Top thread tight
 

My 221 sews a perfect seam, but when I finish and pull the threads to cut them, the top thread is really tight, so tight that it nearly gathers the fabric. I've tried the upper tension on several numbers and it doesn't change.

What could the problem be??

Your bobbin is too tight. Take out the bobbin case and turn the screw to the left (leftie Lucy) about 1/8 of a turn. Try it. Still too tight? Another 8th of a turn and so on. Don't be afraid of that screw. That is why it's there.

It sounds like your top tension isn't releasing when you lift the presser foot.

This is where I would start too.
Rodney

A friend told me to jiggle the handwheel back and forth a tiny bit (tiny!). Then try. Or, bring the wheel a little farther forward than you think you need to (ie, needle is on its way back down) - that will release the top tension.

Worked for me!

I'm with Macybaby and Rodney. I start by verifying the top tension is releasing when you raise the presser foot. I'll bet the little pin is stuck or there's some other problem.

Joe

I routinely take the tension off and rebuild. Then I take the bobbin spring off off the bobbin case and clean it off. I adjust them both. Usually that solves the problems.

I do what Miriam does. I've run into this a few times. I use a plain white string and floss through the thread guides to be sure nothing's catching. Then take the top tension apart clean it well and put it back together. That usually solves it.

I've learned the hard way do both the top and the bottom. There is usually dried oil on the pin in the tension, too. That's why I pull it.

I'm scared to fool with the tension dial thingy, afraid I will not be able to get it back on! I will check out the other things you all suggested and see what happens.

You will for sure need to use a manual or look up Tammi's videos on tensions. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzFX...AyBQ2l-Mzkw7ew she walks you through it - the video is VERY clear - I think she has another similar video as well.

Tippysmom,

If you have a gummed up top tension, bobbin case spring, or both, the machine will never sew completely right until that is cleaned.

I don't know about the sewing machine shops in your area, the one locally charges $65.00 to service a sewing machine.

So, if you can read a pattern and make anything from it, you can read the instructions in TFSR and do your own tensions.
{ http://www.tfsr.org/publications/tec...machine_manual }

Why spend money to have something done you can do yourself?

Joe

I would start by moving the handwheel a little. This happens to me and jiggling does the trick

Thanks Miriam :)

This one might help more (it's the other one you mentioned), unless people want to take the tensioner off the machine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guYToL6Gegs

That said both have some slightly different information in them so it's worth watching both if you have time. Both videos were "Stream of consciousness" no script at all.

The other note (which is in the description but a lot of people don't read them): The "2 setting" I mention toward the end of the video works for most full sized tensioners. For the smaller tensioners, like the 301 and the Featherweight, I find that the setting is full tight when the post is flush - between 9 and 10.

PS, I agree, it's the tension release pin. The bobbin tension wouldn't have anything to do with the top tension not releasing.

No but when things are needing to be cleaned you might as well have at it...

OK, bad wording on my part. I will never tell someone not to clean a tension device, top or bottom. Simply adjusting it to be looser - which is more than likely the wrong way btw, wasn't going to fix the situation and might have made other issues (like the tension balance would be off when stitching)

Well, changing the bobbin tension didn't work, neither did jiggling the wheel. So I will be studying those videos very closely and will attempt to adjust the tension.

Too bad none of us live closer to each other! I do have a friend who is an engineer, and she is one of those people who will fix anything without hesitation. I may ask her to help me on this project, since she has a FW, plus she has dis-assembled many sewing machines and gotten them in good shape.

I just 'got' this. The tension release pin doesn't work. Just one question: Does it work when you push the foot lift up slightly more than normal (hold it up) as in hold up the lever and see if the thread is still tight.

After reading this whole thread and going back and reading the original post again, I'm wondering if it's not just an issue of making sure the take up lever is over the top of it's travel so the last stitch has finished. If that hasn't happened then the thread will still be tight because the hook hasn't finished it's travel for that stitch. Clear as mud?

Cari

I think Cari might be right. That's what I thought when I read the first post. On mine when I finish I rotate the handwheel towards me until the needle and thread arm are all the way up, and it makes a very subtle click. That's when I know that the stitch is done and the threads will pull smoothly out. Or I take up the foot and then rotate the wheel until the needle is out and the thread frees up. Same with all of the vertical bobbin machines I have, but I didn't know it was a thing before I started on vintage machines and I'd never seen it mentioned explicitly in the manuals.

The semi-vintage electronic Pfaff I use has a feature that does it automatically when you flip the foot lever up. It was creepy the first time I did it accidentally.

Yes this is true but the thread should still not pull out. The tension is off if it does that.

Miriam I was going by what she said about the top thread being hard to pull when she lifted the presser foot to remove the fabric. Nothing to do with tension, everything to do with the stitch not being fully formed.

Cari

Or the tension release pin not pushing the tension disks apart, which is what initially prompted the suggestion to look at the tensioner. It's less address ing tension as what's behind the tensioner, requiring the tensioner to be disassembled to get to. ;)

i agree it can be the position of the take up lever and the state of the stitch, buttheother bears evaluation too.

That's what I did on my older mechanical machine.

Agreed.

Cari

I agree with rotating the hand wheel so the the take up lever is in the correct position.

Seems like if the top tension assembly was the culprit, and was too tight even with the presser foot raised, that it would be too tight during sewing, and be noticeable in the stitch quality.

I guess I thought the thread was pulling out of the fabric. I misunderstood.