Bang head here >+<
 

I've been trying to sew some zippers in some tubes. Never mind the tubes. I was wanting to change how I did this set... Never mind... My old hand crank Singer 99 does a great job sewing zippers but I had it set up to do button holes since it makes perfect button holes and I don't have to argue with that machine at all. I better knock on wood with the way my luck has been running today. Anyway. I set up a vintage Japanese machine to do the zippers using the Singer 99s zipper foot. I figured I could knock out ten zippers this evening easy. I've done zippers before... Just so you all know. Well the first pass needed to be ripped out. I don't remember what went wrong. Oh yeah. I figured out it needed a little cloth tab just like in the Utube video. Well duh. I tore it out and added the little tab. I got it all done and turned and whoops... The other end needs a tab, too since the nipped off zipper sticks out at the bottom of the tube. Then I started having machine trouble. Did I hit the zipper? Did I break something? I didn't hear any massive metal crunch... The machine just didn't want to chug through the fabric layers and the zipper. I have you know that machine sews through anything. Usually... I must have torn it out a half dozen times. The material wasn't feeding very well at all - bunched up fabric, knots, feed dog hole in one spot... I was having to really encourage the machine to pull the material. I checked everything. Nothing was broken. The machine was threaded right. The new needle was fine. Good thread. Pure stupidity....

Any guesses what was wrong?

Way past time to walk away for the day/night! Dirty feed dogs?? I know that's obvious, but... Or some tiny bit of thread in the bobbin case?? Wrong needle for that many layers/thickness of the zipper sides?? Presser foot pressure??

Not a vintage expert by any stretch of the imagination just my random thoughts on things I would check on any machine. Better luck tomorrow!

it was on reverse

Good guesses. Stay tuned.

I was going to say "It needed a good talking to!"

or

my favorite problem solver: discovering operator error - with me being the operator.

You were trying to sew with the feed dogs down or your presser foot pressure was wrong.

Believe it or not this time it was not operator error. It was not in reverse. The feed dogs don't drop. Everything was lint free. It was stupider than that. Talking to it would not improve it. Foot pressure is correct.

It DOES have to do with the foot and feed. I don't feel so bad since nobody else thought about this one yet either.

Stay tuned and keep guessing...

Bobbin backwards?

"vintage Japanese machine to do the zippers using the Singer 99s zipper foot."

I take it is not the adjustable zipper foot? and left homing Japanese machine??

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

Did your stitch length lever get bumped....stitch length too short?