Janette Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Can any of you mechanically minded people out there help at all please? I have had alot of needles break lately, after a couple of years of only 1 or 2 breaks, I have had three breaks in the space of 3 weeks and damaged 3 customer quilts .... usually a once in a blue moon occurence, but 3 times..... I am thinking there may be something wrong somewhere. Anyway, I had already lowered my hopping foot, so after checking in the manual I checked the needle bar which I have never checked, and I suppose it did appear to be a little twisted around, so I adjusted it, and made sure I could only see the eye of the needle in the lowest position, so am hoping that this will help so fingers crossed this will help. So are there any other mechanical reasons for needle breakage that I should check if this doesn't help? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 email the apqs team, Dawn can usually help troubleshoot by email, she has helped me in the past. Corey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kay Anderson Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 One time I had this problem on my Gammill, the problem turned out to be the needle insertion (human error). Somehow I hadn't pushed the needle up far enough and it was hitting the hook. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lib Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Like Corey said, email or phone the APQS team. I had an awful time with my top thread looping around my needle and Mark C. was such a dear and eventually we got the problem fixed. Lib Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janette Posted April 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Thanks, I have emailed Dawn, and she has got back to me already with some things to check out for. Thanks Dawn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewlinzi Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 How is it going, Janette? Mark stripped down Ferret's machine last year because of this, bound to be a fixable reason... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy G Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 could be a bad batch of needles...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janette Posted April 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 Well after reading Dawns advice and checking for needle bar play and hook assembly play, I think I had a bit of needle bar play and adjusted that I didn't think I had any hook assembly play (except for the black plastic thing has a little play side to side) I did find some scratches with the magnifying glass on the hook assembly near to the two screws, but don't have the emery cloth to polish it out - am not sure it would polish out anyway as it was quite scratched, although not having thread breaks. So I loaded up a quilt and about 5 minutes in another needle breaks, I recheck the needle bar and decide it may be a little low as I can see a little more than just the top of the eye of the needle, so I higher it a little and continue with the quilt but slower (as it had a few bulky seams being hand pieced and not pressed too well - beginners quilt) and quilted in a slower than normal way to the end, and didn't have any more breaks. I am just a little less confident now after damaging three quilts in as many weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janette Posted April 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 Originally posted by Tracy G could be a bad batch of needles...... mm I thought the same Tracy, as two needles came out of the same pack, but the third and fourth were from another pack. I think it more likely to be something to do with my hook assembly.... worse luck as I don't fancy taking it out and replacing it in a hurry..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bekah Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Janette, I hope your problem has been fixed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltingplace Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 HAVE YOU CHECKED TO SEE IF YOUR BOBBIN IS WOUND TOO TIGHT BY LAYING IT ON A FLAT SURFACE AND CHECKING THE HEIGHT? This has happened to me if I put too much tension on the thread while winding or GD has helped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathG Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Janette, I know you said you finished your last quilt ok, but I am just wondering if you can remember making any changes to Lenni before the needles started to break. I'm sure that you have already checked this, but I will ask anyway:) when you altered the needle bar height, did you check to make sure the needle is still go through the hole in the needle plate is in the centre. I just remember the first time I altered mine it was easy to have the foot slightly of centre. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janette Posted April 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 I will check that too Kath, thanks - although I was having needle breakage before and after the adjustment, although none so far after my second adjustment where I highered it slightly. I am keeping my fingers crossed and quilting slower. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferret Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 MIne went through a phase of this. About 300 needles worth over a few months, then as suddenly as it started it stopped. Mark did indeed strip mine down to try and resolve it but it broke them even more frequently after the work. Never got to the bottom of it. Hopefully yours will get bored of it sooner than mine did. Ferret Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janette Posted April 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 That is alot of needles Ferret.... hopefully mine won't be like that .... 4 needles in 3 weeks is not bad in the scheme of things then. I wonder what your problem had been. Did you damage any quilts when you had the problem?? and if so, what was your fix remedy? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimerickson Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Janette: If your needle bar is set too low, the needle will hit the hook just before the space that opens up to allow for needle penetration. I had mine wrong and I would break needles every once in a while (when the needle was flexed to the right). Check your hook assembly for scratches. Mine had scratches just before the "V" that provides room for the needle. If you have scratches there, the low bar is what caused the break. Be sure you polish off the scratches because they can cause thread breakage. Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janette Posted April 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Thanks Jim, yes I think that may have been my problem, and hopefully now fixed, as I had found a little play in the needle bar, adjusted it a bit higher now. I am not getting thread breaks so don't think any scratches are in places where the thread path goes, but I do have scratches on top of the hook assembly near the two screws towards the V. I am keeping my fingers crossed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferret Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 I got very good at stopping very quickly I only damaged one and it was such a small patch a couple of lines of quilting hid it completely. Sorry. Ferret Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimerickson Posted April 29, 2012 Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Janette: The spool thread loops around the hook when the machine makes a stitch. so it will drag over the hook assembly. Run you fingernail over the scratches. If you can feel them, you should polish them out. It's easy to do. Just use some fine emery cloth, a hard sharpening stone, or a fine emery board. Rub it over the damaged area, and check with your fingernail again. Continuing doing this til you can't feel the scratches any more. Good luck. Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janette Posted April 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2012 Originally posted by Ferret I got very good at stopping very quickly I only damaged one and it was such a small patch a couple of lines of quilting hid it completely. Sorry. Ferret Glad you got quick at stopping with over 300 needle breaks.... you must have been tearing your hair out. I have damaged three quilts about a cm of frayed /teared fabric on thte top and on the backing.. they have not been too noticible on the top, but on plain backings on two of them it was pretty noticible, so I fused a small square of backing fabric over the hole and then quilted back over... lucky for me my customers have been understanding and lucky for me it has always been at a bulky point in their quilt tops.... so not entirely my fault.... The fourth one I was lucky enough to stop the needle fast enough and no damage done.... Thanks Jim for the advice on polishing out too. I will try and get that done tomorrow.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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