Does anyone know anything about sewing machines? The bobbin thread isn't being picked up by the needle. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong, but it was working fine. It is possible, not sure, but the needle doesn't seem to be going down as far as it should. I am mighty confused. Please help.
By shivvers from Ireland
When I have that problem, I have found it works to hold the thread in the needle to the left while you put the needle down to pick up the bobbin thread. Sometimes it is still hard to see if the bobbin thread has come up and when that happens I take a darning needle and run it under the pressure foot and the bobbin thread is there, just needed a little help for me to see it and straighten it out.
If redhatterb's suggestion doesn't work, you might have the bobbin turned the wrong direction. Also, try removing the top thread and rethreading the sewing machine.
Sewing machines can be frustrating. Easy things to try, re-thread the machine and the bobbin. Be sure the bobbin thread is reasonably long (about4 inches). Be sure the needle is threaded from the correct side. Check your settings to see that you have everything on the correct setting. See if you have tightened up the knob or dial or whatever you have that enables you to thread your bobbin; you now have to have it back on the "sew" setting.
Try changing the needle for a new one. I don't know why but this usually works for me.
You may also check to make sure your needle is turned properly. I had this problem not too long ago. I had replaced the needle and tightened it in not realizing I had not set it in the slot properly.
My sewing machine needle keeps hitting something and my bobbin will not loop at the bottom.
By blazing from OKC, OK
The needle may not be in correctly.
Check your presser foot that it is in correctly.
Hand roll the machine so you can see where it is hitting. It might be the dogs have moved.
Make sure the bobbin shuttle is locked in place.
Could be timing.
Ria
I have a new singer 4166. The bobbin casing will not move to pick up the top thread. What is wrong? I checked the thread top and bobbin, but nothing will work, I can't sew.
While sewing, I jammed some fine fabric in the bobbin trace. Instead of taking it apart, as I should have done, I gently pulled and pulled until it came out.
My machine suddenly stopped sewing. It is not picking up bobbin thread. There are no loops under the material. I have re-threaded it 3 times and have cleaned the bobbin area and rechecked the bobbin. I have also changed needle and thread. No luck.
By Coral from Nudgee, QLD.
Try this. Turn your bobbincase on it's side. There should be a small screw. This will adjust the tension. When you put your bobbin in the bobbin case hang onto the thread and your bobbincase should slowly go downward (like a yo-yo).
I also have the same problem for the first time with my sewing machine Singer model 4423 purchased 3 months ago. As I was sewing the machine suddenly stopped and bent the needle then it stopped sewing. The knob on the right which controls the needle became unmovable. At first I still try to adjust the foot presser (labeled as # 2) but the knob is still tight.
So I was forced to open the machine, now exposing all the metal parts, I thought of applying some machine oil to solve tightness and run it. To my amazement it runs smoothly so I continue adding more oil and the noise was lessened too.
So again I opened the bobbin part, removed the dust and put some oil and run the machine. Try running it but still doesn't sew properly. So I decided to remove the bobbin casing, removed the dust, put some oil and adjusted the metal part (where you hook the thread in place) on the left side. Hurray! It works! Hope this helps...
I've been at this machine for a couple of days now and finally decided to go online for help. It's a Singer 252 Fashion Mate. My problem is that the needle picks up the bobbin thread when I put a new bobbin in, that is, it brings the bobbin thread up, but that's it. When I try to sew anything the bobbin thread just stays there.
I see that the bobbin wheel (the thing that picks up the thread from the needle) grabs the needle thread every time it goes around.
Any ideas?
By Meneer
Help! My machine was working fine till I had to refill a bobbin. Now my top thread makes loops around the bottom thread, but the bottom thread just stays straight. When I stop sewing I can pull the bottom thread straight out of my stitches. How do I fix this?
By Stephanie
My Viking, model 400, upper thread tension is not working. I didn't notice until I tried using a free motion quilting foot and lowered the feed dogs. I started on a test quilt sandwich and the top looked fine, but there was a loopy mess on the bottom. I tried to increase the upper tension, no change.
Lowered the upper tension, no change. Then I noticed that whether the tension was on zero or 9, when I manually pulled the thread through, the thread pulled through so easily either way. No squeezing there is happening at all even though it gets harder to turn the dial toward 9.By Caroline C.
The bobbin thread isn't coming up to the top, when I turn the wheel manually. I used a new spool of thread and rewound a new bobbin and it still isn't working. What should I do?
By Grace
Make sure your bobbin case is loaded correctly and the bobbin thread is following the correct path to permit top thread pick-up.
Is your machine a front/side load bobbin system, or the top drop-in type? It can make a difference in top thread pick-up especially if you are new to sewing or don't sew often. The front/side load bobbins are really hard to load correctly and can cause no end of difficulties for the beginner or infrequent sewer.
The age of the machine can make a difference too. On a modern machine (newer than ten years old) a lot of the timing mechanisms are magnetic and can be thrown off by using a metal bobbin spool instead of the recommended plastic. If the machine timing is off the needle may be descending into the bobbin pick-up area at the wrong time the bobbin presents bobbin thread for pick-up.
On a vintage machine (older than 25 years), gears can wear out. You can load that bobbin correctly all day but if the gears are worn or broken you won't be able to pick-up the bobbin thread.
Step One: try following the user guide instructions for your machine to load the bobbin into your machine. Pay especial attention to the thread path for the bobbin thread.
If that doesn't help you may have a broken or worn bobbin gear(s) somewhere in the works between where you wind the bobbin and where the bobbin is loaded OR the timing is off-a job for a qualified technician. Shouldn't cost more than $80USD for the repair+a check-up and tune-up of the machine. Be sure to get detailed information from the repair tech as to what happened and why so that you can avoid a repeat in the future.
I have a Singer 5523 with a drop in bobbin. I have changed both threads, the needle, changed the bobbin out, checked for dust and lint and changed the tension, and did everything in the manual troubleshooting section. After many test and trials, the top thread will tangle around the drop in bobbin because it still won't catch.
By Taylor F. from Jax., FL
I bought 2 Brother sewing machines. One is with my mother-in-law and the other is here in my home. Both sewing machines are having the same problem. You can not thread them from the bobbin. I would say this is a manufacturing problem. So my question is, How do I get 2 new ones without having to pay out the nose again?
By Debbra M
My sewing machine will not pick up the bobbin at all. As soon as I put the bobbin in, the needle will get stuck before it even moves. I've tried just about everything the past few days. What should I do?
By ADS
I can't get the bobbin thread to feed up on my 6268 Singer. I followed the manual instructions. Can you help please?
By Donna from Collingswood, NJ
