Have You Unintentionally Injured Your Sewing Machine?
 

Yesterday I hit a wrong button on my machine .... the one that caused my needle to move to the left; consequently, when I sewed, the needle went right down thru my plastic presser foot. :shock:

I was more upset with myself for being careless .... selecting the wrong key rather than the right key (I was adjusting the stitch length). Anyway, the needle went down ... I heard what sounded like a bang, & was nearly brought to tears because I know to avoid such carelessness. I mean it wasn't intentional, I did make a mistake. But it's those mistakes, you know, that cause us to question what we've just done. :eek:

Fortunately my Viking D1 machine is sewing well, & surprisingly, my presser foot was not broken.

It did get me to thinking though .... how easy is it to damage one's machine?
Fortunately I've not ever done that.
I'd always heard to be careful, so as to not throw off the timing.
I've been told hitting a pin can throw off the timing.
If that were to happen, I'm not sure what that would look or feel like.
Can you tell me?

Fortunately I don't really hit pins. Have trained myself to stop in advance of them & remove them. :p With these machines being as pricey as they are, I try to keep mine in good repair & take care of it as best that I can.

So .... I'm just wondering about the ways in which our beloved sewing machines can be compromised, even broken by "us," with our sewing.
I attempt to avoid all the things that I can avoid (hitting pins, dropping the machine, banging the machine when moving it, etc) .... but is there anything else that I should be aware of ... to avoid ... so as to not compromise the sewing machine or even break it?

If I ever were to have a problem with my sewing machine, how would I know ... besides the obvious ... a routine service call, or having the machine act up?

Thanks for your thoughts. I know many of you here have been sewing regularly for decades.
I'm hoping you can give me your insight.

Thanks.

That D1 is tougher than you realize! I am 72, have been sewing since I was 4 yrs old (still have the Featherweight I learned on) and have had many sewing machines. I have a D1, just upgraded my Diamond to a Diamond Royale, I have 2 sergers, and several antique machines. I learned to sew over pins when small, and I never could break that bad habit (I put pins in my mouth as well). It is not advisable...even frowned upon, and I try hard to remember to remove them. I have broken a needle or two over the years, but just replaced it and kept on sewing. I take my machines for regular service and NEVER has one been out of timing! Other problems, not operator related, but pins weren't the issue. I am careful not to bump the embroidery unit, that ruins the project, but doesn't harm the machine. I can't imagine dropping a machine! They are too heavy for me to throw out the window when I am frustrated! We all get bird's nests, break threads, forget to clean the bobbin area, etc. It is part of the sewing world. I think relax, enjoy the journey is your best bet. Happy sewing!

Fray Check is a poor substitute for sewing machine oil.

If your machine needed to be timed, you would know it. The needle would not pick up the bobbin thread, and it would not form a stitch.

The main requirements for keeping most machines happy are thorough cleaning and frequent oiling. I usually do both with every bobbin change.

bear - did you accidentally use Fray Check for oil? I would say how funny, except I don't think it would have been.

I too try to stop before getting close to a pin but I have broken some needles but nothing more fortunately.

I have done that to my machine. I knocked it out of timing. Had to take it in for repair. It taught me to be more careful.

The D1, if I recall, says not to use oil.

I know that my latest machine, the Viking Prelude, also says no oil.

Do you use a drop of oil anyway?
Or not?

I do try to remember to clean my machine between sewing projects with a good dusting & cleaning out of the bobbin area.

I don't baby my machines but try to be careful as I can. If an accident happens I don't get upset, either fix it or forget it.

I only have older mechanical machines. Sometimes I don't take out pins and have hit them. Usually it just bends the pins but sometimes it breaks the needle. The only thing that's thrown the timing off was using hand quilting thread instead of sewing thread. The label only said quilting thread and I had no idea it wasn't meant to be used for machines.

Bear, I think I would have cried if I had used Fray Check for oil. Sorry that happened to you.

I have broken a needle or two by forgetting to change the foot when I change the stitch. Thankfully I have not knocked off the timing in doing so although I know that is possible. The only machine I ever broke was my serger. While threading it, I had accidentally wrapped a thread around something it shouldnt be around, and when trying to make it chain, I broke a looper and knocked the timing off. Realized immediately what I had done wrong. My repair guy appreciated my honesty (so he didnt have to hunt for the cause of the problem) when he asked what happened and I told him "operator error"