maggiebooboo

I will once I get a little further along with it. It doesn't look great, but at least I'm doing something with it. I think it will be interesting to see if each row gets a little better as I go along.

mar32428

Boy, have I been there. I have a Gracie full length but I had not heard of putting a practice strip on at the same time as the quilt. How do you do thst? I've only been quilting on the Gracie for a short time but I did put a big practice piece on first and sewed and sewed and sewe......d. I think I'm ready to put a good quilt on but procrastinate for fear that I'll ruin it. Say a prayer for me. And I've been sewing for seventy years.

maggiebooboo

I'm still having problems. My machine was still not put together right, but I think it is now. My boyfriend came over and switched two of the rollers and made a few adjustments, including lowering the whole works since I am only 5'3" and the lady I bought it from is about 5'9".

It loads nicely now. I took my quilt out and put two ugly peices of fabric with batting in the middle and used black thread on top with a white bobbin so that I could see better what was happening. I think my top tension is too loose, but when I tighten it the thread breaks. Any suggestions?

c2cd2008

You need to find a happy medium for both tensions top and bottom. And always remember when adjusting tensions to adjust very little, sew to check it, then adjust more as needed. I barely turn my screw for the bottom and barely turn the knob for the top.

Also, have you oiled lately? Have you checked your needle and plate both for burrs? These are all things that can make thread break. What sized needle are you using and thickness of thread? For quilting on a frame I use a titanium blue jeans needle myself because the eye is bigger and I put some oil on a rag and oil the eye of the needle so it runs smooth as well. If you keep breaking top thread, try another spool of thread. Sometimes we can get bad spools. I know I have had a couple in the past. And would bread constantly. Changing the thread almost always worked when I had breakage problems.

maggiebooboo

I might be turning it too far. But I'm sure the tension needs adjustment because on the back side you can see the white thread never goes into the fabric, the black thread that I am using on top leaves loops on the back. So it looks like a white line with black loops around it. Then on the top, the stitches are all black, but large and fairly loose looking. You can pull them and get a loop on the top.

I am going to the Twins game tonight, but Thursday I will be back at it again, trying to get the adjustments made so I can make some real progress.

I will try changing the needle before trying again too, and try a little oil. You just never know.

Thanks for the tips.

c2cd2008

If you are having loops it could be one of two things. Either you do not have the bobbin winding the right way, or the tension is bad off. Take your machine of your frame if you can do so, if not then lodge it so it will not move and try sending some fabric through it. Make only slight small turns on your adjustments and try again. Also remember, each day you sew you need to apply a drop of oil in the bobbin area speciafied in your manual. One more thing, make sure that your machine is clean and free of lint and small pieces of old thread, this too can cause a machie to not sew properly.

I wish the best of luck getting it all going ok. I am off to work on a custume now.

maggiebooboo

OK! I oiled the machine and loosened the tension quite a bit. Then I just started going back and forth and watching the back side. I tighted the tension little by little until I could see no black thread on the back. The thread didn't break, so it looks good. Until.....

I ran out of bobbin. I changed the bobbin and now the tread keeps breaking again. must be the bobbin thread. I walked away. It was fun while it lasted. I actually made a pretty decent feather for my first attempt!

I will go back to it tonight. I think I need to do a little each day for sure. So that I remember my lessons learned every day. So that I don't forget and have to relearn them. haha

I will have to get lots of practice. I bought this machine to start a side business at home, as I work fulltime. Once I get good at it, does anyone have ideas on how to market it? I joined a machine quilters group, but they all have longarms and don't want to give me their customers..

c2cd2008

Start getting customers by word of mouth. while you are learning make some quilted projects for family and friends and give them away. Always made a label for your quilt, and get yourself some business cards to pass around. After that you can do some projects and sell them on etsy or some site like that, you will be surprised how much work really will come your way. But until then practice, practice, practice.

maggiebooboo

A neighbor lady has one and I was talking to her and she said "You'll be surprised at how quickly this machine will pay for itself.

I'm hoping that is true.. :-)

DeeJays10

I wrote on my leaders how to pin each piece and which way to roll it up. Seems to work for me.

Donna