Mary Beth Posted February 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2008 Jen, the 600 & 700 series does the chainstitch. Just make sure it has all the attachments. There is a special disc that covers the bobbin area, and a special throat plate, and a little thread guide. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudyLee Posted February 28, 2008 Report Share Posted February 28, 2008 Wow, thanks Jess for the information on the staplers. I just found out my old timer stapler has a flare plate on it too, so I tested it on fabric and it works great. I\'m going to try stapling my next quilt. There are other sewing machines that do a chain stitch besides the Touch and Sew Singers. Wilcox and Gibbs had a chain stitch machine and Singer had a model 24 that did a chain stitch. They are both vintage machines, but are still findable. They are cute too. I have a picture of the Wilcox and Gibbs chainstitcher on my picturetrail account if you want to see what it looks like. I have pictures of a top I made and used a decorative chainstitch on too. Here\'s a link: http://tinyurl.com/2dvxcd or www.picturetrail.com/judyz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mary Beth Posted February 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2008 Willcox and Gibbs has been going for well over $250 on ebay...one went for $451. Singer T&S can be had for about $50. I love Willcox and Gibbs and have been watching for it everywhere I go, I\'m going to get it cheap...I just know it!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mary Beth Posted February 28, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2008 Judy, I just checked out that Singer model 24, very unique!I love those old machines!! You have some great machines by the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudyLee Posted February 28, 2008 Report Share Posted February 28, 2008 Thanks, but be aware, once you start collecting these old machines, they start finding you, everywhere, LOL. Judy Z Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwltnldy Posted February 28, 2008 Report Share Posted February 28, 2008 Ok, I use zippers ALL the time. When I turn a quilt, I just pin it and let the zippers roll around the rollers and I\'ve never had a problem. I try to pin several quilts at one time, then in the closet they go until it\'s time to just zip \'em on, quilt, then zip \'em off. I trim the zipper sides off first, then turn to trim the rest. Sometimes I even clip and tear the strip of fabric that is holding the zipper when I\'m in a hurry. Obviously, you still have to remove the pins at some point. I would never in a million years staple them on. The trick to getting the zippers on straight is to make sure your backing is squared up and you have accurately found the middle of the side so you can get the zippers on correctly. Right now I have 5 quilts and am in the process of pinning them. It is so nice to have that part out of the way. You can even just find the centers, put the first pin in and sit by the TV pinning. I also don\'t always do zippers on the top. I do full floats sometimes. It just depends on how straight the quilt top is. If it is wonky or has problems with wavy borders, I don\'t pin, cuz it don\'t work out!! Robin in Vista, CA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewfriendly Posted February 28, 2008 Report Share Posted February 28, 2008 A lot of great info ladies. I bought zippers even before my Lenni arrived. Been thinking about getting them on the leaders. I will definatly go out and find grosgrain ribbon firts. I love the chainstich idea. I just happen to have a pretty treadle sewing machine I have never used except to see that it works. I bought it because it was so pretty, lots of carvings. Talk about the past shaking hands with the future. What a cool concept!!!! Christi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenMcManus Posted February 29, 2008 Report Share Posted February 29, 2008 Interesting.... I\'ve been thinking about zippers, and then read Robin\'s bit about not zippering the top if it\'s not square or has wavy borders. Hmmmm. I prefer a partial float. Do many people zipper their tops? I find that a lot of the tops I get are a bit off. Jen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcck00 Posted February 29, 2008 Report Share Posted February 29, 2008 I guess I\'m a little confused about the terminology here... What is the difference between a full float and a partial float? I have zippers, but I only attach them to the backing. After zipping on the back, I lay the batting on top, and do a straight stitch (channel locked) across the top of the batting. Then I use that line of stitching as a guide to make sure the top goes on straight. Finally, I do a basting stitch starting from the middle and stitching out to the sides to secure the top. I let the top and batting hang down freely. I pin the sides as the quilt is advanced. So, am I doing a partial float or a full float? For those of you who use zippers on the top and the backing, where do you attach the top\'s zipper? It\'s getting late, and I think I\'m starting to confuse myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mary Beth Posted February 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 29, 2008 Cathy, If you are not loading your top onto the roller designated for the top, but instead letting it hang down with the batting, then you are doing a full float. A partial float, is what I do, is attaching the zipper from the roller designated for the top to the bottom edge of the quilt top. Then I baste across the top, lining it up as you do, and I take a long basting stitch down the sides as I go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grammie Posted February 29, 2008 Report Share Posted February 29, 2008 Hi All, Mary Beth I also pin using corsage pins. I know in advance that I\'m going to turn the quilt so I pre mark all Centers on all sides. I usually will cut backing so that is is exactly 4 to 5 inches larger on ALL sides when I\'m doing this and I baste the sides of the first loading before removing from the rollers to turn. I then baste the top and bottom before proceeding to quilt the borders. I roll to the bottom and then back up to top. This gets the quilt all nice and squared on the machine before I begin to quilt the two borders. Rolling back and forth to get it really nice. I haven\'t tried the machine basting but I don\'t find pinning to take long at all and I consider it an opportunity to sit a while and relax with a snack. Well spent time for myself in a day that is spent standing at the machine for hours. So I don\'t consider it a waste of time. It is sometimes the only break I get so "IT\'s a good thing". I am able to think about the quilting process during this time and you wouldn\'t believe how many times I changed my mind on what to do during the moment of thinking. lololol Best Wishes, Grammie Tammie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcck00 Posted February 29, 2008 Report Share Posted February 29, 2008 Mary Beth, That makes sense to me. I was overthinking things again. Thanks for explaining the difference! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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