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Tension issues, any ideas what to try?

Tension issues, any ideas what to try?

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Old 04-07-2013, 10:26 AM
  #41  
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Originally Posted by miriam View Post
This manual is very helpful if you follow the directions to a T:
http://www.tfsr.org/publications/tec...achine_manual/
try not to be in a hurry as you work on a machine
Terrific manual! Thanks for posting!!!
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Old 04-07-2013, 02:31 PM
  #42  
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1mRhcquZTM
Awesome! I had always been told to NEVER touch the bobbin tension. And then I got a long arm. Out of sheer frustration and at the end of my rope, I checked the bobbin tension and found nearly all my problems. I do the drop test as well, and am thinking I still have it too tight.
I never thought about checking the tension with the changing threads - great point!
Thank you for posting this. Again, Awesome!
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Old 04-07-2013, 06:44 PM
  #43  
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I was having a lot of tension issues and found that my bobbin winder tension was too tight and was winding the bobbins too tight. Loosened it and tried a freshly wound bobbin...worked wonders. You might have to readjust your tension again with the newly wound bobbin, but then you should be good to go
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Old 04-07-2013, 06:55 PM
  #44  
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Here is how I set the tensions on my TinLizzie18LS...and it should work for your machine also (works for most industrial type quilting machines).

Set the bobbin tension first:

Hold the loaded bobbin case in the palm of one hand (bobbin facing up)... pull on the thread coming off the bobbin case, and the case will start to come up off your hand, it may even stand on end...but then the thread should pull out straight and smooth, with just the slightest hint of tension. If the case lifts off your hand...loosen the larger screw on the side of the bobbin case about 1/12 of a turn (lefty loosey, righty tighty)...think of the screw as a clock face..loosen one hour.
If the thread just flows out and the bobbin case didn't move at all...tighten the larger screw on the side of the case one hour & test again.

Once you have the bobbin tension adjusted, you shouldn't have to adjust it again (unless you change the type of thread being used in the bobbin).

Now, you are ready to adjust the upper tension. Your tension dial has no "settings". Make a mark on the dial with whiteout or some kind of marker that will show on the black. You just want a dot on the very front of the nut that is used to adjust the tension. This will let you know when you have turned a full revolution or not. If you start with the mark at the 12 o'clock position and turn the dial a full turn, the mark will again be at 12 o'clock. This will really help you in adjusting tension in the future.

With the machine threaded, put the hopping (presser foot) down, and then pull on the thread coming out of the needle... the needle should hint at flexing/bending, but then the thread should pull out straight and evenly, with about the amount of tension a home sewing machine bobbin has. You feel tension, but not so much that you can't pull it from the needle without the needle staying flexed/bent.

To loosen the upper tension, turn the dial half a turn (lefty loosey, righty tighty) to the left...and test again.

Once you think you are close to what the tension should be...test on the quilt...check the underside for loopies (as you see in your pics) or pokies (small dots of the top thread color showing on the underside). I test for this by running my fingernail along the stitches...if you feel "tut, tut, tut"...tighten the upper half a turn and try again. If you see loopies...tighten a full turn and try again.

If the thread breaks while testing...then you need to back off 1/2 turn, then test..if you still get pokies...loosen the bobbin tension screw 1/12 of a turn...and test.

Other things that can cause bad tension (or what looks like bad tension) is the hopping foot is set too high, allowing the fabric to get pulled up by the needle. I think your pic shows the hopping foot in the up position, otherwise it may be a tad high (if the foot is down). Not sure you can adjust your foot..check instructions for how to raise lower the presser bar height.

You don't want the takeup bar too high above the bed of the machine. You should be able to just barely fit your fingertips between the bed of the machine & the takeup bar that goes through the bed of the machine.

You don't want the quilt too tight on the frame. You should be able to push up from the underside of the quilt with the fingertips of one hand, and just be able to grab them with the other hand.

I hope this helps.

You will need to adjust tension every time you change the type or even the color of thread...it's just how these machines work.

Also, make sure the keep the hook area and the tension discs clean of lint/threads/dust...tiny bit of lint can cause tension issues also.

Don't be afraid to adjust the tensions...this is not a home sewing machines...the "don't mess with the bobbin tension" rule is not in use on our longarm machines.



