Bobbin Mysteries

Well, Sunny, that's a new one. I had to read your question twice to figure out what in the world you were doing. Here's the deal: You do not *Yank*. With your left hand, hold the bobbin case (with a bobbin inside) over your lap. Hold the end of the bobbin thread in your right hand and gently turn the bobbin case loose. It should very, very slowly slide down toward your lap. NOooo yanking. People go for a lifetime of sewing and never need to adjust their bobbin tension and most likely, you don't need to either. I'm a bit of a maniac about using unusual thread in the bobbin and wanting a perfect stitch so I do adjust my bobbin case. Keep in mind that it needs to be adjusted just the least little tiny bit if you do need to adjust it. Polly

Ok, yank is a bad word. But the only place I get to is "let go of the case" and when I do the bobbin falls out. I do want to learn this because I also want to use unusual thread in the bobbin for thread painting. And I do understand that the adjustment, if any, is tiny tiny t iny. But I am disturbed by the fact that if I let go of the case, the bobbin drops right out.

I know I'm doing something wrong. At any rate, I have to get the thing cleaned professionally and somebody will show me how to do the bobbin thing I'm sure. Eventually I want to learn how to use the embroidery devices. I found an extensive library of those little cards that plug into the machine and make designs. Thankfully she left me enough fancy schmancy thread to last nearly a lifetime.

Sunny

Where are you folks tonight? I can't imagine why Sunny's bobbin is falling out. Do you suppose she might not have the right bobbin or the right case? This one baffles me. Polly

I don't know why it is falling out......my Pfaff bobbin case is fairly tight....I never have adjusted it myself and get annual checkups for my machine so I'm sure the bobbin case is checked then. Sunny's bobbin case must be very loose! But, the most important thing here is this: How does it sew????? Is the tension good or no? Loops on top or loops on the bottom? If we had that info we might be able to fix whatever issues there may be.

Are there even any issues with tension? If not, who cares if the bobbin falls out! Don't test it! Just sew! If it's too loose, then tighten it.

I suggested to Sunny earlier on that she have the machine serviced at her local sewing machine shop.....at least to get it to a happy place! Then she shouldn't have to mess with it!

Funny that I always adjust the bobbin case on my Long Arm depending on what thread I use but I never fiddle with it on my domestic....

Laurie G. in CA

Just a silly question- I have a drop in bobbin, so I really don't know. But.... is there something you put the thread thru after you set the bobbin inside the case? Is there a slit or slot or hole? Usually one doesn't just lay the bobbin in the space without putting the thread somewhere- maybe that's why it just falls out- you don't have the thread thru the tension area- whatever that may be? My drop in needs the thread to go into a slit and then lay it over an indentation- surely there's *something* you need to do after laying the bobbin in place which would help hold the bobbin in there when you let go.

Leslie, Missy & The Furbabies in MO.

I have had the bobbin fall out when doing testing like this, one way to have a reasonable chance of it not falling out is to pull about 10cm of thread, then hold the bobbin case vertically between the thumb and forefinger of your left hand, with the thread coming out the top, which you then hold in your right hand, very gently and slowly let go of the bobbin and case, if it's too loose, then the whole thing will drop, if it's too tight then this can be when the bobbin falls out, the tiny micro movements your body constantly makes can be just enough to make that little perturbation that sends it out, rolling away, unwinding, whilst the bobbin case is still in the exact same place on the thread!

Anne

ACK! This all makes me very unsure.

For the record, the tension seems fine. And it is going in for a good cleaning/whatever next week. It's a mess. But I have tried several different bobbins in the case, and all do the same dropping out thing. I think it's me. Gotta practice this t hing. LOL. But first I'm going to finish this quilt. I'll just ignore the bobbin case and not worry about it at all.

Sunny

Sunny - if your tension is good, don't mess with the bobbin. I find that I almost NEVER have to fiddle with the bobbin tension on my Pfaff..... I'm glad you are taking it in for service.....they will adjust the tension to where it is should be for a factory setting. You shouldn't have to mess with it after that.

I really want to hear some good quilty/sewing stories from you about your new Pfaff!!!1

Laurie G. in CA

I got an extra bobbin case for my 7550. One to keep for regular sewing and one to play about with for different threads. Shirley

In message , Polly Esther writes

Sunny...when i want to test the bobbin , I just hold the case and pull on the thread...if it comes out when I pull gently I deem it OK to use. The bobbin always falls out when I try that "trick " too --about 'dangling' the case w/ the bobbin thread ! Set your top tension at 5...and test sew...If any adjustments are needed try the top tension first. I assume that your friend 's bobbin was OK as she did sew a lot it seems. Mary

Sunny, I have a Pfaff 1471 so I hope this will help you. I lay the bobbin in the bobbin holder with the tail of the thread going off to the right. Then I hold the bobbin case with my left hand and grab the thread with my right. Now, move/slide the thread around the edge of the bobbin case to toward the left until it falls into a slot and continue pulling it left until you hear it click into a wider area of the bobbin holder. All this controls the bobbin tension. NOW you should be able to hold the bobbin up by the thread. HTH Barbara in FL

The bobbin dangling isn't really a good gauge of bobbin tension in my opinion. The machine uses plastic bobbins inserted into the bobbin case with the thread wound clockwise so that it unrolls anti-clockwise through the slot in the side of the bobbin case until it catches under a tiny hook - that is the important area and should also be checked for any lint buildup. The bobbin 'locks' onto the spindle in the machine when the lever is lifted during insertion and then released when the bobbin is in place. The manual talks about a gentle yank on the bobbin thread after insertion to make sure that it is properly seated on the spindle - as long as the lever has been used during insertion, the bobbin case is safe and won't fly off into your lap during sewing. Pull up the bobbin thread, close the bobbin area door, start sewing. jennellh

Don't know, mine doesn't fall out unless I turn it upside down, i.e. with the open side pointed toward the floor. Roberta in D

"Polly Esther" schrieb im Newsbeitrag news: snipped-for-privacy@corp.supernews.com...

I also wouldn't worry about it, if it produces a nice stitch. Sunny, if you want to play around with odd bobbin threads, go buy an extra play bobbin case and mark it very clearly with neon orange nail polish. Then you can fiddle the tension all you want on that one. Roberta in D

"Laurie G." schrieb im Newsbeitrag news:DTI9j.43$ snipped-for-privacy@newssvr19.news.prodigy.net...

Jennell, all the bobbins are metal. There was a metal bobbin in when I opened it the first time, and she left a big container of already loaded bobbins in a variety of colors.

Anyway, I'm not going to mess with it. I spent some time last night stitching strips for a quilt called Wicked Easy, and it is, and I can't believe how smooth and straight and .... absolutely solid this machine sews. I really like it already.

Can't wait to get it cleaned up, racing stripes on and ready to go.

Sunny