Originally Posted by Cherylsea
I work very part-time for a Viking dealer. When our tech dismantles a machine we are continually amazed at how much lint and crap collects! You can keep your machine clean (I clean mine with every bobbin change) but there is stuff that you can't get to and it can compact enough to the point that your machine won't sew or will catch on fire!
On my older Pfaff, I went probably 10 years without having it services. I would clean out the bobbin area when needed and such but at one time I was having trouble with the throat plate not sitting correctly. I pulled it off (which I had never done) and I had a really thick wad of felt, basically lint, that was lifting up the throat plate. Now that I am sewing more and I have a newer Bernina, I pick up that puppy every couple of bobbins and clean all the lint out from it.
At $100 a pop to have the machine even looked at, I have been taking it in, but may stretch the time a little