These spools that cause a lot of trouble are made in China, the ones from Germany though a little more expensive are much better.

I too had that problem with the notches and I did finally use an old file to smooth it out. Ruined 2 spools trying to find the beginning thread and cut too many layers. Now I have to find out how to use them with too many ends lol.

I just finished a project and and had the same problem. i don't know if you have a vertical spindle on your machine but I put my spool on there and it worked like a charm! Who knew? Good luck.

KalamaQuilts Thanks a bunch for helping me out with figuring out those thread tops! As usual the Board Members come through :thumbup:

My Juki and Babylock Jane machines have a cap to cover the top of thread spools. Never gets hooked.

What about having your spool vertical instead of horizontal ? Is that an option?

I use cone thread for just about everything and $1.95 (or less when on sale) for 3000 yds, I don't even buy spools any more unless it is a color I simply have to match and it is not in my collection - and I don't need 3,000 yds of it.

Marysewfun

I had an hour to kill today before an appointment so I stopped in JoAnns. The C&C thread spools there all had the snap spools.

You can purchase a thread stand at Charlie Rector's Long Creek Mills in Gastonia, NC. (www.longcreekmills.com ) He has threads out the wazoo in huge cones which are VERY reasonable. I think I paid $5.00 for the thread stand several years ago, and I use it all the time. Good luck with your hunt.

I have just turned the spool around on the spool where it feeds from the opposite end. It has worked for me unless your machine is fussy about which direction the thread feeds it should work for you.