Miley Posted October 6, 2008 Report Share Posted October 6, 2008 Hello, I'm having problems with skipped stitches and breaking thread when I quilt 2 pieces of fleece with no batting. And when I put the needle down and up to pull the bobbin thread to the top, it doesn't always catch. I've done these fleece projects before but can't seem to pin down the problem this time. I've changed needles, adjusted the timing, lowered the hopping foot (down to the space of a business card), and lowered the needle bar... all to no avail. If anyone's had this problem, please let me know how you solved it. I recently moved to an area where there doesn't seem to be any local APQS-certified technicians to call on. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quilting Heidi Posted October 6, 2008 Report Share Posted October 6, 2008 I've not had that problem. My only suggestion would be that maybe you have a burr. The other thing I would try is loosening the sandwich. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PattyJo Posted October 6, 2008 Report Share Posted October 6, 2008 Another thing I just thought of is when you are ending a line of stitching and secure your threads, make sure that you leave a longer tail on the bobbin thread by moving the head away from you last stitch. This may solve the not catching the bobbin thread part of your problem. :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dixieqwv Posted October 6, 2008 Report Share Posted October 6, 2008 I've done lots of double fleece. I do keep the piece very loose on the machine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ffq-lar Posted October 6, 2008 Report Share Posted October 6, 2008 Perhaps your adjustment of the needle bar and hopping foot needs to be reversed. If your machine stitches OK on a regular sandwich of fabric and batting, I don't think a lowering of the hopping foot is a solution. If you are missing stitches the needle may be missing the hook as the assembly rotates. Investigate where the thread is breaking. If it is under the needle plate--check for burrs on the needle plate and the hook assembly. Above the needle plate--- check for burrs on the needle or the pigtail guides. I would lengthen the stitch and loosen the tension for fleece. I hope you have already solved your problems and all this is just an advisory! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramona-quilter Posted October 6, 2008 Report Share Posted October 6, 2008 Miley, I'm so sorry that you are having problems with skipped stitches and thread breaking. When I have that problem, it is usually due to excess lint/fuzz in the bobbin area and the piece is too tight on the rollers. You're not supposed to be able to bounce a quarter off the quilt. I have to raise/lower my hopping foot every time I attach my expanded base(it's a new one). I know that if my hopping foot is too low, I can hear it bang against the needle plate. Are you noticing any different noises? coming from your machine? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnCavanaugh Posted October 6, 2008 Report Share Posted October 6, 2008 Miley, I agree with Linda in that you may need to raise your foot as opposed to lowering it. As for the skipped stitches, that is most often caused by: 1. Needle flex 2. Encoder wheel slippage 3. Inaccurate timing. Since Polar Fleece is so thick, I would first suspect the needle flexing to be the culprit, especially if you are using a thicker thread. Try going up a size or two, to a 4.5 or 5.0 and see if that fixes the problem. Also check to make sure your encoder wheels are grabbing the larger wheels firmly. As a last resort, check the timing, especially the section in the book that refers to "hook clearance". When a gap exists between the needle and the hook, skipped stitches can be the result. The gap can be caused by inaccurate timing, but is more usually a sign of improper needle size or too rapid movements for the quilt sandwich type. Let us know how it goes! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Posted October 7, 2008 Report Share Posted October 7, 2008 Miley, what brand of needle are you using? I read on here that the machines are timed for Singer needles and some of the other brands are a little shorter? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miley Posted October 7, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 7, 2008 Thank you all for your helpful replies. I do generally keep the fabric pretty loose when dealing with fleece and minkee. I just ordered some 4.0 needles to see if that helps. I hope so because I'd rather not mess with the timing again since it's running so well on my regular cotton quilts. I'll let you know how it goes! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miley Posted October 8, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 8, 2008 Yay! It's fixed! It wound up being the hook assembly. When I ordered the needles I also ordered a new hook assembly since the old one was looking rather ragged, and with the new one in, my Millie is running like new! Believe it or not, the old needles actually are working better than the new, 4.5s I'd ordered... but I'll definitely hang on to the new ones for the next time I get a denim quilt! Thanks again so much for all of your helpful suggestions!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RitaR Posted October 8, 2008 Report Share Posted October 8, 2008 Oh Miley, I've not had anything to contribute to help you but I'm sure tickled you have the milli running like a top again.. and are so excited about it.. Can't say as I blame you. Congrats.. and please don't be a stranger on here, we'd like to hear how you are doing and see some picts of your quilts too.. we all share, even though I'm not great at it.. I'll share, and others share their greats.. some real beauties.. RitaR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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