On my Designer Diamond machine, I removed stitch plate to clean out fuzzz. Now it slides backward & breaks the needle. Also, the dog feed aren't high enough. Did i put the stitch plate on incorrectly?

Possibly debris in the feed dog area. Remove needle plate, bobbin case, and hook/race. Vacuum out the space, reassemble and try.

If still feeding backwards, it may need further cleaning and lubrication of the feed dogs... or other.

Likely it needs a thorough comprehensive clean/lube. Over time the lubricating grease hardens preventing internal cams and levers from functioning properly.


A machine sewing in reverse is a common issue when feed dog linkage is stuck from failed lubrication. You may be able to oil just the feed dog linkage. Possibly just below the needle plate, but more likely you will need remove the bottom cover plate.

Just as a test try selecting a straight stitch and short stitch length. Then advance hand wheel a couple turns leaving needle at the highest position. If feed dogs remain higher than needle plate, power machine off wait a few seconds, power on. It should power up to a straight stitch with nominal width and length. Rotate handw heel if necessary for needle maximum up. If dogs are still higher than needle plate... not sure. Comment below and I'll search for model specific issue.

We don't know what machine you have, but I'm guessing perhaps you dropped the feed dogs for darning. The feed dogs will still move backward, down, then forward, but in darning mode, they never rise above the needle plate to grab the fabric.

Try removing the needle plate and cleaning out lint between the feed dogs.

Good luck!

Check to be sure you have not inadvertently dropped the feed dogs on your machine. Dropped feed dogs are used for 'darning' or 'free motion quilting.' Below is info from Troubleshooting Manual:

Fabric does not feed through the machine
The feed dogs are lowered. Use the feed dog position switch to raise the feed dogs. 81
The stitches are too close together. Lengthen the stitch length. 42
The wrong presser foot was used. Attach the correct presser foot. 179
The needle is bent or blunt. Replace the needle with a new one. 34
The thread is tangled. Use scissors, etc., to cut the tangled thread and remove it from the race, etc.

Take off the foot and remove the thread from your needle.
Turn the hand wheel towards you, and watch the plate the needle goes through.
The feed dogs should come up through the needle plate, move towards the back of the machine, then go back down through the plate.
If this IS happening, then your foot pressure might be too light or your thread tension (top and or bottom) is too tight.
If this is not happening, the most common problem is the screws holding the feed dog on are loose. Remove the needle plate, locate the 1 or 2 screws holding the feed dogs on and tighten them.
If the screws are not loose, I will need more information.

it's possible that the feed dogs need a adjustment or they need to be
timed by a sewing machine repair technican

When the sewing machine is properly timed, all the parts work together in a seamless flow of coordination. The needle moves from it highest point down toward the needle plate. The feed dogs reach the farthest point toward the back of the sewing machine. The feed dogs drop under the needle plate. This is just before the needle point reaches the needle plate. The needle continues to move down dragging the upper thread under the needle plate. It proceeds toward its lowest point.
The needle begins its rise back up. A loop of thread forms along the back of the needle. A special cut out on the back of the needle to accommodate this loop is called the scarf. The sewing machine hook slides behind the needle. The point of the hook slides into the thread loop and pulls the thread around the bobbin. The bobbin thread and upper thread wrap together. The needle and hook proceed through their actions under the needle plate. The feed dogs move under the needle plate from back to front.

The needle proceeds to rise again up out of the bobbin area exiting the needle plate. At the same time the feed dogs rise up out from under the needle plate. They begin to move from front to back as the needle continues to rise.
The thread from the bobbin flows through a bobbin tensioner providing resistance to the thread as it is drawn up by the upper thread knot. The upper thread is also under tension. This comes from the upper tension, thread guides, tension spring, and sewing machine take up lever.
The thread from top and bobbin grow increasingly tighter until they form a locked stitch in the middle of the fabric. This process is repeated for every stitch.
How do you adjust sewing machine timing?

The needle, hook, and feed dogs must move in harmony. If they fail to do so, the machine will not perform as expected. When the hook is just slightly out of time with the needle, you will notice skipped stitches. This may begin on only one side of the zig zag stitch or intermittently. If the timing is just a bit more out of sync, stitch formation will become impossible.
If the feed dog timing is out of sync, the fabric will not move through the machine as expected. Threads may bunch up or the fabric may just not move.
As you can see, timing is everything.
click on this link directly
http://www.fixsewingmachines.com/How-to-Adjust-Sewing-Machine-Timing.html

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1. Make sure you are using the correct needle and thread for type of fabric and it is installed correctly. Make sure bobbin is threaded evenly. 2. Tread path - make sure the machine is correctly threaded. Then, with your finger, feel for burrs, nicks or roughness on any metal parts that contact the thread. Open the slide plate, remove the bobbin and inspect the bobbin case and hook. Remove the needle plate and examine the needle hole. Sand any rough areas with fine emery paper and blow away grit. If burrs or nicks remain on the needle, presser foot, needle plate or bobbin case, replace them with exact replacement parts, if they remain on the thread guides, take-up lever, bobbin hook or tension regulator, take the machine for professional service. 3. Loosen thread tension by adjusting tension dial. 4. Clean feed dog, bobbin case, and tension discs. Unplug the machine. Use a small, stiff brush to wipe dirt and lint off the machine head and the needle bar area. Raise the presser foot and the needle to the highest position, open slide plate and remove the bobbin and needle plate. brush away dirt and lint from the feed dogs and bobbin case and remove any tangled thread with your fingers. Use a soft cloth to clean between the tension disc on the tension regulator. 5. Also check tension on presser foot