I'm convinced, my machine hates cotton :'(
 

I have a Janome 1600P and I am seriously staring to hate it :'( I've had soo many thread problems I want to cry, the most annoying and stressful thing is it breaks thread like crazy! as I am making a pass across my quilt I swear it will fray/snap the thread 3 times before I make it to the end :(. My tension is just right so there are no peeps. I've tried Superior thread and Tri-lock thread they both do the snap thing! agh! when I am doing a cotton quilt...but I will be darned if every time I make a flannel little baby blanket I can use whatever brand thread I want and it won't snap once! agh, my machine must hate cotton :( I have also used coats & clark and it seems to do ok with that but I can't find spools big enough because I don't want to buy a thousand little spools just to do one quilt :( I am soo tired of this machine...does anyone recommend another brand mid-arm quilting machine because I don't know how much longer I can stand having this machine in my house :'(

I have the same machine and never had such problems after I started using King Tut. It did shred certain threads, but once I put King Tut on it, it purred along great.

Have you made sure to check the ENTIRE thread path for obstacles and burrs? Replaced your needle? What size needle are you using? I found anything smaller than an 18 and the thread would break.

Thanks ladies, I will try that King Tut brand thread. Where can you buy it and is it in large quantities? I am also starting my at home quilting business so yes thread breaking slows me up soo much I just don't have time for it. I have a size 90/14 needle, the kind my dealer recommended. Yes my spool is cross rolled so yep it is feeding from my top hook thing haha. Thread path is clear. I loosened my quilt on my frame, maybe its too tight would that cause thread to break? I'm going to try it more loose but I hate the chance of puckers but at the point I will try anything. Thanks so much ofr the advise I am going to try all of it! :)

The tread I am using right now is Toldi-Lock by Gutermann - overlocking thread.

Try a 100/16 needle. I know it seems like it is the size of a harpoon but the eye is so much bigger your thread may need it to keep up with the speed of the machine. What can it hurt to try?

I had the same trouble with my janome 1600, tried a lot of different threads, the best one that works for me is the "superior so fine" I have my machine on a Gracie pinnacle

I had that happen to me once. It was caused by a burr on my foot. I took my foot off and used my fingernail file, filed around where the burr was ( caused by a needle hitting the foot a couple of times ), smoothed out the sharp edges. I checked out all the other feet and they were ok, I also filed around the plate where the needle enters, this cleared up the breakage of the thread.
Take a q-tip and swab slowly around the area that might have a burr and watch for any pulling of the cotton on the swab, feet, plate, bobbin area, etc.

First of all, absolutely switch to a larger needle. Your issue will most likely be solved by going up to an 18. Second of all, there are some people here who like serger thread, but I tried it in my Janome 1600 and it shredded. It's okay for piecing, but I found it way too aggravating to use for quilting.

Superior Threads manufactures and sells King Tut thread. It comes on 500 yard spools and 2000 yard cones. You can purchase directly from Superior - https://www.superiorthreads.com/shop...Brand=King+Tut - Or, you might be able to find it at your LQS.

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

I'm really surprised that Janome 1600s have this problem. An 80/12 needle in my Bernina never causes thread shredding or breaking no matter what brand of thread I use in the machine. I can't imagine using a size 18 needle routinely!

Are you using it for piecing, or do you have it on a frame?