Originally Posted by fabric whisperer
I did just try FMQ with her... the FD dropped, but the fabric would not move... what am I having a DUH moment about, what did I overlook? I tried to move the fabric, to no avail, so it bound my top thread and snapped it. Ok, rethread... no prob... tried regular sewing again, that's fine... FMQ again, same thing. ???
Oh, I THINK I have the top threaded right... if I post a pic, will that help? Could not see the instrux online, kept freezing my browser... so I guessed. Regular stitching works fine, I hand-cranked her before applying the power LOL.
I can't tell the threading by your picture, but I see Monica sent a diagram of the threading path.
Remember, when you FMQ you need a darning/hopping foot. I bought two of them, one is plastic one is metal. I like the metal darning foot the best. You can't FMQ with a straight stitch foot - it will interfere with the movement of free motion. You should also put your stitch regulator in the neutral position so it doesn't go forward nor backward. In otherwords, you won't have a stitch length anymore because you determine the stitch length when FMQting. Also, make sure those feed dogs are lowered and sometimes you have to loosen the thread tension so the thread will flow freely.
Remember, the fabric will not move once you lower those feed dogs - you become the feed dogs. Free motion quilting takes some practice - I'd get a couple fat quarters and some batting scraps and make a quilt sandwhich to practice on. You need to learn to move that fabric slowly and smoothly to keep from breaking thread or causing a long running stitch from moving the quilt too fast. It sounds to me like the machine is doing ok, but maybe you are moving too fast, too slow or something?
Let us know how you do!
Nancy