Suspending Presser Bar Pfaff 362?
 

Hi All, I'm trying my hand at machine embroidery on my Pfaff 362 (picture attached). It is a machine I inherited from my MIL and she had the original instruction manual with it. According to the instructions, I have to remove the presser foot and suspend the presser bar to do this. I have never heard of this before and the manual doesn't go into detail on that anywhere I could find. Does anyone have any experience with the particular machine or knows how to "suspend the presser bar?"

Thanks
Shari

I'm wondering if something got lost in the translation. The manual I have for the Pfaff 362 just shows the presser foot removed, but the screw still in the presser bar. Have you tried it that way?
"The fabric should be held taut in the hoops, the presser bar suspended and the presser bar lifter lowered. Drop machine feed, lower needle into fabric at the beginning of your design and draw bobbin thread up through the fabric."

Janey, thank you. Yes, I have and it works. I just need more practice to get the embroidery to look good. It is possible about the translation. I've read the instructions several times and that particular line is quite confusing. I know on my Singer's I can change how much pressure is on the foot, but nothing like that exists on the Pfaff that I can find.

Shari

I think what that means is that the pressure foot lever should be "disengaged" i.e. "suspended"....???

I don't think so, Sewgood, as in the the same sentence it says 'presser foot lifter lowered' so that the tension engages. It does seem strange wording. Looking at the machine and the manual, it does seem strange that you can't adjust the pressure on the presser bar. I know that many machine do have some means to adjust so that one can work with various thicknesses of fabric.

Good that it works no matter what it actually means.

On my Pfaff 332 you can adjust the pressure on the presser foot, but it has to be done with a screwdriver. On mine, the procedure is to remove the top and using a wide screwdriver turn the screw at the top of the presser bar counter-clockwise to decrease the pressure and clockwise to increase it. The instructions say that the top of the bar should be level with the casing for general sewing. The smallest turn of the screw will have an effect, if memory serves 1/8 inch maybe as little as 1/16 of an inch below the top of the casing is all that's recommended, and again, if memory serves, that much or less above the casing.

On my pfaff 1473 ( 1985machine?) I need to partially lower the needle bar for darning/free .option.

On that machine , one can sort of "catch" it about half way down to the needle plate.

Think of opening a dishwasher or oven door partway open and it will stay in that position.

I have no idea if that will work on your machine.

I had a challenging time figuring it out and much prefer the darning/ free motion on my vintage berninas.

Darning Hook
 

The foot lift bar is two position. The first position lifts the foot but doesn’t release the thread tension. Continuing up to the second position releases the thread tension. The manual describes a “darning hook No. 46128”, a bent wire with one end that clips into the back of the head and the other with a hook. The hook end goes on the foot screw to suspend it at position 1, ie foot raised but thread stiil
under tension. You can see it in the illustrations.

l.holmquist, I think you are thinking of a different Pfaff, such as the 259 as seen at https://www.manualslib.com/manual/50...page=47#manual. Shari has a 362 and the darning instruction for darning can be seen at https://www.manualslib.com/manual/50...page=50#manual

Interesting! Looking at the 362 instructions, I don’t see what Shari describes in her instructions. Rather, I was citing the instructions for my 360 that I assumed were the same and sounded like what Shari was describing.
https://www.manualslib.com/manual/50...page=48#manual