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Newbie or wheels...who is the problem?


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Hi all..

I'm getting a little discouraged and could use some more imput if anyone has the time. I have a new Millennium...it's been in my basement since June and I am still making no progress. I feel like the wheels aren't working right but since I have no experience I just don't know.

I have adjusted and adjusted them so I have a gap between the wheel and rail about the thickness of two business cards. I have cleaned the rails, cleaned the wheels, checked the table for level and square...and have done all of this more than once.

In the video, Dawn says the wheels should turn easily (I think her word was easily) if you hold the machine head in place and turn them with your hand...mine are very tight. Then the other thing I've read is that if you give the machine a little push it should travel on it's own almost to the other end of the table...mine will go a foot maybe.

I called Amy last week and she sent me information for adjusting, leveling, and squaring, I e-mailed her back on Tuesday that all is ok there but it's still not working, and I'm still waiting for a reply.

I guess what I need to know is, should I pursue the help or is it just a matter of me practicing more and getting used to the machine. I'm willing to put in the time but I just feel like the machine is fighting me all the time....maybe it's not, maybe it's all me....I just don't know.

Any input would be greatly appreciated and if any of you need help making feathers that look like ice cubes, let me know...I am the expert!

Sorry this is so long....Cindy

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Cindy,

Who is your local Sales Rep? Perhaps he or she could come to your home and check the wheels for you.

Not knowing whether it's a machine issue or a user issue is very frustrating, but hang in there, we're all here to help as much as we can!

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Cindy,

OK so lets looks at this. You say if you give it a push it only travels a foot. Do you have a 14ft table? If so check the brackets underneath. When I first got mine I had all kinds of problems and the table was level, etc but it turned out that my brackets were not right. I had to lower mine. Then give the machine another push and see what happens. Also check your wheels to see if any of them have grease coming out of them. You might just have a bad one. Also another thing to check, does the machine glide from back to front or do you experience the same issue side to side as you do front to back. If it is a wheel or table problem that shoudl help you figure it out. If it is back to front then it is the carriage or wheels on the machine, if it is side to side then it is the table or the wheels on the table. The best thing is to have your local rep come if you can. If you don't have one near you like many of us then you'll have to do the trouble shooting. You can also call Dave Jones (Deloa Jones hubby who is fantastic at solving issues) to see if he'll be in your area. Hang in there.

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Have you called the people at Bayside Quilting...they are the closest dealer to you....is this where you got it?

You also have Darlene in Maple Valley that is close...If you didn't get your machine from either of these I would still call them, and if either they are your dealer, I would pester them till they get it right or a reason why they won't or can't help you.

Operator error does happen, but you still need some direction in what you are or aren't doing to know.

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Hi Cindy

It sounds as though you have your wheels set too tight.

There should be an airgap between the edge of the table and the top inside curve of the wheel AND all four wheels attached to the carriage should be adjusted so that the airgap is the same for each wheel. Very ocassionally you might need to add a washer to get them right.

Use the clock settings in the manual as a guide on where to start making the finer adjustments from.

If all the wheels look like they are set correctly it could be your table set up. Always make sure tht your table is set up correctly before making wheel adjustments.

Good luck

sue in australia

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Hi Cindy, the answer to you questions is it is both. I had a problem with my wheels in one spot. I loosened the cross tubes and turned them slightly. Not all of them just the ones that were to tight. Now my machine glides along. The wheels took me a long to get right. If there too tight you cannot make circles if there to loose no circles. I have mine set so I can wiggle my machine head a bit. I like them loose better that to tight. The second part of you post talks about not being able to make circles. You are not alone. It took me a long time before I could even do feathers. practice and loosen up on the handle bars and relax. Have a half glass of wine or play some nice music. You will find your groove.

Nora

Millennium

Washougal WA

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Bonnie and Barb...I got my machine at Bayside, I've been hesitant to ask for someone to come look at it because I've been unemployed for a few months and would really like to work this out on my own...trying to save those dollars for an even rainier day! I will call though if I have to.

Heidi...The machine goes easier front to back, I really feel like the wheels on the table are the problem. What do you mean about the brackets on the table...are you talking about the cylinders that go between the rails? I have a 12 foot table. I'm thinking I may lower the center truss just slightly like Kristina suggested. It is level now but I do feel some resistance when I work right in the center of the table.

