PumpkinSundae

I just started to make some clear vinyl pouches yesterday. I love the vinyl, but my bottom thread keeps getting scrambled (for lack of a better word), picture attached. The pouches may look kind of ok in the picture, but they don't look great looking at the seams close up.

I am using my Juki 2010 with a teflon foot and have used tissue paper underneath the vinyl so it will go under the needle and across the bed of my sewing machine better, but it is not helping the stitches, they look wobbly but are fine when I am sewing other material. I also changed the tension. I am frustrated. Just wondering if anyone else has had that problem.

Also, I am using Glide polyester thread in the top and bobbin.

Thank you very much.

OurWorkbench

I wonder if you used adding machine tape would work better. I ran some vinyl through a Singer pinker and it was making weird noises. I put adding machine tape (maybe both top and bottom) and it gave a nice cut without a lot of noise.

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.
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Rhonda K

What type and size needle are you using?

Can you adjust the pressure on the presser foot?

PumpkinSundae

Hi Rhonda, I am using a 90/14 stretch needle. Thanks.

rjwilder

I've sewn with vinyl, I use an 80/12 needle and notebook paper. I don't have a teflon foot, I find that the vinyl gets hung up on the bed of the machine if I use tissue paper.

Sewgood

Have you tried the walking foot?

toogie

I was going to suggest the walking foot too as that is what I used on these. (I was packing these, so they are folded flat and I put the paper inside so the vinyl wouldn’t stick together .)

eparys

I have been making knitting project bags with vinyl sides recently. I use a 80 / 12 needle and either copy paper or the tissue that the vinyl came wrapped it on both sides when sewing vinyl to vinyl. I sew on a Pfaff with an IDT (which is their built in walking foot). Also when researching sewing on the vinyl, I came across a recommendation to lengthen the stitch length, so I do that as well. I am using Aurafil 50wt which is finer(I think) than Glide.

While the stitches never look as good on the vinyl as they do on the fabric they are straight and seem to have a decent balance in top vs bottom tension. If you are not using paper on top of the vinyl - I highly recommend trying that. After sewing the seam - the paper rips easily off thanks to the perforations of the needle.

OurWorkbench

toogie & eparys What type and size of sewing machine needles are you using? I don't think a stretch needle would be a type that should be used on vinyl.

Janey - Neat people never make the exciting discoveries I do.
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eparys

Janey - I use sharps for 99% of what I do on my domestic and that includes the Vinyl. These are the bags that I am making - they are part cloth with vinyl to see what project is in the bag. The bags on the right will have draw strings whie the ones on the left have zippers

Didn't see the response about the stretch needle till right now - PumpkinSundae - I would use either a sharp or a topstitch needle. I think that would help a lot