I'm afraid I'm guilty of not cleaning my machine as often as I should, however, when the sound of machine when sewing changes, I know it's time to clean and dust (I usually only do this for my sewing machine, not my apt. LOL-kidding, but my DH does the vacuuming, mopping and the laundry as I can no longer do those things). I also heard a tip on Fons and Porter the other day where a woman used a chenille stem to clean her machine, I tried it and it works really well.

on the DSM (drop in bobbin) I'll brush out fuzz without taking off plate, etc each bobbin change. I take it all apart and brush ("chip" paint brushes do a nice job on latching onto any fuzz) out all nooks and crannies and put A drop of oil on the wick at the bottom of the bobbin area, maybe on the main needle rod if I clean it too. My machine is built so I'm not suppose to oil it between maintenance check-ups but I do use this little amount of oil at the end of about every big project. Since I sew daily and switch around projects this is not done on a set schedule. More often if using flannel, etc.

On the long arm I will brush out fuzz each time I replace a bobbin (big ones) and pull the plate about once per month. If I'm using linty fabrics or a cotton thread I will also use canned air to get the bobbin area clean once finished with quilt. The Long arm I oil about every 8 hrs of use(whole machine) and bobbin area each bobbin.

I'm guilty of being lazy. I don't clean my machine as often as most of you, probably every 6 to 8 weeks and only oil when I do a thorough cleaning. I sew most days so probably should do it more often but just want to get back to sewing.

I brush out the bobbin area when changing bobbins. Only take the plate off every so often. When I FMQ I oil the hook every bobbin change. Had one machine since 2008 and never been serviced. I figure I am doing fine.

Same here...but if I have more than one project going at a time, I try to remember to change my needle and a bobbin cleaning about every (estimated) 8 hours of sewing.

I'm one who doesn't clean very often. Never had any troubles with that. My machine just goes and goes and goes! ! !

I took a sewing class where a repair man spoke to us. He said it is cheaper to take the time to clean your bobbin area than to have to replace something because the lint threw the machine out of time. I clean and oil my machine often. It is worth the time.

I am embarrassed to say that I don't clean my machine as often as I used to. I am one those who never matches their thread to a project, as I use only white, taupe (dark and light) and black thread colors. I wind a lot of bobbins with my Arifil thread and really don't get much lint in the bobbin area.

However, I do keep an eye on the lint and if there is any lint I clean the area immediately and then put just the tiniest of drops of oil in the bobbin casing where the metal bobbin wears against the metal casing. You should always use a tiny amount of lubricant (oil) where there is metal to metal.

I have my machines cleaned by a professional once a year whether they need it or not. So far, (knock on wood) I haven't had any problems and I have been sewing since the 70's.

I clean mine often and I take it all apart and use a pipe cleaner as well as my brush to clean it all out good. I'm hoping to keep this as my main sewing machine until I can't sew any more!! ;-) I even unplug it whenever there's thunder in the area.

Yes, the users manual for all three of my vertical bobbin machines note that you should oil a couple of times a month. I use my PQ1500s every day, so it sometimes gets oiled a little more frequently. I put several drops of oil in each oiling point and also on the bobbin hook, then (without thread in the machine) I run it at high speed for a short time (under a minute) to see if I need to mop up any excess oil.

Some machines with vertical bobbins like to have the bobbin hook oiled more frequently than what I do, but you'd have to check your user's manual to determine how frequently your machine should be oiled. I've never oiled a machine after just a couple of bobbins.

Check your manual to see what kind of oiling schedule they suggest.

Rob
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