Janome question ~
 

I have a Janome that I love dearly... It sews beautifully, however it squeals when I sew. Sounds to me like it needs oiled, however the manual says that the machine never needs oiled... Ideas?

Could be a loose belt or something along those lines. I'd have it serviced.

I agree that it sounds like a belt is slipping and that it needs a bit of service.

What kind of squeal and where's it coming from?

Don't wait long to get it serviced. Belts that are rubbing can break right in the middle of a project. It might just be an adjustment that the service person can fix right away.

I have a computerized Kenmore that also says never to oil. It started sqealing bad last summer and I didn't want to take it to a shop, no good ones here. I ended up oiling it just a little in the obvious places, where I oiled my old kenmore, it hasn't squeaked since. That was at least 6 months ago, so far so good.

I also have a computerized Kenmore and it says not to oil it, but I do anyway. I remove the front cover that's over the needle area and oil the shaft and bearings just like I do on all my mechanical machines. Between doing that and cleaning my bobbin area after every project, and more often if I'm doing a project with fabric that kicks up a lot of dust, like flannel, my machine rarely needs maintenance.

I do this on all my computerized sewing machines and I have several Janomes.

i put a drop of machine oil in the bobbin area but have been known to use Sewers Aid on Coats & Clark thread to help it go through the discs.

janomes DO need to be oiled when they squeak. take the plate off, take the bobbin holder out, and there in the middle looks like a wad of dust or lint - that isn't dust so don't pull it out. that is where you put a couple drops of oil. let us know if that stops the squeak. try this first before you take it in to have it serviced for $75.00.

My Janome definately has to be oiled frequently!! Or it makes lots of noise then starts having other problems!

I so agree with the last two quilters. I've written about this before on this forum. The Janome manual annoys me because nowhere in there does it mention oiling these machines in that little wick hole (upper left) under the bobbin case. Some machines don't seem to need it but others growl, rattle and the bobbin case literally jumps out of position. Even your dealer may not tell you about this. My dealer kept telling me it was "operator error" kept the machine for six weeks and it came back with the very same problem. I found out about it on the Janome 6500/6600 forum but other Janomes can have this problem too. My quilt buddy had a very noisy Janome Gem and that drop of oil cured her machine too. Hope this solves your problem.