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Post by tracey on Sept 9, 2017 6:41:46 GMT
I think you probably know by now how much I enjoy FME. Reading a couple of blogs about this I notice they say to have the presser foot in the down position, do others have it up or down? Without getting my machine out and checking, I think I leave mine up. I guess the thickness of the felt would determine this too.
Also another tip to apparently stop thread snagging on the underneath, which I do not get anyway, is to bring the bobbin thread through to the top. Do others bother with this? I don't know how to do it but I could Youtube it.
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Post by jwugg on Sept 9, 2017 9:04:22 GMT
You've got to have the foot down or you don't get any tension, & will have huge loose loops from the bobbin. But if you've got the right foot then it won't really touch the fabric when down, unless the felt is very thick - as long as you have free motion ie the foot is not gripping the fabric, it'll be OK. Even if you sew without any foot on, you still have to lower the foot mechanism to engage tension.
I don't bother to bring up the bobbin thread, don't care too much about what the back looks like! I just snip off the top thread after stitching a couple of cm, to stop it getting tangled in with the stitching.
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Post by Shepherdess on Sept 9, 2017 11:41:01 GMT
on my machine the is a lever at the back you have to put in the down position.( or maybe it's up. I have to look each time) Then you put it down like you normally would but doesn't touch when the needle is in the up position. It goes down when the needle goes down. I was surprised to see it do that but it works. So I would say it depends on your machine
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Post by Pandagirl on Sept 9, 2017 14:26:55 GMT
I put down the foot and pull up the bobbin thread, otherwise I get a tangled mess. And on my machine it won't go with out the foot in the down position.
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Post by lyn on Sept 9, 2017 14:44:10 GMT
Here's my tuppence worth: Having the presser foot lever in the up position whilst stitching usually results in thread spaghetti and can jam the bobbin - the tension discs are free when the lever is up. I always pull the bobbin thread up before stitching because it could tangle underneath and snag, putting an abrupt stop to the free machining. p.s. the presser foot lever should always be up when you thread the machine. Your sewing machine may have a presser foot adjuster for different thicknesses of material - here's quite a good page to look at: info page
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Post by tracey on Sept 9, 2017 20:22:22 GMT
Thanks everyone for all the advice, a very interesting read.
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Post by koffipot on Sept 11, 2017 9:58:49 GMT
I use a closed ring darning foot as I don't have an open-fronted embroidery foot. Drop the dogs, presser foot down, thread up, adjust tension, which I find needs to be looser than normal, and go.
As Lyn says, if the presser foot is up then there isn't any tension on the thread, so you get huge loops.
I f it's a large, unwieldly piece then I sometimes use gloves with a rubbery texture, hands laid flat each side of the working area helps to move the fabric more easily. I do this method for free motion quilting too.
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Post by lyn on Sept 14, 2017 7:40:51 GMT
p.s. to my post above
If, like me, you have an ancient machine, there may not be a presser foot adjuster. I don't have one on my Bernina 801.
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Post by tracey on Sept 14, 2017 13:57:27 GMT
Well at the time of posting, without looking I could not remember if I sewed with the presser foot up or down. Upon checking, it seems I sew with it up, and all seems fine. I had a go with the lever down and felt the felt(!) did not glide around as freely, depending on the thickness of course. Anyway since Lyn's last post I have had a mooch with my machine and the end casing (needle end) opens to reveal an adjuster. I have been using it on 'darn' number 0 all this time. I know it is a case of 'if it isn't broke don't fix it', but if any of you think I should adjust this for better results please say. Here is a pic. www.dropbox.com/s/4aj8c30adh93zos/20170914_143938.jpg?dl=0
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Post by koffipot on Sept 14, 2017 14:03:32 GMT
Well at the time of posting, without looking I could not remember if I sewed with the presser foot up or down. Upon checking, it seems I sew with it up, and all seems fine. I had a go with the lever down and felt the felt(!) did not glide around as freely, depending on the thickness of course. Anyway since Lyn's last post I have had a mooch with my machine and the end casing (needle end) opens to reveal an adjuster. I have been using it on 'darn' number 0 all this time. I know it is a case of 'if it isn't broke don't fix it', but if any of you think I should adjust this for better results please say. Here is a pic. www.dropbox.com/s/4aj8c30adh93zos/20170914_143938.jpg?dl=0The only way is to try it.
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Post by tracey on Sept 14, 2017 14:08:57 GMT
Thanks Judith! yes I should have a play to see how it changes things.
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Post by lyn on Sept 14, 2017 15:11:19 GMT
Well you have a photo so that you can reset it to present, so what have you got to lose?
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Post by Pandagirl on Sept 14, 2017 15:48:33 GMT
My Pfaff recommends 0 for free motion. I think you're fine.
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Post by MTRuth on Sept 14, 2017 16:18:51 GMT
Cool, my machine doesn't have that setting. I think you're fine with what you're doing.
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Post by Shepherdess on Sept 15, 2017 16:45:56 GMT
Do you have a book for your machine? If Not you can usually find them on line. See what it recommends. My self I would try different settings and if I didn't like them I would put it back the way it is.
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