In addition to all these suggestions, with which I agree, take a look at your feed dogs. Is there any lint caught in the teeth themselves? You might need a magnifying glass. If so, take a straight pin or a dental pick and clean out each tooth. Less likely is that the teeth are no longer sharp enough to grip the fabric and move it along and need to be replaced. Worry about that last, however.
Is the area around the feed dogs (or even the bobbin) linty?
My first thought is the amount of pressure on the foot, controlled by a knob on the top of the machine.
Okay, here's another possibility: make sure your feed dogs are all the way up. You will find a large screw knob for that under the lift-up bed (to the left of the needle) and toward the back of the machine. Do you know where I mean?
What size needle and thread are you using? What brand of thread are you using? What brand of needle? My Singer 301s take any thread except YLI. How does your tension look? How does your stitch look, top and bottom?
The aftermarket 1/4 inch foot for the Singer 301 that has the little metal stop on the far right of the foot is well worth the investment and will make a huge difference. Sew-classic.com probably has it. Remember, you need a slant foot.
I have found that making a quilt on my Singer 301s is a very pleasant experience and would like to make sure you have a good experience, also. The 301 is a good and reliable machine, pretty much bullet proof, and should be a joy to use. In fact, I named mine JoyBoy.
Cricket
Last edited by cricket_iscute; 03-24-2014 at 03:16 PM.