Unless one is inclined to take care of her/his machine anyway, refilling a bobbin isn't going to "force" one to do so. This has been proven, by the many machines taken in for repair, due to massive lint build-up.

If the bobbin thread is too full the bobbin will not turn. When I start FMQing I load 6 or 7 bobbins and only refill after the last one runs out.
It is my opinion that Non sewing men design sewing machines. Women that sew and quilt need to get involved for us to see the things we want and like.

why o why did they ever stop this...if you only had one spool of the thread you could wind a bobbin for the top ...where you could see it.....sooooooooooo wish for a machine that could use a spool of thread for the bobbin and in this age of self threading emb. and serge (blower) and computer tension controls......seems to me the company that makes a long arm machine that uses two spools ...would rule the industry... I have mentioned this to the handi-quilter folks and Bob at superior thread, in the past year.

True but running out of bobbin thread is a good reminder that something other than replacing the thread should be done. When my machine was newly purchased my dealer recommended I clean and oil after 3 bobbins so I only wind 3 at a time. When I run out and have no prewound bobbins I know it is time to clean and oil my machine and no matter how much I am into sewing at the time I have never deviated from that.

On my LA my dealer told me to clean and put a drop of oil in after every bobbin full so I do. Even when using prewounds. Seems to me if you spend thousands of dollars on a machine (which is how much high end machines and LA cost) you would want to take every step recommended to keep it running smoothly.

I quite honestly can't comprehend not doing such simple maintenance on one's own machine but I am frugal by nature and want my things to last and serve me well.

Yeah, mine does too, but if I'm really concentrating on what I'm stitching I tend not to notice it until too late. Or when the TV is on...

This is a really interesting thread. I thought I had an "Aha!" moment when I asked hubby why in the world the machine hasn't been invented yet that would use a duplicate spool rather than wound bobbins, us new sewers have a lot of those moments, :thumbup:

That two spool machine is neat, I wonder why they didn't continue upgrading it.

I guess sewing machine companies don't have the billions of dollars the space program does.

Why not just call your dealer and ask this question? They are my go-to people when there is ever a question about my machines; it's just too risky to try something and ruin a machine that costs thousands of dollars.

I guess you are not up to date. Space program will be no more.

I had a Babylock Quilt Pro that I sold about a year ago. Unless yours is a newer model and they have drastically changed the bobbin area I don't see how that would work. Having said that, if you try it and it messes up your machine you have also voided your warranty.

I don't think this is right. The new BabyLock Tiara quilting machine has a bobbin that is about twice the size of a standard bobbin and it FMQ's beautifully.