Sue...I do have an air gap between the wheels and rails...I can fit two business cards in there but it's tight...maybe I'll try for a little more room.

Nora...I'm on my way downstairs to check out all of this and I'll check for wiggling...that sounds exactly like what I need! I've gotten a lot of good advice from these forums so far...I now have a good supply of chocolate down there, have the tunes, I'm trying to hold off on the wine....may not be a good match for my mood at the moment. Then again...maybe it maybe it would. Hmmm...

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Cindy,

OK so we have a start. It was the truss I was referring too. I didn't think the 12ft table had them but if you do and it is harder at the middle I'll bet bucks that is part of your problem. The cylinders may be an issue as well.

OK on the cams you can turn half a turn to go as loose as it will go or as tight as it will go. Going back that will only change the heighth of the wheel but it can't get any tighter or looser. I hope that makes sense. make sure that both cams are in the same location. Watch the gap between the middle of the wheel (the concave part) and the rail. You will see that when you turn the cam that will go closer or further away from the rail. If it is too tight it might not feel like it rolls as well. Go down the length of the table and measure from side to side to see if it is off at all.

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Hi Cindy--I'm in Olympia. If you get lethally desperate, I can entice Dennis into a visit to help get you set. (He and my son set up my table, so I am no help there!!) If you bought from Bayside, Ernie may not charge very much for a house-call, even if he didn't set up your machine for you--you should get some support for the purchase, IMHO. He traveled and installed Edgeriders for someone locally and charged only $30.

Also--with Innovations in two weeks in Tacoma, whoever is in the APQS booth (Amy I bet) could get you headed in the right direction.

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Cindy,

If you are standing at the front of your machine and looking down at the adjusting "cams" with the hole in the top. You see that the hole is off centered so you want to focus on the narrow side from the edge of the hole to the edge of the bolt head or "cam". You can put a wrench on that cam and rotate it making the wheels go closer or further away from the table rails. I like to have them both set at about 10 o'clock when looking down from the front. 12 o'clock is up towards the rails and 6 o'clock would be down away from the rails. 12 being as tight as you can go and 6 being as loose as you can go. So.... let's try the 10 o'clock setting and see what you get. You might have to loosen the gold bolt that is comming from under the black carriage wheel to turn the cam on top, but then don't forget to retighten that gold bolt again to hold everything back in place! :) Good luck with it and let us know if you need anything else!!

Take care,

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Cindy,

Try what Mark is telling you to do. Whenever my machine is acting stiff do to the wheels that hug the table (not the carriage wheels) my problem has always been because of the fine tuning of the cams (the nuts with the off set holes that Mark is talking about) they really need to be identical to each other for a smooth ride.

Good luck

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Mark: I did what you suggested, the bolt on the right was SO tight I had to loosen the gold bolt..it was really tight too and when it finally moved I heard something pop...scared me but now that wheel seems to turn freely. The one on the left still doesn't, I tried to get it to pop too but it doesn't want to. I think this is the reason I am so concerned with the wheels...they just don't seem to want to rotate. The one that popped is better now but the other one is really hard to turn with my hand. Still doesn't stitch too well, but I know that has at least something to do with the operator.

Linda: If I don't make some progress here soon I may call Ernie and see what he can do. Do you and Dennis plan on going to the Puyallup Fair.....I live very close to the fairgounds....

Heidi and Kristina: I am going to lower the center of the table just a fraction of an inch...when I put the level on it, it is right on but there is definitely some resistance there. When I worked on it today I stopped and looked as soon as I felt the resistance, once was when the front wheel was exactly at the center and the next time the back wheel was at the center so I know there is an issue there. I will double check (for the third time!) the distance between those cylinders too.

Well, I believe it is 5:00 somewhere, I'm going to take Nora up on the glass of wine...

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When I have to loosen the wheels I use a wrench on top and bottom. Lefty loosey, righty tighty. That popping sound you heard was probably just the bolt releasing. Keep at it to get that bold loose. You might want to try a socket wrench on the gold bolt t to get it loose. When the gold bolt is all the way tight you won't be able to move the upper cam.

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