Author Topic: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?  (Read 2039 times)

Bogie

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Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« on: June 13, 2008, 03:56:15 PM »
I've got a Janome New Home 270 (big heavy steel and cast iron thing) that I'm intend to use to sew edges on banners. Still figuring it out.
 
Any hints are appreciated.
 
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cosine

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #1 on: June 13, 2008, 04:16:46 PM »
The needle is meant to go through the material you're sewing, not your finger.  cheesy
Andy

Bogie

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #2 on: June 13, 2008, 04:24:01 PM »
You know, I think I pretty much already have that part figured out...
 
I have no idea how folks use these things for -any- kind of production work - The endless bobbin winding and rethreading, and thread breaking, or thread looping around stuff and all that... Yeech.
 
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Standing Wolf

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #3 on: June 13, 2008, 04:42:57 PM »
One way or another, the machine will fill the bobbin for you. It typically takes less than a minute.

How? Ah. Well. What works for one sewing machine will never work for another. It's an engineering thing. Only engineers understand, and in fact, only some engineers.
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Bogie

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #4 on: June 13, 2008, 08:12:28 PM »
Well, after an evening...
 
1) My sewing skillz suck. Mightily.
 
2) The el-cheapo plastic machine machine from wally-world is definitely kaput after the girls used it for banner duty last week. Good news - it's from wally world and I've got a receipt... "Duh... It don't work. And I'm votin' for Not Sure for president!"
 
3) This 1960s Janome New Home thing is a heavy SOB, but it's got some torque on it. Doesn't have a problem with a leather needle or heavy outdoor upholstery thread. May look for a Goodwill-sourced old style Singer or something... I saw TWO at my favorite Goodwill a while back, but didn't buy either. I should have. The old ones are reportedly built to be handed down to great-granddaughters...
 
4) Ladies in the sewing department look at me funny.
 
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erictank

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #5 on: June 14, 2008, 03:10:10 AM »
By no means a master of the sewing arts (I own a newer Singer model myself, but can barely thread the darn thing - I keep meaning to learn how to use it, as it would enhance my costuming hobby mightily), but I've picked up a couple of things, mostly from working with my fiance on stuff. 

First, using a low-end model on banners is probably not a good idea.  They can handle light-to-medium-weight cloth, but not much more than that.  Your "new" superwhammodyne high-torque model is likely much better for that job.  Once you figure out how to use it.

Second, Standing Wolf is right, the machine will fill the bobbin for you, and once you have it threaded to do so, it will do it fast.  Threading it to fill a bobbin is NOT done the same way as threading it to sew - but it'll be MUCH easier to thread it for the former than the latter  grin.  And he's absolutely right, no sewing machine threads the same as any other model, from what I can tell.

Third, thread breakage is a fact of life when sewing, but can be greatly reduced by using the right kind of thread and needle for your machine and fabric, and using the right kind of machine and foot for a certain fabric (as noted before, a light-duty machine will not handle heavy fabrics, like, say, leather, at ALL well).  Thread breakage seems to go way up if the fabric does not move smoothly through the machine - as opposed to slip-sliding all over the place, which is just as bad as binding. 

You know about briefly reversing the machine when you're done sewing a section or piece, to finish and lock down the stitch you just did, right?

I realize that these hints may be of only minor help, but hopefully it was at least a LITTLE useful.  Did you get a manual?

Stickjockey

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #6 on: June 14, 2008, 06:31:37 AM »
Thread breakage can also be a result of the tension being incorrectly set. The wife's been messin' with those things for decades; I'll point her towards this thread, maybe she can be of more help.
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Tallpine

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #7 on: June 14, 2008, 06:33:56 AM »
Quote
You know about briefly reversing the machine when you're done sewing a section or piece, to finish and lock down the stitch you just did, right?

You also should do that at the beginning of a seam - start a little ways (1/2" ?) from the edge, reverse a bit, then shift into drive and go.

I leave the sewing to the wife, but I did have her teach me the basics a long time ago just to prove to myself that I could run the machine. Wink
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Mabs2

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #8 on: June 14, 2008, 07:30:00 AM »
I've got a Janome New Home 270 (big heavy steel and cast iron thing) that I'm intend to use to sew edges on banners. Still figuring it out.
 
Any hints are appreciated.
 

Sewing machines are for girls.
All you need to know.
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Stickjockey

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #9 on: June 14, 2008, 01:04:28 PM »
No my dears, sewing is not just for girls. My manly man Father sews all kinds of stuff since I moved out. My mom stopped when I started.