Originally Posted by PJisChaos View Post
Good morning, all! For the last 2 weeks, I have been trying everything under the sun and on the 'net to get the tension right on this setup I acquired. I did try to get help in the Vintage forum and got nowhere, I reckon it is an unheard of machine..? Anywho, this is what I have:
A Singer 96-45 mounted on a frame for longarm-style quilting. The frame is similar to the kenquilt system, with the 3 rollers all the same height. (I have seen a lot of frames with one of the rollers mounted higher or lower than the others.)
The machine has been cleaned thoroughly, tension assembly removed, cleaned and remounted, new needle(s) have also been used, bobbin housing was completely removed and cleaned as well. Timing has even been reset since the hook wasn't coming across the shaft at the exact middle, although it did stitch fine before and still does after. The issue is just the tension. I can't seem to get it right. I have used 40 wt & 50 wt threads, 100% cotton, and the poly-cotton/cotton-poly wrapped combo , all in every imaginable combination. The bobbin will take and use whatever thread ya throw in there. Upper thread breaks randomly. I believe this is due to it being too tight but, in order to get no loops on the back it has to be that tight. Any ideas, suggestion, tips, maybe even a spare sledge-hammer I could borrow for a few days?
I have begun making sure the sandwich wasn't too taut, after reading that somewhere, but that's not the problem either. I am gonna add a few more thread guides this weekend, as was suggested in a YouTube video, see if that helps since I know there is at least 1 missing. I have tried new thread, old thread, in-between thread and am getting a bit frustrated. I also seen somewhere that maybe the 16 needles are not ideal for high-speed machines..? Maybe going up a size would work since it runs at 3500 spm? I tried to make a genie bobbin thing out of the teflon I use to FMQ with my domestic machine but all that did was super heat the bobbin and the thread! That did not work out so well, and actually stopped the machine. So, popped that out and let it cool off for a few hrs and she was all good again. Well, except for the small problem of the upper thread breaking. And I'm not so sure it's threaded right since the manual online(the only one I can find for this machine) is nothing more that a parts list and of absolutely no help! Grrrr.
Believe me, I am totally open to suggestions and desperate for anyone's help! Thanks a bunch.

Pics:
stitches on top
stitches on bottom
**note* I have been restitching over and over til I get the hang of it, using different colors for each pass. that's why it looks such a mess! The really heavy bobbin is actually loose upper tension, very loose! Last pass made was with blue upper and blue bobbin, white was the pass before that one, and variegated was the first pass.
how it is threaded(with arrows to help see it) :-)
It comes off the cone/spool goes up into a make-shift cone stand "thing", then R to L thru first hole, L to R thru 2nd hole and R to L thru 3rd hole, down and around tensioner making sure to catch the spring, under the bar on the left there, up thru the needle arm hole, down thru 2 rings(not shown) on the face plate(?) first one has thread go under it to pop in there, and the 2 nd one you wind the thread thru it L to R, then down to needle bar eye and L to R thru the needle. Yes, the needle is in right as far as I can tell, it is round shank so hard to get dead perfect. Needles are DBx1 16x231 size 16. A size 12 refuses to work and is only good for skipping tons of stitches. This is why timing was reset, as it was suggested as a possible problem.
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Old 04-07-2013, 07:04 PM
  #45  
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When you insert a bobbin into the case...the thread should wrap clockwise (thread feeds off the top of the bobbin) as you load it into the bobbin case. Thats a general rule...if it doesn't help...you can try flipping the bobbin over in the case. Most industrial type machines with feeddogs have to have the bobbin a certain way because they feed fabric a certain way...our longarms go everywhich way...so it's not as exacting as to how to load the case.

Don't be stymied because your longarm is older...the older machines are sometimes the better machines. Embrace it...learn what it likes and enjoy the learning process.
Marge

Originally Posted by PJisChaos View Post
Good morning, all! For the last 2 weeks, I have been trying everything under the sun and on the 'net to get the tension right on this setup I acquired. I did try to get help in the Vintage forum and got nowhere, I reckon it is an unheard of machine..? Anywho, this is what I have:
A Singer 96-45 mounted on a frame for longarm-style quilting. The frame is similar to the kenquilt system, with the 3 rollers all the same height. (I have seen a lot of frames with one of the rollers mounted higher or lower than the others.)
The machine has been cleaned thoroughly, tension assembly removed, cleaned and remounted, new needle(s) have also been used, bobbin housing was completely removed and cleaned as well. Timing has even been reset since the hook wasn't coming across the shaft at the exact middle, although it did stitch fine before and still does after. The issue is just the tension. I can't seem to get it right. I have used 40 wt & 50 wt threads, 100% cotton, and the poly-cotton/cotton-poly wrapped combo , all in every imaginable combination. The bobbin will take and use whatever thread ya throw in there. Upper thread breaks randomly. I believe this is due to it being too tight but, in order to get no loops on the back it has to be that tight. Any ideas, suggestion, tips, maybe even a spare sledge-hammer I could borrow for a few days?
I have begun making sure the sandwich wasn't too taut, after reading that somewhere, but that's not the problem either. I am gonna add a few more thread guides this weekend, as was suggested in a YouTube video, see if that helps since I know there is at least 1 missing. I have tried new thread, old thread, in-between thread and am getting a bit frustrated. I also seen somewhere that maybe the 16 needles are not ideal for high-speed machines..? Maybe going up a size would work since it runs at 3500 spm? I tried to make a genie bobbin thing out of the teflon I use to FMQ with my domestic machine but all that did was super heat the bobbin and the thread! That did not work out so well, and actually stopped the machine. So, popped that out and let it cool off for a few hrs and she was all good again. Well, except for the small problem of the upper thread breaking. And I'm not so sure it's threaded right since the manual online(the only one I can find for this machine) is nothing more that a parts list and of absolutely no help! Grrrr.
Believe me, I am totally open to suggestions and desperate for anyone's help! Thanks a bunch.

