Here is a message I received from Cheryl in Oz about her embroidery machine. Her sight is now so poor that she finds even reading e-mails difficult. She stopped reading the group when she could no longer see the messages.
'As I am not reading the group any more I am not sure if this would be of interest. Please pass on if you think so.
My Janome 11000 embroidery machine has been giving me a lot of trouble for a long time, and finally flipped the bobbin out and I put a titanium needle right through the shuttle assembly. Long trip to the dealer and wait for parts, then my friend in the shop took it home to test before bringing it back to me. Ran it for three hours on VERY dense stitching designs. Everything was perfect.
Brought it back to me on the weekend and I immediately stitched out a small design. It purred!
Then we decided to test out a larger design because we both wanted to see what it (the design) looked like. Machine jammed 10minutes into stitching. Much muttering, machine was packed back into her car to go back for a third round of repairs. I was just thankful she was using it, not me.
Now when I send a machine for service I send my needles, bobbins, bobbin thread and top thread so it can be tested accurately. So we both assumed the problem was mechanical as the machine had been stitching perfectly for a while. I use Organ needles and only genuine Janome bobbins. I use King Star top thread (more on that later). And I use Bottom Line bobbin thread.
It turns out that after much investigation BL is NOT suitable for top loading embroidery machines. Each time my machine has been repaired the tech cleans it and gives it a light spray of silicone. The silicone was allowing the BL to run freely for about three hours operation. But when the silicone wore off, the problems always came back.
It also transpires that KS is an industrial thread repackaged on smaller cones for the domestic market. Although it is offered for use on all domestic machines it has a different twist to domestic threads such as R-A. Janome Australia advised that this would ultimately produce wear problems on the top tension dials.
Sadly I have boxes and boxes of these threads. I plan to give away the BL for normal sewing (I don't sew enough anymore to use a fraction of what I have here in two life times lol), and continue to use the KS at a lower speed and just be careful not to let the bobbin run out completely. Apparently that is when the problems are likely.
So the moral of this sad protracted tale is - DON'T put Bottom Line thread in the bobbin of top loading embroidery machines, double check that your embroidery thread is not just good quality but made SPECIFICALLY for a domestic machine, and ask your technician to test the machine BEFORE he sprays any silicone or lubricants that you don't normally use at home.
It has taken nearly three months and many, many dollars to find this out the hard way!
Please say "Hi!" to all on rctq for me. They are fondly remembered.
Cheryl & the Cats in OZ o o o o o o ( > Y < ) ( > Y < ) and ( > Y < ) Boofhead Donut Rasputin
I for one, miss her, and am glad she is still able to do some sewing.