Fixed a runaway Janome foot pedal!
 

The pedal was getting worse, not stopping when my foot came off it..a little tap would stop it. Read on here (QB) that someone's husband took their pedal apart...Also read on an old forum, that Janome has that problem at times...So I removed plate (after unplugging , of course) and wiped away a couple little cobwebs. a little dust. Put it back together, tried it, and this time it ran at full speed, so I figured "I've really done it now". Hurredly unplugged it and looked up the price of a new one..:( I went ahead and repeated above. The screw for the plate was askew, and plate was not on properly. This time it ran like brand new.. I'm so happy when my repairs turn out for the good, I had to share, in case it comes in handy for the good people on here... Didn't do anything, but clean it up a bit.... Cleaned out the lint in machine again while I was at it..Went at it with a pointed Q-tip...SO worthwhile to keep it all dust/lint free....Runs like butter....
P.S. This board has been such a learning forum for me..Thank you so much!!...So much information stored away.. (Now I make sure my iron is unplugged, when not in use, for one thing)

Good for you!

I also keep my iron unplugged when not in use but I also unplug my sewing machine.

Shari

Necessity is the Mother of Invention ... good for you, for figuring it out!I haven't had the problem you mention ....... though would like to find a way to keep the foot pedal from running away on the carpet.Others have posted of the same same problem, but I haven't figured this one out yet!

I have no fear at all in taking any of my machines apart that are out of warranty. If I can fix it fine if not then it goes to the shop. Usually it's something very simple to fix and I go spend the saved money on more fabric.

Thanks for the information. I had my machine acting up like that. It was scary to have a machine take off. I would disconnect the pedal as the only way to stop it. I have changed where I sew, now the pedal is on carpet and I haven't had that terrible issues, but if it starts up again, I will try what you suggest.

I have a Janome 6600. When it was new, I was sewing and took my foot off the pedal and it kept running, when I put my foot back on it stopped. Did this several times and finally I turned it off and turned it back on and it was fine for about a month and it did it again. Called the dealer and of course he said he had never heard of such a thing, but would call the company. Within a few min he called me back and said the company said a module was not working properly and the only way to fix it was a new motor. Of course being new it was covered. After the new motor I have sewed on it for several years with no problem. Hope this will help.

Thank you so much for this tip! My Elna 7300 Quilting Queen is about 4 years old. It is the same as the Janome 6600P. I was having the same problem that the machine would keep slowly sewing even after I had taken my foot off the pedal. I showed my husband this tip and he took the pedal apart this morning and cleaned inside the foot pedal. He said there was some dust and fuzz in the unit. It now works perfectly! I thought I was going to have to take the machine in to see what the problem was. I do clean out the lint in the machine pretty often too. I did not know about precision point Q- Tips. I will look for those at the store. Thank you for sharing your experience.

update on pedal
 

update: after about a month of sewing, pedal had same issue. I called Brubakers in Pennsylvania and she said the pedals have had trouble. Since the machine is under 5 years old, they will replace it for free. Who knows what causes this. The precision point Q-tips work well to clean bobbin area. Found them at Walgreens.

Another tip: As you are sewing along and you take your foot off the pedal and the machine keeps going, unplug the foot cord (white) from the right side of the machine. If the sewing machine stops, it is the pedal, if it still keeps going the problem is in the machine. Hope that helps someone.

For a walking foot pedal on the carpet put the loop side of velcro on the bottom of the food and it digs into the carpet and doesn't move. Or maybe its the fuzzy side have to go look.