Problem with Superior Thread and FMQ
 

Hi everyone,
I was wondering if any of you lovely people could throw in some advice for me. I bought some Isacord and Superior thread for FMQ. I have never had a problem witht he Guterman on my Horizon 7700,the Isacord was OK, but the Superir masterpiece thread as advertised by Alex Anderson is very difficult for FMQ to say the least.

At this stage I dont know whether its my 2 year old 7700 or the thread or the tension or what!
I thought it was the tension initially- had it set to Auto and DIS stitch..it was making eyelashes on the back which is a very rare occurance for me these days (the machine is great!! )
So I fiddled around with the tension and get an acceptable front and back stitch at 6. However all the while it seems like the motion of the needle or bobbin makes this horrible grindy noise in time to the needle going up and down. And the thread seems tight as you stitch. I dont know how else to describe it. it really feels uncomfortable.

When I stitch in the ditch with this thread its perfect, and no obvious problems that I can see. I am doing the same speed of sewing-reasonably medium as I do with the Gutterman and Isacord.
I just dont understand it. So what do you all think? Does my machine not like the thread or do you think that a service would help things along? Or do some individual machines not like certain threads? ( I have read that some do) I still dont understand though how come the Superior thread is fine with straight stitch- actually it doesnt grip the fabric like the Gutterman does on SITD, its nice and smooth.

I would be so grateful for any help as I love the feel of the Superior but am getting really frustrated with my FMQ at present!!!

Try a different needle size . Contact Superior thread and ask them. They should be able to help you.

WHICH Superior thread are you using? Different threads require different size needles. Their website is loaded with info and charts on their threads.

http://www.superiorthreads.com/reference-guides/

Good luck!

Nan - IN

with the sounds of your description of problem (bobbin - grinding noise...) my thought is something is going on with your machine...time for a good cleaning? rethread, re-wind bobbin,new (correct type-size) needle; try again...
superior threads have great customer service and trouble-shooting help= if the problem continues contact them- they will help you trouble shoot the problem.

Masterpiece is designed for piecing. Here are the details for Masterpiece thread:

Home Machine: #80/12 Topstitch. 2-ply- Set upper tension to 2.0. (3-ply should be fine without tension adjustments)

http://www.superiorthreads.com/produ...d/masterpiece/

Thanks Quiltinghere..I have just looked on Superior thread site, your link was really helpful. Bellaboo-It is interesting regarding the Masterpiece thread being only for piecing. Is there a Superior thread you would recommend for FMQ?
The only one I heard being recommended was by Leah Day who uses Isacord. I think it is sold as an embroidery thread though.
I have only started to use different threads now for FMQ as I was only using Gutterman before :)

I just looked at the link..Bellaboo kindly sent. it says as well as piecing, that it is Ok for detail quilting. is that FMQ or is it a different method? I am sorry, I probably sound stupid, but just dont knowwhat it means lol

Hi Superior Threads,
First of all I would like to thank you for taking the time and trouble to reply to me about your lovely thread. As I said before, its is amazing for piecing.(oh yes, now I get the connection Master-Piece.lol)
The first think I noticed about it was its feel as soon as I took some off the spool,it has a lovely quality to it and I took your advice and looked at some of your videos, which are really detailed.
I am using the 50/3 thread. We dont have direct suppliers here in Ireland to the best of my knowledge ( I can buy Guttermanonly, locally)so I have started to buy my thread mail order from the UK..anyway I looked at the video and see that I have been putting the spool on the horizontal spindle instead of putting it upright,so along with altering the tension this could fix things.
I learned a lot from Bob Purcells videos and have used the Polyester Triobal with no problems whatsoever for FMQ.
I will try these adjustments and thanks forall your helpful links. Thanks again for your email link.
Lois

WOW a manufacturer representative is among us! Awesome!

LOVE the Omni Thread for longarming! Use it all the time.

Nan - IN

I trust Superior company. I buy all my sewing machine needles there and the silk thread is the best I've used at the best price. If you haven't machine quilted with silk you are missing out on a pleasure.

I use King Tut all the time and love it.

I use King Tut for FMQ, and Masterpiece for piecing. I wouldn't change for the world. It's an awesome combo, and provides the best results for me. I also love, love, love the customer service at Superior Threads, and the teaching videos and charts. I'm a long time seamstress but relatively new to quilting, and there IS a difference. Superior Threads really helped make the transition easier. Can't say enough good things about them and their products.

I'm another one that uses King Tut exclusively when quilting on my frame. Works every time!

I use Isacord on my long arm almost exclusively. I can buy it locally and it works really well. I never use cotton for free motion quilting but I do for free motion embroidery.

I use Superior's "So Fine!" #50 for FMQing with beautiful results. I think needle size is important when FMQing. But the fact that your machine is making a grinding noise makes me wonder if it is time for a machine doctor visit. Please let us know how you solve your problem!

Hi everyone.
Thank you SO much for all your help and suggestions. Bellaboo, I just love the idea of Silk thread for FMQ. The King Tut for FMQ and the Masterpiece for piecing as has been suggested makes a lot of sense. I have really learned a lot, so thanks for that.
I am actually going to put my machine in for an overhaul too, as I dont think there would be any harm in getting that done now also!
Hopefully I can get that done in the next two weeks and will see how things go. Fingers crossed!

