Do these stitches look good to you?
 

So I'm getting acquainted with my new Juki and I'm trying to figure out what tension setting works for my current project (Kona cottons, Aurifil 50 wt thread). Problem is that I'm not quite sure what "good" stitches should look like.

This photo shows the stitches when made using the factory settings. I've shown this photo to Juki customer support -- they were very nice, and said the stitches look fine. Maybe so; if they do, then Yay! But my very inexperienced eyes are wondering if they aren't a little undefined /separated ...

Thanks for looking.

Judy

I hope you're enjoying your new Juki! The stitches look good to me -- maybe pulled a little at the bottom of the picture. But that could just be from removing it from the sewing machine.

Here's an informative blog page about tensions, which has some good pictures. http://shesasewingmachinemechanic.bl...o-balance.html

Hmm... it looks good to me; I'm not quite sure what you mean by the stitches looking undefined/separated. Have you tried using a different colour of thread and/or fabric? Sometimes colour affects how we perceive the look of a stitch.

I do have a couple other thoughts:

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I noticed a bit of puckering in area A. That might be due (in part) to your stitch length being too long. It looks like it's around 3.5 right now; I would shorten it to 2-2.5.

There are a couple places where the line of stitching doesn't look perfectly straight (stitches look "angled"). I've marked these B. This is normal, and doesn't affect the actual straightness or strength at all. It is a result of the thickness of the thread relative to the fabric; when the thread is too thick for the fabric, the stitches develop a "misaligned" look. This is because there isn't room for the thick top and bobbin threads to lock completely within a thin fabric. You only have a couple places like this, indicating that your thread is a good match for the weight of the fabric.

You might also try tightening your tension very slightly, both top and bottom. Your stitches look balanced, but since you're using a fairly thin thread the stitches can be a bit loose at the default tension. The stitches will look more like ( than like | if the tension is too low, which it might be since you're using relatively fine thread. Start by tightening the top tension (a very little bit), and see if you think it looks better. If you like the look, but the bobbin thread starts showing through, tighten your bobbin case tension (very, very slightly). You probably won't have to do much bobbin adjustment, but the top adjustment might make it look better to you.

If you could describe more what you don't like about the stitch, someone could probably give more advice.

Thank you, Annette! I need reassurance, that's for sure. Thanks for that fantastic blog page link -- it's going to be really helpful not only for tension issues, but also for cleaning and oiling the machine and bobbin area -- the manual isn't real clear about that! And yes I am truly loving everything about this machine -- makes sewing so much fun!

And thank you Jennifer! You are so kind to go to this trouble! I think what I was kind of expecting to see was stitches that look more like ( than | -- you are educating me! So I'm going to consider it okay for now, given what you and Annette have said. Thanks very much!

You will be better able to see what you've got if the top and bottom threads are different colors and way dfferent from the fabric color.

hugs,
charlotte

Oh, and do record how many clicks you go right or left from the original setting for the top tension setting. On the bobbin, draw a picture of where the tension screw is set, clearly marking the top, before you move it, preferably with a descriptor of its "time" on a clock face. This will allow you to easily get back to the factory settings if you want and allow you to feel braver when making those kinds of changes.

charlott

Great idea Charlotte -- I should've figured that out myself! Seems obvious now that you mention it, but it didn't occur to me. I'll give it a go. Thank you!

Life gets in the way, and what you think you'll remember gets hard if a few months go by, let alone six or even a year. If you make some notes, you'll be far more able to jump back in later. I've spent far too much time with"what was I trying to do here" kinds of things.

charlotte

What the Quilting Board says... then you know it's true. :)