verylazydaisy Posted December 18, 2009 Report Share Posted December 18, 2009 Hi all, I have a used ultimate I. A friend came over, showed me how to thread it, oil it, all that jazz.. I quilted two quilts and on the third one I am having fits! I'm just stippling so far, nothing fancy.. it was going great, and I can't imagine what I did that made it start acting crazy. I hope someone can tell me what to check? I'll be sewing along, and the stitches look great.. So good in fact that there's black thread on the back and gold on the top and neither shows through to the opposite side, then every 10 inches or so, there's a small patch, less than 10 stitches, in a row, that is so loose, the gold shows big loops on the back. What am I doing wrong? I have re-threaded, changed the needles, even changed the spool of thread.. and it's still doing it. I'm just about to pull it off and finish it on my regular machine.. at this point I can quilt things faster that way.. Unfortunately my aunt needs this for a gift for her husband by Christmas, and I put it ahead of the gifts I was doing myself.. *sigh* When will I ever learn.. thanks in advance for any advice you can offer. Daisy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
witha'K'quilting Posted December 18, 2009 Report Share Posted December 18, 2009 Is the bobbin in backwards? It should turn clockwise as you pull the thread off of it. This can cause the thread loops you are describing. Have you tried unthreading the top thread and re-threading? Maybe it jumped out of a guide somewhere or is caught in something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted December 18, 2009 Report Share Posted December 18, 2009 Daisy, Make sure that the 3 hole thread guide just above the tension control is pointing at 8 o'clock. This will hold the thread into the tension disks as you are sewing otherwise the thread may be slipping in and out of the tension disks causing your tension to change on the fly like that. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verylazydaisy Posted December 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 Well I tried both of these suggestions, and it only got worse.. LOL Now its looping EVERY stitch. I fear that my tension just went OUT completely. Is that even possible.. SIGH.. I've pulled the quilt off and finished it on my domestic machine, and put away the tops I was planning to "whip into quilts" this weekend. Ugh, so depressing. I'm thinking I may not have the patience to deal with this, and may stick to my free motion work on my little machine, and sell this longarm. And I was SOO excited.. bah! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnie Posted December 20, 2009 Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 Yes,sometimes it happens, but it might be timing more than tension. You said it's a used machine. But was it in perfect timing when you bought it? By hitting a seam or another hard object it could jump. If things weren't tight when you moved it and during reset up. This hobby...business can be a wild trip, but you need to not give up when things get rough. If we did that our little family here would be pretty small. It comes with trial and error and a bucket full of patiences, and a whole lot of stuborn thoughts of your bigger than the machine and you are not going to let it win the battle. So my best suggestion is get back in the saddle and not let it win. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted December 21, 2009 Report Share Posted December 21, 2009 It sounds to me like you still need to tighten your upper tension. You should be able to tighten until the top thread breaks and then back it off a little and see what your stitches look like. This should get rid of the loops and draw up the threads on the back. If all else fails, don't hesitate to call in and speak with Amy or Christy at 800-426-7233. Good luck!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smorris Posted December 22, 2009 Report Share Posted December 22, 2009 OK Daisy, don't give up!!!! Assuming your friend threaded it up correctly, when you make the adjustment to the tensioner, do you know that unlike a domestic sewing machine where you turn the tension knob in tiny movements, like 5 minutes on the clock, with a longarm you need to turn that tension at least a half turn, ie, 12 o clock to 6 oclock before you will notice any difference in the tension of the thread going through the needle? I'd tighten the tension to where you can see the needle tip move a little, then back that tension off half a turn and see what difference that makes. Do the test with polyester thread if you can instead of metallic gold and when you have the poly doing pretty stitches, put the gold on and loosen your tensioner by half a turn, if the thread breaks, loosen a little more. Are you using the needles that APQS recommend. They used to be Singer MR4 now the brand is Gros Bekert. Call the factory to get the exact needle size and profile, this is so important in creating beautiful stitches. Good luck sue in australia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verylazydaisy Posted December 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 23, 2009 Ok.. no worries! I'm definitely NOT giving up. I really want to make this work. I knew going into this, that it wouldn't be an overnight success and it takes time to become good at it. But, I NEVER knew that about the tensioner.. I was taking tiny little nudges instead of TURNS.. I am gonna try a thorough cleaning with the WD40 and then oiling, and then I'll give the sewing another go.. THanks everyone! this forum is the best! I learn something new every time I login. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verylazydaisy Posted December 23, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 23, 2009 Oh I have another question for Kristina... About the bobbin turning clockwise.. is that as the open face of it is towards me, as in I can see more of the bobbin and not just the case.. Or looking at is from the other side? Clear as mud? lol... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltmonkey Posted December 23, 2009 Report Share Posted December 23, 2009 As you are looking at the bobbin in the bobbin case in your hand facing you, pull the thread (thread is inserted in slot where the tension spring spring is) and if the bobbin turns clockwise you are good to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnie Posted December 23, 2009 Report Share Posted December 23, 2009 Not Kristina, but yes you should be looking at the back which would be the whole bobbin not the case. The front of the unit is what you see when in the hook assembly the back would be when you take it out and turn it over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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