Need some advice - presser foot does not go down
 

my young friend brought me her phaff??? sewing machine... I do not fix a machine ...don't know where to start..
but ..i got it threaded and the right bobbin in but the presser foot does not go down on the feeddogs to feed the fabric thu... I took it to a guy that had fixed mine in the past but for his wife's job ending and his bad back.. they moved fro GA to KS.. oopps...now what.. I live 12 miles west of Marietta Ga... and need someone that can look this over to see what is wrong... I just don't know where to take it....and she knows nothing about sewing much less the machine.. so any help would be great......I need a repair man that is not very expensive.. or a good place to take it ..I don't mind going a ways to drop it off...........let me know please if anyone can help......thank you...

sounds like you have it set for free motion. not sure which direction to pull the lever that makes it go down further but try it to the left or right or back while lifting it.

I would try mzzzquilts solution. Do you have the owner's manual?

If you don't have the paper manual, look and see if you can find one on line. I would also look in the manual for the presser foot pressure setting. An electronic machine will probably have an electronic setting, but it could be a manual system.

Find the name of a nearby guild. Call the guild president and ask for the name of someone that does machine repairs. She will know someone within driving distance.

I eeeek! look at that lint! I have 2 Pfaff machines and love the IDT foot and the quilting with them. You note the black foot behind the sewing foot? That is the IDT. It works in conjunction with the feed dogs like a walking foot. You justpush down a tiny bit to disengage and move up and to the back. To engage you will proceed just opposite by pulling down and 'scoot' under the foot until it settles in place. NOW...for quilting, you will lift the lever that raises the foot and as you do so, push slightly to the back and it will find a notch and settle into that. See how the foot is just above the feed dogs (which I did not lower for this pix). If you pull the lever slightly to the front as you lower it, it should settle onto the feed dogs. I think it is a great feature of Pfaff. Could this be your problem? Try lifting just a bit and pulling down & to the front/ Please let us know if it works for you. Otherwise, the shaft might have old gunky oil mixed with lint and maybe a drop or 2 of oil and work the lever up and down. I repaired one locked by rust and I let WD40 spray sit on it for a while.[ATTACH=CONFIG]519778[/ATTACH] Forgive me..I usually keep my machines cleaner, but have been sewing on 4 diff ones this week. Looks like I need to spray something on this one!! My bad.

It sounds like your presser foot lever is gummed up and not lowering the foot to the machine bed, correct? On a newer (1980's to now) Pfaff they are very tricky to get into to get to the place you need to clean and lubricate. It is not an expensive repair as I seriously doubt you will need any parts. You should try to find a Pfaff repair place to take it to. If it is gummed up it hasn't been used and could use some TLC anyway. I know cost is an issue but you can't touch a new machine with the quality of Pfaff for the cost of the repair.

i thank you all for this and any advice.. yes,, i got a manuel on line as she forgot to bring hers.. i did get that thing to up and down but...not sure what is going on...i will get it back out of the car as the guy moved on me..he was good and very close and reasonable but gone is gone ya know.......and i will try these things... it should not be linty it aint been used hardly at al lf any......but dust maybe,,,,,,,maybe tomorrow.... i had to leave my singer 127-3 in OK with my DD and it is killing me i have not been able to head back out to get it....it is sooo pretty.. yes... i have several machines and love them all...........i even have a black WHEELER made b/4 singer bought them out and made the featherweights.......or so i understand......it need rewired but does work... and like i said... I don't fix them..just use the fool outta them.... y'll are a super bunch thanks for putting up with this ole gal.,............blessings to all

that is the hight of the presser food tobed..........now at least i know nothing is really ......wrong with it......wheeee cause it is a nice machine.........and bless her heart not sure she can ever sew anything but she might prove me wrong.......for sure.............hope so anyway thanks again

I have a Pfaff and this sometimes happens, and needs service. The presser foot on mine goes down very slowly, and needs a little push to go all the way down. When I took it in, was told Pfaff machines do this.

You can contact Pfaff for the location of a service technician or call you LQS and see if they have anyone they could suggest in your area.

Can you post a picture? You have a lot of Pfaff owners on this board, I know a picture would help. Without seeing a picture, you might start with taking the foot off and then put it back on again. I have had the foot not sit correctly, but it still stayed on (sounds dumb, but it's just one of those things). Also if the person doesn't know how to sew, where did she get this machine? Because I'm wondering if the foot is even the correct foot for this machine? You can always try another foot to see what happens (my Pfaff comes with all the different feet you could ever think of and my machine is old), because you might have a generic replacement foot and they don't always work on all machines. You might as about a repair person at the local quilt ship, sometimes the owners know of a good one and sometimes the owners are able to fix small problems because they own that brand of machine. Good luck

If it's a vintage Pfaff, you could check with the Vintage Machines section of this board. They are very helpful. Does it have a model number on it?

This is what I was going to say. Many times oil (not always the right kind) will harden on the inside and not allow the presser foot to lower.

It sounds like you have a Quilt Expression. Look at the white lever that raises and lowers the foot. When you feel the underside of it can you feel a bump? That bump slides. If it is toward the operator the foot does not go all the way down (free motion setting). If it is away from the operator the foot should go down to the feed dogs.

If it is like the pfaff I recently used the foot went down when I pressed the foot pedal . Took a it of getting used to.

Take it to a Phaff dealer....tell them you are not familiar with the built in walking foot, can they show you how to lower and engage the presser foot....but they wouldn't charge you.....or if the same feature is on a Phaff machine in their store, ask how it works.....BTW WHAT MODEL IS IT?

I go to Ashby Sewing in kennesaw, Ga. Mark use to sale Pffafs and still services them. There are some of the older models where parts are no longer available due the sale of the company a while ago. The small companies that made the parts closed when Pfaff moved the plant. He usually has most stored at shop or can do adjustments. It is located just across from airport in Kennesaw on Old Hwy 41. Have not had good success with the dealer in Duluth . This dealer also has an outlet in Alpharetta. Many friends have had good luck with the New machines with them but not repair work on older models. Mark at Ashby's will help you if it can be fixed. He's worked on all 3 if mine for over 15 years.

Presser foot issues
 

Don't know your model but on one of mine, near the take up lever is a switch to release the presser foot. Good luck!

I'm wondering if the machine is a low shank and she has a high shank foot on it?

First check the feed dogs to see if they are in the correct position and then check the presser foot to insure it is the right one for this machine. You don't want to take it in any where if it is a simple fix.

I think somehow.....this is an old, old post. the date the question was asked was in 2015. Oops! Hope the person who asked has solved the problem by now!