Originally Posted by
miriam
Some times it helps to step away for a while - vent a bit... Is the arm thingy in the throat plate right? Can you see if the timing is off? Get out a magnifying glass. You've done it so you know the drill. I wouldn't fool with it until you try everything else. At least you know what it isn't so far. A burr or a gob of dried on oil could keep the thread from flowing through the tension - you can run a piece of string through the tension disks and see if it snags. Maybe do a clean up on the disks for good measure. Maybe look at the thread as it goes through the tension and see if it looks like it is advancing evenly.
Miriam, I do know the drill! Yes, I tried everything I could think of short of removing the tension and the bobbin assembly/hook race. I tried several different needles in case one was bent - even went between universal and sharps - tried re-threading both bobbin and thread path, tried changing bobbins, changing bobbin cases, played and played with both tensions - upper and lower. It just seems like there is a hickup in the system. I can actually see when it will skip as the thread has extra play like it is going to skip; and, I can actually hear it. The skipping is not consistent. The machine will sew perfect for a while - then skip a stitch. It is so frustrating. If this were my machine, I'd take the tension off and check that first! I have tried running a thread through the tension disks, even put in some oil to loosen things up - it seems like everything is clear. I took the needle plate off and cleaned everything using a flashlight in case there were a thread caught in there somewhere - no burrs there either. I even changed the foot to make sure there were no issues there. As you know, I have 5 FW's so I know how to care for them properly, but this one - I am now almost convinced has a timing issue, which is Cathy's thing not mine! I fixed the timing on my 319w, but I won't attempt that with someone else's machine.
Cathy what do you say about the skipped stitches? Is there a place the FW's thread can catch once in a while like the position finger on the 319w? I have seen you spread things apart in weird ways at times when you are fixing a thread catch problem!
Nancy