They do sew with the light off. In fact, if your lightbulb is anymore than 15 watts I would keep it off until you can replace it. Mine came with a 50 or 75watt bulb in it and I have a nice burn scar just above the wrist to show for it. :/ it had only been on for just a couple minutes too.

Mine has what I assume to be the original bulb and is 15 watts. I keep it off because it does get warm and I sew with an OTT lamp on my desk so it isnt really nesacary. But thanks for letting me know.

Sorry about the quick response last night, I was tired from a busy weekend, but didn't want to leave you with a non-working machine if I had a possible solution for you.

One thing I find with the old motors (ie the ones hanging on the backs of the machines, fw motors, etc) is they always have a smell to them when they're fired up after a long rest. It's -probably- OK, as long as there's not a lot of heat to go with the smell. (touch the outside of the motor when it's running, or even a minute or two after, and feel it. It can be warm to the touch, but not hot.


The random threads you're finding are because you snipped the threads in the step above. :) It sounds like the upper tension was off when you did the test sewing. The 3 threads are probably 1-2 wraps of the upper thread and the bobbin thread. The beginnings of a bird's nest.

A FW is a lockstitch machine, just like your758, and most of the other machines you'll ever use. It will finish a stitch the same way.

If you remove the bobbin case, and even the plate that the bobbin case sits against, you won't ruin the timing. That takes a little more effort. In the manual, you would have seen instructions on removing that portion. It's pretty necessary sometimes to get those stray threads out in order to let the machine stitch properly again. I once pulled what I'm sure was close to 10ft of thread out from behind there. It just kept coming out, and when I thought it was done, I found more. Poor machine, explains why it wouldn't sew when I went to see it. You couldn't even turn the hand wheel it was that bunged up.


OK,.. This is how Dave McCallum explains it: You see the "D" that the needle plate makes? The needle orients in the same direction.

Always seat a needle in the FW, and all Singer's I've used, until they stop. There's a guide that stops the needle when it's seated high enough.

Tension is always an ongoing thing. You'll need to address it depending on the fabric you're using, etc. What is it set on right now? What number?

Agreed, except that I've burned myself with the 15watt bulb too. I would think that 50 or 75 watt would be bad for the wiring too! They weren't designed for that sort of wattage...


Ott-Lites are way better quality of light too. Your eyes won't get as tired as fast.

i will take a look at "Tucci" again soon! Today i distracted myself with getting my W&G up and running. i will take a peek and see if there are any other strands stuck in the bobbin. I did feel the motor a few times and it didnt feel warm to the touch. granted i wasnt sewing for a long time, but i figured if it was a problem it would probably heat up rather quickly. Is a birds nest just a "nest" of tangles in the bobbin?

the tension is set between 3 and 2. i lowered it to 2 when i first started sewing it and i could see loops on the top thread. it was between the 3 and 2 when i first brought it home so i figured it was the tension it was last used at. (which i guess doesn't necessarily mean its whats best. ^_~ )

A nest is basically a lot of needle threads under the needleplate. They don't usually end up -in- the bobbin, though they can "tie" the bobbin case to the needleplate. Lots of fun.

I've made nests in probably every color under the sun. I really hated that 290C I started on. In retrospect, it really wasn't the fault of the machine. I blame my dad. :D He never let me take lessons or Home Ec, and just thought I'd figure the machine out. Keeping in mind that's before the Internet days.

That and I'd asked for a bike for my 10th birthday and got a sewing machine. Doomed from the start I tell ya!

Typically, a properly adjusted machine, with "Regular" thread, and average weight fabric will be between 3 - 5 on the upper tension.

That said, if someone's messed with the upper tensioner, or it has fuzz in it, or someone's adjusted the lower tension, this could be different. There's information in the manual about resetting the upper tension. It's intimidating the first time, but work through slowly, and you'll be fine.

Were the loops on the top or the bottom?
Bird's nests are top tension issues. Bottom thread problems usually just look like the thread isn't tight against the fabric, or the stitch makes its "knot" on the top side (too loose) or the bottom of the fabric (too tight). (Or at least that's the worst I've run into.)

Best the thread with 2 different colors while testing, so you can see what's happening.

One weird little trick I do when threading the needle thread is:
I know the manual says to thread with the pressure foot up, and I do, up to the tensioner. Once I've threaded through the tensioner, I put the foot down for a second, tug up on the thread coming into and out of the tensioner to make sure it's completely seated, then put the presser foot back up and resume threading. This makes sure that the tension is what it should be, and I don't have phantom problems from the tensioner not having a good grip on the thread.

Might help.

Ok, just finished putting singer lube in the two lube tubes of motor. Manual says to fill them, hmmmmmm not sure how I tell when full and afraid of getting them too full, is that possible? Says to lube motor every six months but wonder if I put in enough. Thoughts?

And yes light bulb is very hot.

I think Dave McCallum says a 5 second squeeze. If you over fill it, it will squish out the top, don't worry about overfilling.

I've never liked the "6 months" or the periodically type time references in the manual. If you use the machine every day all day, it's going to need service sooner than a machine I use once a month. Best thing to do is to listen and smell your machine. For things like grease that it will consume, top it off when you remember. If it squishes out the top, it's probably still full. :)

We do call it a FW tattoo for a reason. :) I have a pair of them.