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Sue I know at least once when it happed to me I had sequenced the whole quilt and it messed up about 3/4 the way through. It’s like the tablet missed the stop command and the stopped after it made the single stitch at the beginning of the next row. The reason I was thinking heat is because I believe it happened a couple of times after I stopped for lunch and left the machine on and then it messed up when I came back an hour or so later. The first few times were before we had the ability to sequence the whole quilt. Nigel

I’m sure you meant Intelliquilter. Yes it happened to me several times but never did it consistently enough to diagnose. I sent my logs to Zoltan but they showed the machine working properly. I suspect it may have had something to do with the tablet getting hot as it seemed to happen after the tablet had been on for several hours but I’m not positive. When the tablet is cool I would blow some compressed air through the tablet vents and blow out the fan on the docking station. I’ve since sold my machine and retired. Nigel

Laura can probably tell you better but basically you must use the turn the flywheel manually to make a single stitch to pull up the bobbin thread. Then I would hold the tails away from the direction I am going to quilt and turn the machine on and make a couple of very short locking stitches and then quilt away. When you want to stop make a few short stitches as you are turning off the machine. Then bring the needle up manually move the head away a few inches, grab the top thread, move the head back to the last stitch, make a single stitch, move the head about an inch and pop up the bobbin thread hold both threads, move head away several inches and clip threads at quilt. Look at this video and you will get the idea, you just don’t have the single stitch or the automatic needle positioning. After a few tries it will become second nature. Nigel https://youtu.be/e1PCvBa6jsk

Loretta You can grab the thread above and below the pig tail and drag it in a circle around the inside of the guide. If it catches at all you have a groove. Loosen the screw and rotate the pig tail upside down and tighten back up. That will last for many months until you get replacements. They are inexpensive but the shipping isn’t so wait until you have a few other things you want from APQS. Nigel

Hi Loretta The U2 is a real workhorse and once you get it sorted out will give you many years of dependable service. You didn’t say what thread you are using but I would suggest using something like Superior So-Fine or Glide to start. Both are quite strong and work well with the high speed machines. Also look for a groove in the check spring and needle plate. Grab the needle bar and see if there is any play front to back or side to side, should be none. Remove the bobbin case, put your thumb on the centre pin of the hook and your first two fingers behind the hook and see if there is any play in and out, again should be none. Any of these issues are corrected simply and inexpensively. You probably could find casters for your table but I suspect you are on your own. You could also use furniture glides under the legs, that’s what we did on carpet and the machines were easy to move when needed. There are a couple of people on here that use U2 machines every day in their businesses. Pretty good for a machine that has been out of production for almost 20 years. Nigel

PJ This is probably the most common zipper system used on long arm machines. http://stores.longarmconnection.com/quick-zip-system-machine-set/ It looks like the zippers for a 14 foot machine would be about 144 inches. As long as the rails are in good shape (not nicked or dented) where the wheels touch that is good value. Any other service or repairs can be done by you at home for a reasonable cost. APQS encourages us to maintain and repair our machines at home and will provide excellent support. Nigel

If I had to guess I would expect it to happen when you stop and start but I’ve never tried one of these cases in any machine. What machine are you using this bobbin case in? Maybe you need a backlash spring in this case for the high speed of a commercial machine. Just my immediate thoughts Nigel

As always Cagey gives good advice. One more thing I would do is change the needle screw and hopefully that will stop the needle from falling out. If you don’t have one you can get a 4-40 screw from the hardware store. Nigel

I’ve sold our machines but I only remember one bumper installed at the rear of the carriage to stop the head hitting the levelling roller. The head will bump into the take up roller going the other way. The head won’t come off while the rollers are in place unless there is something different about a Bliss machine. Nigel

The main power fuse on a Lenni is 3.15 amps which is the equivalent of about 400 watts. You want a unit with zero delay and that is what dual conversion will give you. Not to say you can’t get zero delay without dual conversion. I’m not sure if the Lenni will tolerate a delay switching to a backup but I know the Millennium won’t. If you are quilting along and the power goes out there is an excellent chance the needle is in the fabric, you will tear the quilt. In my opinion buy the smallest dual conversion back up, you just need it to keep the machine running until you can stop moving. Just my two cents Nigel

Hi Nicole Properly adjusted the needle up/down will take about 1 second each direction so about 2 seconds for a complete stitch. If the machine is new I would wait for a month or two as it will get a little quicker as the machine breaks in. If you go to the APQS website and look under support you will find some service videos. There is one there for how to adjust needle up/down speed. Nigel

Bruce Do you realize this thread is seven years old and the original poster hasn’t been on this site since 2013? Nigel

Betty Ann Type hammock into the search box and you will be rewarded with pages to review. I think this one will probably give you some ideas. https://forum.apqs.com/topic/36592-tips-to-manage-batting-on-frame/?tab=comments#comment-502861 Nigel

You will be fine. It has nothing to do with stitch quality. Much easier adjustment than timing in my opinion. Nigel

Well done. It certainly cuts down on your loading time. Nigel

Maybe. The needle doesn’t stop at the exact top or bottom. The adjustment is made so the hook parks in a position that releases the thread after the stitch is made. If your bobbin thread is snapping when you want to tie off that is the usual indicator that you need to make a mag collar adjustment. The procedure was in one of my maintenance manuals (they went with my machines) but I don’t think it was in the owner’s manual. Best to send an email to APQS service and request the PDF file on the mag collar adjustment for your machine. Nigel

The common solution is to use curtain rods. I used masking tape on my rods so they didn’t scratch or catch on the leaders. Take a look at this post and you will understand how to fix your problem. https://forum.apqs.com/topic/43198-clamp-supports/?tab=comments#comment-550796 Nigel

Man quilter is Matt Sparrow. He had a blog for a few years and some videos under that name. It looks like the manquilter.com site has gone dormant but the Sparrow Quilt Company is still going strong. Here is a video that may be what you are looking for. Leader grips and red snappers are the same principle. https://youtu.be/yx5mXoHwvuw Nigel

Hi Loretta and welcome to the forum The most common places to check for thread shredding are the two pigtail guides above the needle. With a magnifying glass look at the inside of the guide were the thread touches. If you see a groove worn into the guide loosen the screw and turn the guide upside down and tighten the screw. This works until you get replacements. Also you can pinch the thread above and below the guide and drag the thread around the inside of the guide and if it catches you have a groove worn in it. Also Jim and Laura above have both been around for a while and you can take their advice to the bank. Nigel

You’re not likely to find many here that can answer your questions. This is predominantly an APQS forum although all are welcome. Kay above suggested trying the Pfaff group. The original poster hasn’t been here since she asked the question nine years ago. Nigel

We never used the channel locks when applying binding, we used the edge of the hopping foot as a guide. Also if someone was going to show or have the quilt judged we wouldn’t apply the binding. Nigel

I’m sure it will. The only exception I see is if the Lucy has the Bliss carriage and the Millie table has the pre Bliss rails. I don’t remember when the change over to Bliss rails became standard. As said above APQS will know. Nigel

Darlene You need to confirm it is a stitch regulator or skipped stitch problem. Are there holes in the fabric where the stitches look long, if so that is a skipped stitch problem. Stitch regulator is usually one direction only left-right or front-back, highly unlikely both at the same time. The likely problem for the stitch regulator is a sensor wheel out of adjustment or a cable not properly plugged in. We had a wire break in a cable right at the connector for one of the regulators years ago but I don’t think that is common. We found it by wiggling the wires to the regulator while trying to sew in that direction. Also which handles do you have mushroom buttons or single? Let us know what you find. Nigel

Which machine do you have and how old is it?