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Sewing straighter on a FW, tips please!
I have recently acquired a singer 221 featherweight. They are so pretty and I really enjoyed getting her cleaned and running again. So here's my issue, I'm totally spoiled by how straight a machine with box feed sews. When sewing on the FW, I feel like I have to watch it like a hawk so that it doesn't pull my piecing to one side. Piecing is my favorite :o Just wondering if anyone has some tips, and I thank you in advance.
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Hold on to the fabric
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Go to www.quiltville.blogspot.ca and click on Bonnie's tips and techniques tab. Look for the title Best seam guide-Ever. It is made with a 3m strip and a hotel key card and will let you get a good 1/4 inch seam and won't damage the surface of the machine.
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Have you tried a 1/4 inch foot?
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Thanks for the replies, I do hold on to the fabric and my 1/4" foot works great.
It's kind of like when your car's alignment is off, when you go straight and let go of the wheel the car veers to one side. Do your dogs pull straight on your FW? |
Is your fabric supported or hanging of the edge of a table? I have noticed that anything I sew on any of my machines is going to pull "out" when I don't have support on the fabric. I suppose you could also look at your presser foot pressure if you feel like things are sliding too much, just don't ratchet it down so things don't feed. I've never had any other weirdness with regards to feed on my FW.
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Feed dogs can get out of alignment. You might want to join one of the vintage Singer Yahoo groups and/or Google to find specific instructions on how to align feed dogs on a featherweight. Or, take your machine to a good technician. I have never done it myself, but I know that there are screws associated with feed dogs so that a technician can work on their alignment. It's exactly like your example of letting go of the wheel of a car!
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Put your left hand index finger against the left edge of the foot when sewing. Just a light touch. It really works to keep a straight seam and no more veering off at the end of a seam. Paid a lot of money for a class that gave this tip. :)
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Thank you so much! Merry Christmas!
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I just tried the finger on the edge of the foot. It works great! My seams are straighter and no veer at the end at all. Thanks so much for posting this. I mean really thank you!!!!
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