Walking Foot usage
 

Do any of you use the walking foot for piecing? Does it give you a better 1/4" seam? I seem to have issues when I get to the end of my block and am wondering if the walking foot would help.

I don't use my walking foot to piece with but I really like it to put binding on and right now I am making rag quilts with denim and my walking foot works great. My friend says she uses her WF for everything. Guess it is what you get used to

The IDT is the feature of the Pfaff that is a "must have" for me, so I do use it nearly all the time. My DD has a walking foot that attaches to the shank, and she leaves it on nearly all the time. I don't know if it would improve the 1/4" seam issue, but it sure helps to avoid the top fabric stretching a bit.

Please tell us more.

What kind of issues are you having with the blocks? Are the fabrics getting stretched as they are sewn? Do you have a picture of the issue? It could be the technique of how you put them through the feed dogs.

I keep my index finger along the right hand side of fabric to help guide into the feed dogs. Left hand tickles the fabric along. The other tip is to hold the end edges of the fabric together. That helps feed them.In between that, there are stops with sewing so I can position fabrics as needed.

I use the WF for adding long borders. It helps feed the two fabrics as they are stitched.

I guess I just need to practice more - the issue is when I get to the end of what I'm sewing - my stitching kind of drifts off to the side making the end of the seam less than 1/4".

That's a common problem, NickiZ. Some people use a stiletto to help manage the fabric. Other people use enders more than leaders to butt up against that last bit going under the foot. Sometimes what foot you use can make a big difference, I'm so used to 1/4" quilter foots I have problems using anything else. Some machines require guiding the fabric and then we need to learn how to not guide the fabric and let another machine take care of it.

My "good" machine needs a servicing so I have my cheapo Brother out, and I'm having a hard time getting used to it again. I have not been impressed with workmanship but the bad stuff is hidden in the back and I'm getting better each seam I do.

The walking foot helps more (I think) with going from areas of two thicknesses of fabric to the bunches of seams as well as shifting layers (sort of the same issue). The Bernina has an integrated one and for the most part I leave it on.

I use a stiletto or seam ripper tip to hold the small bit of fabric at the end. Holding it keeps the fabric straight and not twist to the side. The feed dogs are grabbing only one side when there is only a bit left.

Thanks for the update. I thought that might be the problem. Here is one example of getting the fabric through the dogs and keeping it straight. You can use painters tape and build up layers. Place on machine bed so you have the 1/4 inch seam.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSCBzwJ1lB4

Another one for you. I have the same bobbin cover and it helps with the 1/4 inch seam.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2KremZ6rB8

One more tip that I use. Mark the 1/4 inch seam so you can see it on your fabric. You want to watch that line go through the presser foot. Don't watch the needle. It's like driving a car down the road.

I still mark seams even though my machines have laser lights. Hope that helps!

For another marker, on my old vintage machine I grabbed one of my son's fancy bandages (blue with a night sky) and put it on the mark but lower down, off the plate and closer to me, the little pad in the middle really helped especially since I do a lot of strip piecing. You do want to watch out for masking tape, modern stuff is better but some of it still gets brittle and hard especially in light and can damage finishes.

My sewing machine (a basic Janome machine from about 1997) really wants to drift to the side at the very end of seams, and I've found that using a walking foot eliminates this problem for me. (I've tried using leaders and enders, and they didn't seem to help with this issue, but I do love them for prevent thread "bird nest" tangles.)

I highly recommend giving it a try and see if you like the results.

I use a pin, stuck parallel to the foot but set where I can leave it in while I sew, to keep my fabric from shifting toward the end.

I find I need to slow down the last few stitches of any seam when piecing; if I go to fast, I will veer off the line.

I usually keep the bulk of my hand on the fabric at that point but also keep the index finger of my left hand riding gently along the left edge of the foot to help stabilize the fabric. IMO, if you're not hanging onto that last bit for deaf life, it will wobble!

I never use a walking foot, I just sew at a slower speed.

I went to a retreat several years ago and found that I had left my regular foot at home and all I had was the walking foot so I used it and have never gone back to the regular foot. It feeds my fabric through so much better and it is easier to sew 1/4th from the edge.

I agree my machine is Pfaff always because of the IDT. And I leave it most of the time.

That is why my stiletto is my best sewing friend!

Until recently I only used my walking foot for quilting, sewing on binding and making bags with foam or multiple layers of batting. One day on a hunch I used it to sew my diagonal seams on 4 at a time geese and 2 at a time HSTs. I noticed a big improvement. I think the fabric had been stretching ever so slightly as I sewed along the bias when I used a regular foot. When squaring up the blocks the diagonal seam would not match the diagonal line on the ruler, mainly at the starting and ending points. Just a smidge but really annoying. Using the walking foot has pretty well eliminated that problem and I will continue to use it for any bias seams as I am quite pleased with the results.

As a footnote I did mess around with the presser foot tension before I went to the walking foot but that didn’t solve the problem.

Me, too! Never turn it off, but then I do simple straight stitch mostly.

I have a new Janome (6650) and it's giving me the same problem. I've adjusted to it, but don't like what I have to do. I'm thinking about going back to my old Pfaff 7550 with IDT for piecing and using the Janome only for quilting. If you have a walking foot, give it a try.

I bought a semi-expensive machine, about $5000. I bought it because it has an 11 inch throat space. I did not get adequate instruction when I bought it, and after trying to quilt one queen sized quilt, I am ready to throw it out the window. Suffice it to say that I have spent the last 5 days unstitching the quilting I put in, and I would never again invest in this machine.

umm....5.5 mm machies are way easier then the newer 9 mm feed dog machines to get a nice stitch for piecing I my opinion....my old bernina 630 (5.5) gave me nice straight pieceing 1/4 inch seams without much effort...now on my new Berina 570 with it's 9 mm seams.....well if you look at the feed dogs, if you leave your needle in the center position for a 1/4 inch seam....half of the right feed dog is off your fabric..this I think causes the kickout at the end of the seam as the left feed dog is fulling on the fabric. So for now....I think I am getting a decent 1/4 seam using a straight stitch plate, the peicing foot, and using the drop down dual feed foot....grrrr....I really do like the new machine...but it sure was frustrating.....I would recommend getting a straight stitch plate anyway as it makes feeding triangles so much easier usually keeping those points from being sucked into the machine...

I always use my 1/4 inch foot w/metal guide. But recently since I upgraded my machine it has an interchangeable walking foot and I bought the 1/4 guide foot and now use WF all the time.

I don't for small piecing of blocks. For that I use either the 1/4" foot or one of the open toe feet.