES:
If you live near the ocean as we do, salt air can play havoc with metalwork inside and out, so to help minimise this, keep a few small packets of dessicant (silica gel) in your machine
case....no case ? then make some sort of cover !
Same applies in any damp or humid environment, keep your machine dry and dust free.
Budget for a proper full service every couple of years (more often if heavily used) and if you don't use your machine for a few years, be aware that old oil will dry out and combining with
dust and form a "clag" like glue (another reason for some sort of cover, even a teatowel !)
FINALLY, A WORD ON THREAD:
If it is worth spending the time, energy and money on making something that you would like to give lasting enjoyment......use quality thread, .......it may seem to cost a little more at the
time, but the results, ease of use and added longevity will be worth the extra, and as a bonus, your tension troubles may be fewer and further between, because there is a more consistent diameter with good thread, and less compensating to be done by your tension plates and less thread breaks !
www.bargainbox.com.au
SOURCE: thread knotting around bobbin case
hello, I had the exact same problem and could not find the solution until i took my machine to my sewing sensei and i solved my tedious problem. It was actually not a tension problem at all but a threading problem. Make sure you have threaded your bobbin correctly and that when you pull on the bobbin thread that the bobbin turns the right way. (mine must spin anti clockwise to work) Make sure that when you pull up the bobbin thread using the needle that it is not over the feed dogs connective bar but under it. A big problem when the thread gets caught around the bobbin case wheel is that the thread is looped around the feed dogs once and that causes the thread to get caught around the bobbin wheel. In conclusion, thread the bobbin correctly and read over your instruction book before spending the money to get it fixe in s shop.
SOURCE: i have a brother se-270d sewing machine. the
sounds like the bobbin tension is too loose. Try tightening it up a tad
SOURCE: when I thread my machine
It is your top threading, totally rethread, then with presser foot up, pull on top thread, it should feed smoothly, now put the presser foot down, pull thread, it should barely move. This should seat the thread in the tension discs.
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