Operator Error - Long arm
 

I wasn't going to post about this because it was stupidity on my part, but I read about people not using the basing stitch on their long arm and didn't understand it. I am a beginner with a long arm. I was quilting a quilt for my DGD using the Pro Stitcher and the long arm went off the edge of the quilt top (planned) and started to come back and got jammed on the batting and top - forgot to baste the right edge down - did the left edge. Shut it down, the hopping foot was down to the plate. Told my DH to get a wrench and we'd adjust it. After making the adjustment, turned it back on and machine made a terrible noise so I shut it down. Then I check directions, do not touch the hopping foot - factory set. You know you check directions after all else fails! A couple of day later we were going to go up to the cottage and the dealer I bought it from is close to the cottage so I started to unhook it to get to ready to go. DH came in and was looking at it and said "Find out how much a service call is - I don't want to do this." I called a dealer that was a little closer, still well over an hour away. The hopping foot was jammed and the press bar were hitting - that was the noise. Could have that part wrong. Won't tell you what the bill was but I don't think I will forget to the baste the quilt edge down. Still can't believe forgetting to baste the one edge down can cause damage. One good thing, DH thought it was money well spent for the service call and didn't say anything else about it. He's a keeper.

Sharing may save someone else, thank you. I backed my car up a few years ago when the door was still open and it caught on the front porch bricks. I still feel SO STUPID about that ;)

One person's errors are another's blessings??? Thanks for posting that reminder for others.

My long arm is all manual. I am the Pro Stitcher, so I watch the edge very closely when I am stitching. My main thing is to avoid stitching over a pin. If I had a computer system, I would do the basting stitch, but for me, not really necessary right now.

You are lucky it didn't rip your quilt top. I've heard of this happening.

Thanks for sharing. It's a good reminder for all of us who long arm...

We are ALL human and bound to make mistakes. We certainly DO LEARN FROM THEM. Yes, he is a keeper.

I call that 'learning to trouble shoot'. I have made many mistakes with my machine, but ESP when they are a biggie like this, I rarely do that twice! (note the word RARELY...I have made a few big mistakes more than once!)

don't feel too bad. My father did the same thing many years ago.

I feel your pain!!! I did something simuliar and had to ship my machine back to the company.

So happy that your DH was ALL for the house call, you are very lucky. We all need to remember "If you learn from your mishap, then it's never a mistake it's a lesson learned".