Mamagus

My husband rewarded my 16 months living in the Arctic with a Janome 8900. I love the machine but I am having a devil of a time with skipped stitches. It will sew through a seam and then two or three stitches later it will skip as much as 1/4".

I have cleaned it, put in a new needle, using a #14 red Janome needle, changed the tension... The only time it works is if I change the bobbin thread and upper thread to a lighter weight polyester thread. I WANT to use the heavier 100% cotton thread that I got at Connecting Threads because I have read that over time the polyester thread will cut the fibre of the fabric. Should I just concede and start using the thinner thread?

Any advice?

ManiacQuilter2

I have always used what thread the dealer suggested for me to use on my Bernina 1530 which was Mettler Silk finished 50 weight thread. I have recently tried Aurifil 50 weight thread which also produces an excellent stitch. My baby refuses to let me use less expensive thread such as Gutermann or C&C. I don't know why you want to use a heavier thread. I piece and quilt with 50 weight thread with no problems. Good Luck in finding a solution.

EasyPeezy

Try a Topstitch needle 90/14. It has a bigger hole and is sharper than
regular quilting needle. Maybe this will help. I use it on my Janome 6600
with CT thread.

grma33

Ja nome just came out with purple tip needles
longer shafts might help i'm going to look for them
Gale

PaperPrincess

This was just posted, different model, but might help.
http://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f1...k-t275556.html

Mamagus

As I said, I have read that polyester thread cuts the cotton fibre in a quilt. Plus, my Janome 6500 loved the heavier threads and I bought quite a few large cones.

Mamagus

One came with my machine and it did work well. My dealer was out when I visited so I tried the red tip. Not as good. I guess I will look for purple tip! Thanks!

Chester the bunny

I have a 1600P model. I just came back from the Janome dealer where I picked up some purple tip needles because I was having a problem with skipping stitches and breaking thread. Along with the purple tip needles, I picked up a package of high speed needles as well as a new darning foot that has a screw on top to adjust the height of the foot.
I guess I'm assuming that your skipped stiches are when you are FMQ. Maybe your machine came with this newer darning foot, mine is older so......
I'm attaching a link so that you can see the difference between what you might have on hand. Keep in mind that this foot is the 1600 model but you can inquire to see if they make one for your 8900.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Janome-Darni...-/181838500325

Prism99

It's true that decades ago polyester thread was so strong it was capable of cutting through cotton. However, today's world of thread is completely different and that no longer holds true. This Youtube video demonstrates how the tensile strength of today's polyester is very similar to cotton:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9W5OxygKlUk

I like Aurifil 50wt 2-ply cotton thread for piecing (Prescencia also gets very high marks for piecing). These are not the typical 50wt 3-ply threads most of us are used to using; they are much thinner and much smoother, producing considerably less lint. When piecing with cotton thread, a huge advantage to using these threads is that they take up less bulk in the seam, making it easier to achieve perfect 1/4" seams that iron flatter. I like cotton thread for piecing because it has a little "grip" so that, when chain piecing, the ends are less likely to un-sew after cutting. For me, they also result in a flatter seam with less puckering than polyester threads of similar weight, at least with my favored sewing machine. However, these days, it is really a matter of personal preference what kind of thread is used for piecing, especially since there are variations in machines as well as people.

For quilting, I have come to much prefer polyester threads. They produce less lint than even the highest quality cotton threads. An added benefit of polyester is that it simply lasts longer than cotton. Jamie Wallen mentioned that he has visited a lot of museums and talked to a lot of curators who bemoan the fact that they have many interesting quilts in storage that they are unable to place out for display because so much of the cotton thread used to quilt them has dry-rotted. This is why Jamie uses polyester thread for his quilting (unless a customer insists on cotton thread).

Peckish

Old wives' tale and incorrect. Most of your cotton clothes are sewn with polyester thread; do you see any damage or "cutting"?

When I get skipped stitches, moving to a larger needle always solves the problem for me.