Pics:
stitches on top
stitches on bottom
**note* I have been restitching over and over til I get the hang of it, using different colors for each pass. that's why it looks such a mess! The really heavy bobbin is actually loose upper tension, very loose! Last pass made was with blue upper and blue bobbin, white was the pass before that one, and variegated was the first pass.
how it is threaded(with arrows to help see it) :-)
It comes off the cone/spool goes up into a make-shift cone stand "thing", then R to L thru first hole, L to R thru 2nd hole and R to L thru 3rd hole, down and around tensioner making sure to catch the spring, under the bar on the left there, up thru the needle arm hole, down thru 2 rings(not shown) on the face plate(?) first one has thread go under it to pop in there, and the 2 nd one you wind the thread thru it L to R, then down to needle bar eye and L to R thru the needle. Yes, the needle is in right as far as I can tell, it is round shank so hard to get dead perfect. Needles are DBx1 16x231 size 16. A size 12 refuses to work and is only good for skipping tons of stitches. This is why timing was reset, as it was suggested as a possible problem.
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Old 04-07-2013, 07:07 PM
  #46  
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Are you using the correct size bobbin? and is the bobbin tension correct. I know those are simple, obvious issues, but sometimes we overlook the simple and the obvious.
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Old 04-07-2013, 07:44 PM
  #47  
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I spent an entire day trying to solve a similar problem on my HQ16. I finally said,"Tomorrow is another day." and watched TV for the balance of the evening.

The next day,when I approached my machine, I saw that I had not elevated the thread on the 'high thread thing', so the thread was dragging and therefore not coming off the spool evenly. All was well after I re-threaded. Thank goodness. I can't see the spool on your machine so can't comment on whether the thread might be dragging because it is not threaded high enough to come off the spool evenly. Before that happened to me, I had no idea that could affect the tension like it did until I had the problem, so thought I'd mention it.

To set my upper tension, I turn the tension to its lowest setting. Then I sew a few inches, stop, check the back, adjust the tension to a tighter setting - then do the entire process over until the tension looks good to me. The back looks better with each turn of the knob, so I know I'm making progress. This system works well for me!
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Old 04-07-2013, 08:08 PM
  #48  
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I have experienced the same thing with older machines. More than once I have cleared up this problem by installing a new "behive" spring. Stands to reason that the spring just gets tired after a whole bunch of years. Be careful when taking the tension mechanism apart, you want to be able to put the pieces back in the right order... This is a cheap fix, the spring only costs a few dollars, and it doesn't have to go to the shop, if you are reasonably handy, you can swap it out yourself like I have.
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Old 04-07-2013, 08:34 PM
  #49  
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You have a mechanical machine (verses a computer sewing machine) Did you know when you change the tension, you have to have your presser foot down? I learned this interesting fact from a sewing machine repair man. He treated me like I was a dope, but honestly, I never heard of this before, and when I mention it to others they never heard of this before. So, you may have a really strange setting for your top tension. Once you get it to the right tension, you should be able to lift your pressure foot, and rotate your tension to the correct number. You may just want to try changing the number after you finish your project!
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Old 04-07-2013, 09:09 PM
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Couldn't one of the repair guys help you to be sure you have it threaded right? I don't know anything about this kind of machine, but if the repair guy didn't test it with the exact same set-up you're using, check anything that's different from what it had in the shop. One time my "tension issues" were actually caused by the thread catching on a damaged needle plate.

Am I seeing correctly in your pictures that there are some stitches that go along with no problem for several inches at a time? One other idea - really out of left field, but maybe not impossible - do you have flickering lights in your house? Slight disruptions in power could make the machine erratic. We used to own a house with aluminum wiring, built during the Vietnam war. Aluminum comes loose over the years, and the only solution was major $$$ electrical work. I hope you don't have that! If you suspect this, possibly get a heavy duty extension cord and plug it into an outlet on a different circuit. Even without aluminum wiring, it might be a good idea to get an electrician to make a dedicated circuit for this machine so that you don't have to compete for power with other items in the house. At least make sure it's not on the same circuit as the fridge, coffee pot, microwave, etc.. I just have a hunch that this industrial machine would draw more power than ordinary DSMs, and more than modern LAs.

I personally have no objection to reading a post like yours wherever it turns up.
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