I am also working on a heavy duty project, a 16'x24' canvas tent.
You will need: Jean needles in the largest size available (bigger number=bigger needle). Nylon thread in a color as close as possible (darker colors blend better) and use the same thread in your needle as in your bobbin.
You will want to slow your machine down. Most models have a slider that controls the speed, in addition to the foot pedal.
You also do not want to pull on your fabric. This causes the needle to not line up with the the hole in the throat plate(the place where the presser foot rests) and will cause many broken needles. If you are having some trouble with tension, check to see if the thread is on the correct side of the tension plate. The tension plate is the disk inside the machine at the top. A 4 to 5 on the tension dial works best with most fabrics.

I hope this helps... any more Q's please let me know.
Melissa  SWAMBO for stickjockey.
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Mabs2

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #10 on: June 14, 2008, 05:16:51 PM »
No my dears, sewing is not just for girls. My manly man Father sews all kinds of stuff since I moved out. My mom stopped when I started.
I said sewing machines are for girls.
Every man should have a needle and thread.
Quote from: jamisjockey
Sunday it felt a little better, but it was quite irritated from me rubbing it.
Quote from: Mike Irwin
If you watch any of the really early episodes of the Porter Waggoner show she was in (1967) it's very clear that he was well endowed.
Quote from: Ben
Just wanted to give a forum thumbs up to Dick.

The Annoyed Man

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #11 on: June 14, 2008, 06:40:25 PM »
Tailor is generally a masculine noun.  Macrame is a sailors' (boatswains') art, historically a masculine affair.

That having been said, if you did not get a manual (you know, RTFM) you should get one.  I can throw in a recommendation for a large enough sewing table to support your banners well enough that guiding them through the sewing machine isn't a fight with gravity on top of the bulk of material.  (I once tried to help a friend repair a Hobie cat sail.  In anger and frustration I wound up hauling friend and sail to a sail loft and actually paying for the repair my self.   Still haven't decided if I was set up.  grrrrrrr!)

Stickjockey

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #12 on: June 14, 2008, 09:27:05 PM »
Chuck, ya got set up.

And 357, Mrs Stick's Pop uses a machine. Pretty handy with it, too.
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NetMom

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #13 on: June 14, 2008, 10:35:31 PM »
Bogie, your machine will have multiple stitch settings that you need to adjust. You have the width - literally how far to each side the needle moves between stitches. You have the length, which is naturally the space toward and away from you that it stitches, and the point that it sounds like you're having trouble with - depth. While the length of the stitches, and the width of the stitches is optional and clearly seen to adjust, the depth can cause extreme issues with breakage, tangles, etc. I recommend you get a scrap of fabric (or two, or three) of the various materials you want to use. Play with the depth settings until you know which one works best and which way the numbers on your particular machine adjust to fit. Standard is normally 2 or 3 - which is average cotton cloth thickness, doubled. If you're using thicker material, which you most likely are, or are using more layers than traditional (ie, more than 2), you probably need to increase the depth number. Make yourself a note as to the 'correct' depth marker for that particular material and post it near your machine. And, don't forget to reset it to standard when you're done.

Hope this helps. Oh, and I have often used a sharpie to write out what each dial does on my own personal machines, so I don't forget when I'm in a hurry. Nothing like reaching up to adjust the width for a hem zig-zag and realizing too late you've just adjusted the depth or width to an insane, thread snarling setting.

The Annoyed Man

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #14 on: June 15, 2008, 06:56:43 AM »
Chuck, ya got set up.

Perhaps so, but she was 6' tall, built like a brick solo sailor, red headed, green eyed, and possessed a galaxy of freckles I only barely started cataloging.   

*sigh* 

In retrospect, the trip to the sail loft was one of our cheaper dates.

BrokenPaw

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Re: Anyone know anything about sewing machines?
« Reply #15 on: June 15, 2008, 09:19:07 AM »
Bogie,

If you want something easier to manage than that big cast-iron one, you can't go wrong with a used Husqvarna Viking.  It's beefy enough to handle heavy work (it has a "low gear" that gives you about a 2:1 force/speed tradeoff), and it'll handle fine work as well.  When I was doing RenFaire costuming, I used it for everything up to and including 10 oz leather, and it punched through that without a problem.  More recently, I used it on summer-weight wool (for making my ministerial robes) and it handled that with equal aplomb.

Also, about your Singer idea: yes.  Older Singers can be of heirloom quality.  Newer Singers are of McDiscard quality.

-BP
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