Apart from making sure that your machine is running correctly, I would advise a top stitch needle and try your tension at 2-3.5. A tension of 6 sounds too much to me. Good luck with it.

Nine times out of ten, it is your needle size. Check what needle is supposed to be used with the type of Superior thread you are using. Ask how I know.....took a FMQ class with my new 8900 that had perfect FMQ at home with a different thread, then I used a "special thread" for the class project. After a hour of breaking, shredding thread and problems with FMQ stitches....I was really upset with this new machine....then I took the spool off of the machine and inside the cone was the needle required for that thread....immediately changed the needle...ABSOLUTE FMQ PERFECTION. Who would have thought?
D

I have learned a lot from this question and th eanswers supplied by the board members. Thank you!

I would change my needle, rethread EVERYTHING, turn the machine off, wait 30 seconds and turn it back on. Then try again. If you have grinding noises still, Stop using the machine until you can have someone look at it. First try is to look at your owners manual to see what they suggest for settings. Hope this helps

I like to use Bottom Line by Superior for both top and bottom thread when FMQing on my Janome 6600 and my Handiquilter 16. My Janome seems to prefer poly thread as a rule, and I like not having the lint of cotton threads. The other big plus for me in using Bottom Line is that the thread doesn't stand out (60 weight) so my, ahem, irregularities don't show as much.

I watched a Libby Lehman video yesterday on just this question. She said to use a 90/14 needle for FMQ'ing and my Pfaff dealer told me the same thing. Thats all I use now for FMQ. Give it a try!

Ha yes I know what you mean about the little irregularieties on the rear of the quilt..oh how I wish mine looked perfect lol I have never tried the Superior bottom line on mine so it is worth thinking about- I have only used a matched thread top and bottom. When I first started to get problems with my machine and this thread, about a week ago,I changed from a 90/14 to the 80/12 both are Schmetz. I always used 90/14 for FMQ before with the Gutterman and the Poly, both were OK
I havn't heard of the Titanium needles till now. I know Superior do them. Would anyone recommend a particular needle for FMQ using cotton fabric and cotton batting?

I am also beginning to wonder about taking in my machine to the dealer. I bought it just 18 months ago but he said it wouldnt need servicing for 2 years..but I think its like cars, you sort of know when you hear the car engine change that something is wrong. In the past my lovely girl always lets me know when the bobbin needs cleaning- she doesnt sound as nice, and feels a bit sticky on stitches if you know what I mean!!
I have cleaned out the bobbin area twice, changed needles and also changed out the 80/12 Schmetz and inserted a new one just to be sure. As soona s I change over to the Gutterman she sews fine but of course the Gutterman is a thicker thread..possibly a problem in the mechanism of the machine with a finer thread? Maybe she needs oiling on the inside or a bit of fine tuning is all I can think of apart from the tensioning.

I use Superior thread Bottom line all the time in my bobbins. I did use Superior thread Bottom line for the first time ,in the bobbin and on top using my Voyager 17 for quilting. Worked like a charm. Loved the finished look both on top and bottom of quilt.

I bought aHorizon 7700 in September. Her name is Maxie. I am still making friend with her. But I can tell you she does not like to FMQ with Superior Threads. I have both master piece & king tut(Iam a thread of the month geek). during the holidays I became best friends with my seam ripper because Maxie did not like the kingtut. she like the masterpiece for piecing.

I bought some Isacord. Man what a difference. No problems at all so I am sticking with Isacord for FMQ.

I do not want to ever be so upset like I was this past hoilday season over a sewing machine.

My suggestion is try a different thread. Good luck!

always needle first for me, put new one in, while im at it rethread, clean lint out..........if all else fails i start over...lol

I knew you were going to say you were using Masterpiece. I had problems with it also, but for piecing. (I was using a Singer 301 which handles any thread, but I've also had thread issues, not necessarily Superior, on the Horizon 7700.) It is intended for piecing and not FMQ. I talked to the representative at one of the shows and he gave me a new spool, free. Let Superior know what your experience has been, and I'll bet they will help and possibly replace the thread. The rep told me that sometimes there is a bad spool/cone.

Thanks everyone..oh that is such good advice..TBH I was so disapointed when my FMQ was so horrible. I am not having a problem with the Isacord or the Superior rainbow ( I forgot to mention that I bought a spool of that at the same time) for FMQ. Have restarted the machine, tried different sized needles like I said earlier. I spoke to my dealer today who thinks that some machines just dont like an individual thread. He thinks that if I am not having a problem with the Gutterman and the others then it is a thread and machine problem. I didnt realise the masterpiece was a piecing only thread-should have guessed from the name. How lame am I :o
I would like to experiment and try some other threads though because the colours are so beautiful when you start to move away from off white.

Sounds like your Horizon prefers poly to cotton thread, as does my Janome 6600. I believe Isacord should be comparable to Superior's So Fine 50 (a 50 weight poly thread).

Another thing to watch is your bobbins. I've used some bobbins I knew were slightly smaller than the original ones I got with my machine. Never had a problem until I was sewing with metallic thread. I was having all kinds of problems with loops on the back, etc. Finally I thought of the bobbin. When I changed to an original bobbin everything was fine.