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Are you using a walking foot? That might help.
Lanny |
Umm, Lanny, aren't walking feet for straight line quilting? Shouldn't the foot for FMQ be a darning foot?
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Yes, you need a darning foot or an open toed embroidery foot. Also, make sure the feed dogs are in the down postition. It sounds to me like this is the problem. Another thing is to get a straight stitch needle plate. It only has a round hole for the needle to go into instead of the wider hole of the zig-zag plate. What happens with the zig-zag is the thread gets pulled away from the race when you move it sideways in FMqing. The single small hole of the straight stitch plate eliminates this problem.
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Originally Posted by vivientan
I've been trying out FMQ for the past year but I don't seem to be improving. First thing first, I never get the thread tension right. I either get loops at the front or the back. I'm using a Janome 6260 and I've tried every single tension from 0 - 9 but nothing works. Even tried varying the machine speed, foot pedal tension etc but still at a dead end.
I find it rather hard to move my quilt sandwich under the machine. Sometimes it gets stucked, causing a huge ball of thread forming underneath! What has gone wrong? The worst is, I can never get even stitches. They are either too short or too long. Can't seem to be able to move my quilt at an even speed. Even tried drawing out my design from a quilt stencil but somehow, I just can't follow the design! Jagged curves, uneven lines etc. I don't think I can ever succeed with FMQ, despite trying on lots and lots of practice sandwiches. Maybe I should really just call it a day and stick to my walking foot. :( Sorry for all these ranting...I need to let off steam! |
Don't know if it applies to your machine, but some can reduce the pressure in the foot and that can also help. Check to see if yours is adjustable.
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OOPS ... was on reading posts, and accidentally posted!
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Please, please, go to daystyle.com and then her blog.(Leah Day) She has the best, most minute instructions for free motioning quilting on any machine. Sometimes the smallest things can make such a difference. I am no expert, but have been able to FMQ several quilts using her method. My largest so far was 80x80. Am just getting readyto start quilting another one. Don't give up. I use an older Pfaff, maybe 5 years old. I don't do anything with the tension. Just drop the feed dogs, don't even have to change the stitch size because I am moving the fabric.
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It can be very frustrating. I've been trying to learn it too. I have good days & bad days. I hope you are using FMQ gloves. There's a tute on the board about making a table around your machine. That helps with the drag on the quilt. And I found that some times with the tension it's not the machine, but the thread. I was using some cheap thread & it was really a loopy mess on the back. Don't give up.
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I hope you can find someone else who quilts and perhaps they can visit and help you figure out why you are having so many problems. Don't give up, maybe take a break from trying it for a while. Hugs,
Kat |
Originally Posted by suern3
Please, please, go to daystyle.com and then her blog.(Leah Day) She has the best, most minute instructions for free motioning quilting on any machine. Sometimes the smallest things can make such a difference. I am no expert, but have been able to FMQ several quilts using her method. .
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