Originally Posted by irishrose
On my machines, as long as the presser foot isn't down, the tension isn't engaged, so pulling it out from the spool side is no big deal. If I had a modern machine, I might do it differently.
My machine tech explained that a yes the tension is not engaged but you should still pull the thread through rather than back so that any stray fibers on the length of thread do not get deposited in the machine's thread path.
Just a thought...
(confession: I don't always think to pull through, I pull back)