Originally Posted by
Sally J
I use Aurifil 50 weight for piecing only, light grey for everything. Great for bobbin. My featherweight doesn't like it on top (it breaks). It really isn't that expensive when you consider how much is on the spool. Metler (sp?) is great also. I use the polyester much of the time as it has a little stretch.
Re: Price, that's exactly what I was thinking. Even at $1 a spool for 100m (110yd) of mettler on sale, $9.99 for a 1300m (what, 1400 odd yards?) spool of Aurifil is actually "cheap" in comparison. As an added bonus, a local quilt shop puts Aurifil on sale once a month for 21% off, so it's under $8 for a spool. Good time to stock up.
I use Robison Anton at the moment, because i got a good deal on a bunch of it, and I like it better than the Gutermann and Mettler.
Sally, Aurifil is a cross wound thread, it's not terribly happy on a vertical spool pin like a featherweight's spool pin. Try using a spool holder, so the thread will come off the top, instead of rotating the spool. You can also try a tea cup and just drop the spool into it.
I used to have my spools periodically take flight while sewing with a vintage machine. It was always cross wound. When I watched the Superior Threads "Threadology" videos on YouTube and he described all of this, the light bulb went on.
The other thing is, the stretch in the poly can sometimes contribute to the tension problems with the cross wound thread on a vertical pin. (Think of an elastic band and the tension it holds when you pull and let go.) Something else to play with.