Thanks all for your help.

You don't say which needle you were using - try using one with a bigger eye which causes less stress on the thread - like a Topstitch 90/14 or 80/12. I keep a note of which threads "like" which needles.

Could possibly be a "burr" on the one of the areas the thread runs through?

like mentioned above, larger needle eye, catching on the spool, tension. is the thread "old"?

what machine are you using? maybe someone here has the same machine and can give you some tips..

You mention using your regular foot. Are you changing this to your darning (free motion foot) before dropping feed dogs and doing free motion?

Leah Day's blog has an article on thread tension at http://freemotionquilting.blogspot.c...-tangles.html. Check out her 365 days quilt designs--she has made me think outside the box for free motion quilting. I used to just look through pattern books--now I don't have to do that. It is much more fun not always having to trace the patterns onto paper and then tear it off the quilt.

jpg, when I clicked on that link, this is what I got:
Page not found
Sorry, the page you were looking for in the blog 365 Days of Free Motion Quilting Filler Designs does not exist.

In Leah Day's site, http://www.daystyledesigns.com/index.htm go to Free Motion quilting blog and scroll down to the 2009 blog archive and click on Tension tangles for December.

Your question and my correction crossed--don't know why the copied addresses sometimes don't work. Enjoy her quilting designs--I did one quilt with 30 different patterns for the 30 blocks--turned out real nice.

Katrine thanks, I am using a 90/14 needle

Watterside I am using a Brother Innov'is 1500D