Trouble shooting Brother machine
 

I have a Brother i6000s machine which I love. Recently making a noise. So I thoroughly cleaned it. Won't tell how much lint was removed. After putting all together, I got an F4 message indicating a problem. Went to the manual and was advised that anything marked F4-F8 meant …….take to dealer. Then I went on line, found that F4 means the foot pedal was connected incorrectly. Just saved myself $$$$$ by doing a little research. I wonder how much money has been made on unsuspecting customers? Comments, please.

while it could be as simple as plugging the pedal cord in correctly it could also be a defective pedal, defective wiring etc. A reputable repairman would tell you the truth and not charge you for something you don't need, or try to talk you into another machine if you don;t need/want one.

I just do a quick clean every time i use so you don't have the build up it really adds to the ongevity of the cheaper machines and i rarely have issues. I haven't even serviced my 8 year old sq9050 and use it more than my dreamweaver

There are unscrupulous people out there but that is why you find a good dealer you can trust

Very true! there is a dealer about 45 minutes from me, however I stopped going there because they always tried to talk you out of fixing your machine and upgrade. I now drive over an hour (1 way) to a different store.
1. They don't bad-mouth brands they don't sell.
2. They understand why a person would want to keep an older, well-loved machine. No pressure to trade in or upgrade.
3. They are honest. If they truly cannot fix something, they tell you and explain why. If it a simple fix (like user error)they don't charge.

Good for you! It isn't just sewing machines, but all kinds of things that can usually be repaired easily with a little research. I have saved hundreds of dollars on simple car repairs just by watching a few youtube videos.

That's good to know. I've had customers bring their Brother machines in with the F4 error, and we honestly didn't know, so told them to take it to a Brother dealer. When machines like yours come in, we try to fix you up on the spot, because we know you probably don't want to leave it and spend $70 on a service. It's usually something simple, that we wouldn't charge you for. Or something electronic that's only privy to Brother dealers.

I am glad for you that you didn't have to spend tons of money to have it serviced and that you could fix the problem at home. Thank you for the "tip of the day".

Do what most of the 'expert's do now. Goggle it and then watch how do on YouTube. I have saved a lot of money doing that first. The biggest savings was on a car GPS repair the dealerships said would be $480 and up and I Googled it, bought the part on Amazon and DH installed it. Cost me $23.