Ruby Tuesday

Perhaps i'm just not destined to draw with my machine!
It is now stitching fine,thanks for the hel and advice )

So i thought 'this is it!' with the presser foot removed and in the up position and smoothed off feed dogs I adjusted the stitch length and had a go at a few curly lines... back to square one, bobbn thread is no where to be seen.

Please does anyone know what else i need to do in order to be able to draw with my 99k?

Mickey2

The 99K uses a flat side neeedle and it threads from the left to right. Needle goes in with the flat side to the right. You can't use other type needles, it has to be 130/705 type needle (HAx1 or 15x1), it's the regular for domestic models.

If you aren't used to the type of machine you can in theory mess up threading route of the top thread; it goes from the spool pin, to a tiny hook, down to the two disks in the tensioner, then (!) to the left is a sort of hook with a hole, thread goes through it and up to the lifter arm, to the guide in side plate and needle bar.

Remember to put the bobbin in the correct way from which it is wound, for the thread to stay in place. When everything is set right it should behave.

I'm glad this thread turned up, my 99k very likely needs a fine tuning in the bobbin area.

Mickey2

There are a few factors that help silence a model 99 quite a bit. Sewing regular fabrics on medium speed should not be noisy at all, top speeds will accelerate noise levels.

Check the oil points on top of the body with a tooth pick, they can be clogged up by decades of dirt and grime. Oil will not reach where it should go until it's cleaned out. It can get tedious to read it all the time but spending a bit of time cleaning and oiling everywere is a must. Don't forget the bobbin case and race, it makes a bit difference on this model.

The factor that's often forgotten is under the base of the machine. If it's fitted in a wooden case make sure there are felt under there. I have placed a lot of sturdy furniture felt under the base of mine and it helps keeping the machine stable while sewing. Place it on a sturdy table too if possible. Singer used to sell rubber mats for use under portable models, but a sturdy thick piece of felt does the same trick. I'm not sure what kind of feet my 99K had originally, there's only a screw left in each corner, but I suspect rubber or felt. It should not be a noisy model. I have the old version with the knob stitch length adjuster.

Ruby Tuesday

ok, thank you, it's stitching well now.
fngers crossed I'll be able to have a go at drawing with it now

Mrs. SewNSew

I am guessing that by "drawing" you mean free motion. I am not sure about using no foot, most people get a hopping foot for the machine to use. I know that you DO have to have the presser foot lowered-not in the up position, or your tension device will not work and you don't get proper tension on your thread. You can lower the feed dogs or cover them, if your machine doesn't have that option. Generally you set the stitch length at 0 but I am not even sure that matters since the feed dogs are not feeding the fabric, it's how fast you run the motor vs move the fabric that will determine your stitch length.

Mickey2

There are feed dog covers for model 99, sincey they can't be lowered.

ArchaicArcane

OK, so to reiterate - The needle must be oriented correctly for the machine. Steve gave some great tips on this. I'll add that on most "modern" (as in probably early 1900s to now) the last thread guide is also a clue. It will pull the thread to the side where the needle needs to thread from. Most of the most common domestic machines of the same era will take a needle with a flat on the shank and that flat will be oriented to the opposite side of the last needle guide.

Needle in wrong is probably the most common reason for skipped stitches. Especially when this is coupled with threading the needle from the wrong direction.

Now, you CAN use a needle with a round shank IF it has the same other specifications of the proper needle. It must place the eye of the needle in exactly the same spot as the 130/705N or HAx1 or 15x1 needle. It really is simpler to just use the proper needle, since in this case it's the most common needle you will find or buy.

If you're having loops under the fabric, this is almost always top tension. One of 3 things has likely happened.
1. The machine is threaded wrong
2. In relation to the first point, the thread is not properly into the tension disks
3. I think this is most likely in your case - as Christy mentions - the presser foot lever is still up. Once we take the foot off, our perspective seems to change and we tend to leave it up by accident when Free motion quilting. The presser foot lever also affects the tension disks. If you leave it up, the tension disks are not putting tension on the thread and thread flies off the spool and leaves huge loops under the fabric. This will also cause skipped stitches because that loop that Steve mentioned earlier is of the wrong size, or it's so big it droops or flags and the hook tip can't catch it.

As for a darning foot vs "footless" stitching - to stitch without a foot, you probably need your fabric hooped. This is how my Singer user manuals have read whenever I've looked it up. The fabric needs to be taut and kept from flagging - which can cause skipped stitches. If you stitch with a darning foot, no hoop is needed. With a darning foot is way easier - I've tried both and stuck with the darning foot way of doing it.

The feed doesn't drop on the 99, so as Christy says - just put the feed to 0 and go. Many people - even Leah Day - don't lower (even on machines that do lower) or cover their dogs and just set their stitch length to zero.

Cari-in-Oly

If you don't want to use a foot on the machine when you're thread painting, try using a darning spring. You need something, some kind of foot or spring to hold the fabric in place as the needle starts to rise, otherwise you'll get what's called flagging that causes skipped stitches.

Cari

Edit- I see Tammi beat me to it.

ArchaicArcane

No problem. I love having backup.

Further to what Cari mentioned, this is what a spring needle looks like:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]533468[/ATTACH]

Sorry about the clarity - not one of my better shots.

Cari-in-Oly

That's an idea too, but I was talking about a darning spring, it's the spring without the needle. The ones I have came with a few of my Brother machines but they'll fit any low shank machine.

Cari