Having problems with my sewing machine.. Any idea's what is wrong?

is the top tension to loose, is it threaded correctly, check for lint in your tension, do you need a new needle? Just a few to try.

tensions too loose on both bobbin and top???? And stitch length too long??? Have you had a child around that's played with the machine?

Have you checked the tension?

Are you free-motion quilting?

If so, it looks to me like you are moving the fabric too fast.
Increase the speed of your machine and move the fabric slower and see if that helps. :)

I'm sure someone else may be able to offer a more detailed explanation.

so sorry that this happened to you. it happened to me and i spend 16 hours taking the quilt apart once again and had to do it all over. i never seft it from the top side as i was quilting it. but they the lqs told me it was my top thread that was messings up so i redid it and it works fine now. good luck.

Looks like it is not threaded right

Yes, I am free motion quilting... Here's a link to the discussion I had posted on the main board. The pics shown is just a practice piece not the actual quilt I am working on. It was working fine until the foot I was using broke and I bought a new one and now it won't work the same. I am not too experienced about what the tension is supposed to be set on or the stitch length while free motion quilting as this is my first time of actual quilting a quilt.

http://www.quiltingboard.com/t-151984-1.htm

Stitch length should be '0' or your feed dogs dropped. What kind of machine are you using?

My machine is a sears kenmore. Don't know what model but it's an older model...heavy metal kind.

Bobbin in backwards?

Mine does that if the needle is in the wrong position and also if I try to sew to fast.

try rethreading both top and bobbin if that doesnt work the top tension is loose

If the first picture is the back, and it is pulling thread so far from the front, the tension on the bobbin might be too high, or the top tension too low. They need to be in balance. WHen you FMQ, it is a combination of how fast your needle is going up and down (based on how much you push the pedal down) AND how fast you are moving the fabric. I seem to end up with a 2 to one ratio, if that makse sense. I seem to have the needle going up and down twice as fast as my hands move the fabric. Does that make sense. When you turn corners (arc) you should slow down for the machine too. Helps eliminate the "pulls"you see on your turns/arcs. When was the last time you had your machine cleaned and tuned up? Ideally, it should be once a year, although I am going on 18 mo, due to health problems. THe machine stitch is created by a timing of up and down and that bobboin thread coming around to look and catch the top thread and cross over it. Dust from sewing (and, I must add, Fibers from cheap thread), or if you sew fleece - the worst for lint buildup - your machine could have dust etc under the bobbin, where you cannot get to it, that is disrupting the timing of the stitch. Ask you LQS owner for suggestion on a good brand of thread. Remember, cotton thread for piecing, and decorative Rayon, etc for embellishment. You can FMQ with cotton, but you want to definitely avoid piecing with rayon. Has a tendency to stretch and break down the thread fibers with the weight of the quilt.

I would try new needle, a better thread and sewing a straight line and get that right before you drop the feed dogs and put your stitch length to zero. That is where I start. If a simple straight stitch isn't working, FMQ surely won't either. Once the straight stitch looks good, then you can move on to FMQ and eliminate one variable at a time. If you haven't had the machine cleaned and the timing checked recently, I would consider that. I am always amazed how much better my machine runs after its yearly "physical." Also, I have a Viking Designer (10 yrs old) and it is "self oiling" which means I cannot get at the parts that need oil, and trying to do so would gum up the machine. If I skipped the tune up, I am convinced it wouldn' run as well as it does.

I don't remember where, but I saw an article online about which brand name machines were affected by FMQ done side to side vs up and down. It had to do with how their particular machine made the stitch.

My last suggestion, do a You Tube Search on FMQ. You said you were new to this, I think. Search for videos of people actually FMQ-ing. Good luck.

Sorry, I didn't read far enough. I had a Sears Kenmore from about mid 1990's. Ran great until the tension went and looked exactly like your picture. They could not fix it. The calibration tolerances wore out and replacement parts were plastic, from China, would take forever to come, and cost as much as the machine to fix. Mine had a face plate to cover the feed dogs. After awhile, I couldn't straight stitch even. Sears sales person told me that now their machines and Singer's (another around-forever name) parts and some whole machines are made in China. That is why they are fairly cheep. Boy do I wish you luck after reading this. You might want to go to a sewing machine sales store and sit down to see how theirs sew. Also, if you need a new one, I see trade ins at the sewing machine store and on CraigsList. But make sure it sews well. :)

Thank You! I hope it can be fixed. If not it might be time for a new one. I really can't afford a brand new one probably so I'll have to look for one on craigslist or ebay. Is there a particular one that you would suggest?

if you have a good repairman, sometimes a cannabalized piece
can be taken from another broken machine. i've had this done for my dil's vintage singer when the shaft got broken in shipping from california to new york.

This may sound silly, but is your presser foot lever down? I've left mine up a few times, and since the darning foot is raised off the surface when the lever is down, I just didn't notice I hadn't dropped it. Easy to do!

Looks like you may be moving the fabric too fast. Reduce the top tension a little at a time until you are satisfied. I get results like yours if I follow the general advice to move the fabric rapidly.

I have done that before too but this time it's not the case. Thanks for thinking of it though. :)

The machine only started doing this when I had to replace the foot with a new one. I have the technique on how to do it pretty good as I did practice alot before I started on the actual quilt and I have more than half the quilt finished to my satisfaction. I thought it would be no problem to replace the foot and go back to my project. I thought it may be the new foot so I got another one and it does the same thing so I guess it's probably the tension or bobbing settings. I am gonna have Hubby take a look at it and see what he can do with it. There is not a repair shop in this area without having to travel about 100 miles so that's my only hope is Hubby can fix it or I'll have to get another one. I had one with a problem similar to this before and he took it apart and fixed it for me so keeping my fingers crossed. I appreciate everyone posting their thoughts and suggestions.

when your needle hit the foot and broke it it could have go0ttin the timing off also

Okay, so I put the regular sewing foot back on my machine and it sews perfect! I made an entire block and it went just fine.... wonder if it could be the foot that I'm using now for FMQ?

You mentioned the foot broke and you bought a new one. Is it possible that you bought the wrong foot for your machine.