When i am refilling a bobbin the thread will not wind up and down, just fills on the top and gets all messy, how do i stop this happening?

You may have already done these steps but when my bobbin stops/starts while filling it I do these steps.
1. Check the thread path to the bobbin area for your machine.
2. Make sure the bobbin is all the way down on the winding spindle.
3. Make sure the bobbin is pushed all the way to the right.
4. Check to make sure the bobbin edges aren't dragging on the guide. I've had this happen and the bobbin will "slip".
If the bobbin is almost full the guide will push it away to keep from over-filling it.
You should be able to control the speed of the bobbin fill the same as you do the sewing feed. Going too fast may also cause the bobbin fill to skip.
Good Sewing!

So the thread is filling only the bottom half of the bobbin? When winding (slowly), use a pencil, stilleto, or something similar and lift the thread between the thread tensioner and the bobbin to help fill the top of the bobbin. Your machine's winder probably needs an adjustment or the thread path for bobbin winding is not correct.

Are you pushing the bobbin presser against the bobbin (Pg 14, Step 4, Part 3 bottom of page). Usually, pressing that bar and locking it against the bobbin will activate the bobbin winding mechanism. (Make sure the bobbin is seated all the way down in the bobbin holder.)

As the bobbin winds and fills with thread, it pushes that bar out. When the thread reaches a certain level in the bobbin, the bar is pushed out and releases, stopping the bobbin winding mechanism.

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Which make and model sewing machine do you have?

None of my sewing machines need the wheel to be loosened for bobbin winding. The Singer Touch & Sew bobbins are filled in place. Use the handwheel to get the needle into the highest position (just turn the wheel). Wrap the top thread around the screw that holds the presser foot; open the slide plate part way and press the bobbin wind button. Hold the top thread and then begin winding by stepping on the foot pedal.. The thread should break after a few winds.

The Kenmore and the Husqvarna Vikings both get wound at the top. Place bobbin on winding pin. With the needle up and metal presser foot in place thread the top thread up to the bobbin (through the guides) and up through the hole in the bobbin. Slide the bobbin winding switch over towards the bobbin. Hold the thread tightly and begin winding (step on the foot control). After a few winds are on the bobbin, cut the thread that you were holding flush with the top of the bobbin. Continue winding the bobbin. (The newest Viking in the group has a computer screen; on that one, do not press OK until done winding the bobbin.)

However, if the handwheel is not turning and the needle is down, first find out why it isn't turning properly. This could indicate a tangle of thread somewhere in the system. (The older Husqvarna sewing machine in my home has a non-functional handwheel. The machine will still sew but you have to use the needle up/down switch that forces the needle to stop in the up position before you run out of bobbin.)

Please add a comment with the specifics of your sewing machine and I'll be glad to add additional information.

I hope this helps.

Cindy Wells

You need to ensure that the thread is going from the thread spool at the back of the machine, through the eyelet, then around the silver tension disc on top of the machine, then to the bobbin when you are winding it. Also, pull the thread tail up through the hole in your bobbin to start and hold the tail so the thread starts to fill smoothly and doesn't loosen.

I've marked the disc in red on this image

Please read my Tip on bobbin winding; its really important to get a good wind and you can add more tension yourself by applying gentle pressure to your thread spool on the back pin as you wind off it.
Link is http://www.fixya.com/support/r10598580-winding_bobbin_correctly

The stopping when full is possibly because your bobbin is winding unevenly but I never run it until it stops itself anyway, and do the winding at 3/4 speed, not flat out. You want a really smoothly tensioned even wind onto the bobbin so your thread comes off the bobbin when stitching with even tension, not stretched, then loose.

Hope this helps you with your problem.

Put the thread spool on the vertical spool holder with a sponge pad underneath. Wind the thread off the spool and through the small wire thread guide next to the spool holder. Take the thread across the top of the sewing arm to the tension unit just next to the gap in the case through which the thread is normally threaded - the tension unit looks like the top of a shiny screw without the slots in it. Wind the thread in a clockwise direction around the tension unit once and pull the thread with a bit of tension until it slips into the sprung gap around the underside of the shiny part. Slip the end of the thread through one of the holes in the bobbin and, preferably, wind a few turns on, then push the bobbin onto the bobbin winder shaft at the right-hand end of the top of the machine. Turn the bobbin clockwise by hand a few more times to make sure the thread is 'locked' onto the bobbin and then just push the lever adjacent to the bobbin winder to the left. To wind the bobbin, you then press the foot controller and either stop when you've got enough thread on the bobbin or let it stop automatically when full. Make sure you dont go so fast that the spool rattles-around on the spool holder otherwise this could spoil the way the bobbin gets filled.

