Thanks for the great tip, Katie. I'm sure we will all check our feed dogs the next time something isn't working right on our machines! It was very kind of you to share your story!
Happy to hear your machine is purring now! You'll be amazed at your results! Happy quilting!

it is amazing how a little thing like lint can mess your machine up so fast......My brother sew machine done same thing about 2 years ago and I cleaned it over and over,a friend of mine use to work at a factory on machines. Came by and sure enough that is what it was.now if I get one skipped stitch it all gets cleaned..........saves me $$$$$

Thanks for sharing something that we all tend to overlook. I just started a new project and before I did I cleaned out everything, new needle and lint removed. I keep a can of air right by my machine and am amazed at how much fuzz it gets off the feed dogs, needle plate and the shank. It is like bottled water, that I said I'd never buy; but a blast of air keeps my baby purring along.

I had thought using air for cleaning was not a good thing?

Because it could force lint, etc. deeper into the workings?

I just had the sewing machines at the shop I managed cleaned for the first time in a year and a half....pins, dust, and a few unidentifiable objects came FLYING out. I went home and literally unscrewed EVERYTHING on my machine, dusted and oiled. :) Great post...three years ago I didn't even know that sewing machines needed oil or dusting!!

I used to teach machine applique and machine quilting classes and part of the class was spent talking about machine maintenance. I never made anyone tell me when was the last time they cleaned their machine well, but many told me anyway...and yes, some the answer was never but will from now on...it can make such a difference on the performance of your machine.

Thank-you for starting this thread...seems that a lot of people are being educated on cleaning their machine!

I cleaned my feed-dogs after reading this. I was given my new-to-me machine by my MIL last month who faithfully oils them and replaces needles frequently.... but had a felt-pad of lint jammed in those puppies!

A point worth considering; however, so far it has proven to be a benefit and the stuff that comes out can't be good for the machine.

Just take the plate off that is under your needle where the feed dogs are. The tiny areas between those little feet are where it builds up. Mine were like felt pads also. It was so bad, the poor things were not hardly moving. I'm on SS as well, and I just didn't really want to spend as much as I paid for the machine, just to have it cleaned. Or have to buy a new one. I'd rather use every cent I have to buy fabric. LOL

I had a felt pad built up that when I looked in there at first, I thought it was supposed to be that way. Wrong! I will now clean completely after every project I do, so my little girl loves me forever.