Pam Pollock

I've had my Pfaff Grand quilter & Next Generation Frame for close to 3 years & what really helped me to reduce threads breaking was to buy some EMT Electrical conduit & put it over the pipe on the take up rail so that the 2 pieced take up rail becomes a one pieced take up rail. This gets rid of the sag in the middle of the take up rail which causes drag while going through the throat of the sewing machine (and creates tension problems & breaks threads). To do this, you have to pull off both of the ratchet ends, then slide the EMT conduit pipe over the existing take up rail. I drilled a hole through the pipes at each end. I left the EMT conduit short enough that your rachet would fit back on the end but long enough that I could hold a nut inside the pipe with needle nose pliers while I tightened the bolt. This keeps the outer conduit pipe fastened to the inner take up rail. This prevents the take up rail from sagging in the middle & causing extra tension that was breaking the top thread. It's especially helpful on the larger, heavier quilts. I used heavy black duct tape to secure my leaders onto the new EMT take up rail. Everything is working better than it ever has. Also it is helpful to clean the tracks & regulator encoder wheels for every so often so the encoder wheels turn properly or it will create tension & break threads. I try not to touch the tracks but I catch myself doing it occasionally anyway. So I just keep a bottle of rubbing alcohol & use selvage pieces of my cotton batting to clean the tracks & wheels. I'm finally happy with my set up!! Hope this helps others experiencing the same issues with the top thread breaking & top thread tension problems. :D