On the ongoing series of troubleshooting to save sewing machine repair bills, let's take a look at possible at-home fixes for when a sewing machine won't feed fabric through.
1. Check the presser foot
This might be a simple case of the presser foot is loose. Make sure that the presser foot thumb screw is tight.
2. Sewing uneven surfaces?
Consider changing your sewing machine feet. A walking foot provides an addition set of feed dogs to help push fabric through. Or perhaps, it's an issue with the presser foot trying to climb over a bulky section, in this case a Jean-a-ma-Jig might help maneuver this section of fabric.
3. The stitch adjustment control is set to zero
Easy peasy! Just adjust the stitch length to the proper normal setting for your machine.
4. Check the feed dog position
Make sure that the feed dog position is set to the raised position for sewing rather than the dropped position for darning.
5. Check the presser bar
Consider the fabric you will be sewing to check if the presser bar is adjusted according. For thin fabric adjust to a little pressure on the foot whereas heavier fabric will need more pressure on the foot.
6. Is there lint lingering?
Thank you Linda for your comment to remind us to check out the lint situation that builds up during and after a sewing project.
Remove the throat plate and check the bobbin case area for excess lint or fragments of old threads that need to be cleaned out.
Excessive lint build up can prevent the sewing machine from properly feeding the fabric through. Ideally, after finishing a project, that is when I like to clear out any lint that might be lingering in this area to keep things running smoothly.
Previous Troubleshooting Thursday Posts:
Broken Needles
Skipped Stitches
Puckered Stitches
Broken Upper Sewing Machine Thread
Broken Lower Sewing Machine Thread
Happy Sewing!
You left out one of the most obvious reasons - there's a ton of lint under the feed dogs. That area of the machine needs to be cleaned out regularly.
ReplyDeleteI did forget to add that one, I completely forgot! Thank you Linda for the reminder, I will add it to the list.
DeleteI really need to do this more often. ;) That lint does sort of felt itself after awhile.
DeleteI try and clean out the lint at least every second month if I am doing regular sewing. If I use a lint producing fabric I clean it out after that project.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.