You need to keep tension on the thread spool as you wind the bobbin to avoid this from happening. Also, is there a little tension device to take the thread around between the spool and the bobbin winder? Some machines have a little silver button tensioner purely for bobbin winding to keep the thread flowing smoothly.

But I always do the following anyway just to ensure a smooth bobbin. Take the thread from your spool, through the eyelet or tensioner, then back to the bobbin and put the tail end up through a hole in the top of the bobbin. Now put the bobbin onto the winder and click it against the stop. Place the curved handle of a pair of scissors onto the top of the thread spool and apply some gentle pressure to stop the spool from bouncing and jumping while winding off. Keep doing this through the winding process.

Start the bobbin winding mechanisim, its a button on my Janome 6500, yours might be a little different. HOLD the thread tail until you've got coverage over the whole bobbin area catching the starting point. Stop, trim the thread tail off top of the bobbin with scissors, then restart winding again. Watch as the thread winds and give it a nudge with your finger tip to the top or bottom so the bobbin winds evenly across the whole spool's width.

Best analogy here is when you wind the garden hose onto the reel, if it goes on all over the place you never get the whole length on neatly, but if you wind it on neatly in an even tight coil across the spool, then back again, then repeat, you get a tidy hose. But just wind madly, it all builds up in the middle, you can't get it all onto the reel, and it won't pull out nicely next time you need it. Same thing with your SM thread.

Polyester and silky embroidery threads will be worse too as they are silky, so if the thread hasn't been wound on smoothly and under tension, then it will "collapse" with gravity, then when you use the bobbin, the thread is going to be caught on itself, will feed unevenly and be stretched, then loose, giving you less than perfect stitch tension.

My other bobbin tip is store the bobbins in a plastic bobbin tray so they are lying on their edges and under a cover. Keeps them neater and they are less likely to unwind stray threads around your sewing cabinet if you store them on the spool pins build onto the cabinet door - and it keeps the thread dust free. But I do not keep thread on bobbins for long, prefer to wind a fresh one off a new spool when I start a project and can usually complete a garment with a 3/4 filled bobbin, use the remaining few metres for handsewing, then junk the rest. Then I put the thread spool that is left back into a sealed takeway container to keep it away from UV, dust and moisture.

I hope this assists you with your machine and certainly if this doesn't resolve the bobbin issues, then I'd suggest you visit your dealer and ask them to demonstrate the technique on your machine to see if there is a technical issue with it.

I assume you mean when you wind a bobbin full of thread??

You take the end of thread from your spool through the tension device or an eyelet on top of the machine, then back to the bobbin on the bobbin winder and thread the loose end through a top hole on the bobbin. Click the bobbin in against the stop and press on the pressure foot to start to wind. Hold the top thread for a bit as the bobbin starts to fill and then once it has been covered by a row or two of thread, stop and cut of the loose end from top of the bobbin. Now continue to wind the bobbin until it cuts out as it fills against the stopper. Nudge the thread with a finger tip as it spools onto the bobbin to help get the bobbin filled top and bottom and not just in the middle. (bit like when you coil the garden hose onto the reel, it always wants to go in the middile only and then jams up LOL).

Also a really good idea to place your scissors handle into the top of the thread spool to slow/control it as the thread reels off it. This helps give an even tension on the thread going onto the bobbin which really helps with stitch quality later.

A link to a supermatic manual is here
http://www.arizonaexpressionz.com/elna_instruction_manuals/Supermatic.pdf - I suggest you download this and print it out as this machine is over 50 years old now and manuals are scarce.

Disengage the clutch by holding the outside of the fly wheel and turning the inner knob of the wheel towards you.
You need to take the thread from the spool across to an eyelet on top left, then back to the bobbin winder, up through a hole in the top of the bobbin and hold the thread tail. Flick the bobbin across against the stopper. Now press the presser foot or knee control to start the motor. Hold the thread tail until youve got coverage across the bobbin enough to hold the start, then stop winding and cut the thread tail with scissors. Now continue winding but put the handle of your scissors on top of the thread spool to stop it bouncing and ensure your thread winds smoothly and under tension.

Watch the bobbin fill and give the thread a nudge to fill top and bottom as well as the middle evenly, you want a nice even wind. Fill to 3/4 and stop, flick bobbin back off the stopper, then cut the thread. Remember to re-engage the clutch by reversing the first step.



This is a lovely heirloom Elna machine - you need to thread the bobbin as the manual describes and get the thread into the tension spring. Please read the manual information on oiling too, this machine needs to be oiled on the red spot locations every time you use it according to the manual, use good quality clear sewing machine oil for this purpose.

It sounds like you don't have any tension on the thread when winding the bobbin. Make sure that you are running the thread through the tension disc on the top of the machine before going to the bobbin winder.