Sewing issue
 

My dressmaker 205, it sews wonderfully until, something happens and I end up with my top thread tangled up and seeming to come out the bottom? I end up cutting three pieces of thread when I remove my fabric? I put in a new needle, new bobbin case, far as I can tell bobbin is in correctly. Is it a timing issue? I'm struggling to figure out what it could be.

One of my machines was doing that because the thread wasn’t sliding off the bobbin case all the way and I fixed it by increasing the upper tension

It's not the timing. 90% of perceived timing issues have nothing to do with the timing. What are you sewing and what thread are you using? It sounds like the top thread is catching on something underneath or the take up isn't doing its job and the stitch isn't being finished before it tries to make another stitch.

Cari

I am practicing stitches, using a universal needle, on basic fabric squares. This is my first machine, first time attempting to sew, and I'm basically clueless. So I'm trying to trouble shoot by googling everything since I've never owned a sewing machine, or sewn, before.

You say it sews wonderfully for a bit, but then top thread tangles. I'm wondering how many stitches or how far it stitches before catching. It seems like this has happened to me but it is only a few stitches good. That was a case when I hadn't gotten the bobbin and bobbin case inserted correctly.

Another possibility could be that it happens when pushing or pulling the fabric so that it doesn't finish the stitch.

Something else that has happened to me is that the thread has jumped around and out of the proper thread path (out of the check spring).

Are you using a cross wound spool of thread or parallel wound? If the parallel wound, are you using a spool pin felt under the spool of thread? Does the thread spool have a notch in one end? Some remove the notch, I just turn the spool the other way.


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

In addition to the excellent suggestions above, are you holding the top and bottom threads to start each square? My Kenny will "suck" the top thread down into the seam and several stitches in I get a jam such as you describe, including three threads in the bobbin shuttle. If I remember to hold, and put slight tension, on the threads to keep them out of the needle path he sews very well.

Silly question time.
Are you using the right bobbin?
Try a regular needle instead of a ball point?
Are you using a good thread?
All of these have tripped me up at different times, resulting in thread knots.

I had what sounds like a similar problem and it was from my bobbin being wound loosely and irregularly. I now just loosely hold the thread as it winds on the bobbin and have not had a problem since I started to do that.

The rotation of the hook is complete when the needle is on the way down. The thread will come out as 3 strands if the needle isn't on the way down when you pull the fabric out.

Thanks, Kelsie. Maybe that will help. My 401a does that and has been doing it for a while. It's just random - middle of the seam, start of the seam, anywhere. I just finished cleaning up a thread nest on the quilt I'm quilting.

So, when I read this, I checked the bobbin winder tension. It's pretty loose. I'll tighten the tension and rewind the bobbin to see if it works for my problem.

bkay