Bobbin out of control

[cathyh]

I am almost done with a quilt and ran out of my last bobbin so I wound one more.  I used one of the ones I had just emptied.  I am working in manual mode, and about 12" into my stitching the bobbin thread broke.  When I took it out it looked like this:

 

I took off quite a bit of thread, I figured I had wound too much on the bobbin (issues with my turbo winder - for another topic!).  Now the bobbin is about 2/3 full and I put it back in.  another 10-12", and another break.  This bobbin looked like this (sorry this photo is alittle out of focus:

 

So I emptied down to well wound part (another huge amount of thread on the floor   ).  Now I changed bobbin cases and was able to finish the border.  I have one more border to go, and just thought I'd ask if anyone knows the real issue here.  I am hoping it's just thread devils somewhere....

 

 

These pictures are small, I hope you all can see them!

[mestuart]

That is so frustrating.  Was your thread in the tension disc when you were winding the bobbin.  sometimes they[re just out and are just on top of the disc's but not "in" them. 

Wish I knew a definite answer for you.  I know that overwinding will cause grief.

[Busy Quilting]

Is the thread really spongy in the bobbin.

It looks like it is being wound very loosely. Has it jumped out of the tension discs on the turbo winder?

 

Is the bobbin brake spring inside the bobbin case missing?

[cathyh]

Thanks so much for the suggestions.

The looseness in the pictures was after I used the bobbin.

The bobbin wound well, I just had my usual problem of needing to give it alittle "help" to make it wind evenly from one side to the other. It was nice and firm, but too much thread on one side, outside edge, right up to the edge of the bobbin. The check spring was in, same one I had been using the last five bobbins.

I changed the case and had no more trouble with the rest of the quilt ( will post a picture soon) so now I am wondering if the too full bobbin tweaked the check spring.

Is this possible?

[ffq-lar]

I was going to "ditto" all the above suggestions!

I also have to babysit my turbo winder to get a good bobbin. The first photo looks like your check spring didn't check. That unspooling means the bobbin didn't stop when you did.

And it looks like you're problem solved itself. That is sometimes more frustrating than anything else. When there's no definitive reason for the mess so you can know what to do to fix it the next time!

[DawnCavanaugh]

Cathy,

 

Sounds like things are back in control again after switching to a new bobbin case. Your brake spring wasn't doing its job, or the tension finger on the outer edge of the case had an issue and it didn't have enough pressure on the thread. As for your turbo winder, to adjust how evenly the thread winds on the bobbin, you'll need to adjust the eye of the thread guide hole on the right side of the tensioner to center it better in the bobbin. If the thread is winding too high close to the winder housing, bend that thread guide eye slightly outward away from the winder housing. Conversely, if it's winding too high on the outer edge of the bobbin, push the eye back toward the winder housing again.

 

That thread looks like it might be Glide thread, which is pretty slippery in the bobbin. Definitely avoid filling the bobbin completely to the outer edge, and tighten the tension on the winder if necessary to keep the bobbin thread firm on the bobbin.  Hope that helps a little.