211G155 Do I Have The Wrong Machine

[miaoreo]

OH Good GRIEF! A friend at work suggested I follow the path from the knee lever up to where raising the foot releases the tension disks. I did not have to go far. Who ever looks at the BACK side of their machine? The "knee lifter lifting Lever" is not properly inserted and is barely catching the lever that lifts the foot and not engaging the tension release AT ALL! I just hope that down the road my experience will help someone else trying to stumble upon their problem. Now, my problem is getting that big screw out that holds the lever in place.

Well upon remove I find I have the wrong lever, it is marked Singer 508274 and the manual calls for part # 514047. The difference being the little arm that comes off the lever at a 90 degree angle has a 90 degree turn in it and will catch the lift for the foot.

Whomever worked on this machine last, obviously did not know what they were doing... Well neither do I but at least I can see what is wrong.

Mia

Edited April 24, 2013 by miaoreo

[Trox]

Hi Mia,

then take it off put it in a vice and make a 90 degree bend at the end of the lever so it catch the foot lift. Or drill a hole in it and put a screw in the end that catch the lift.

You can do it.

Tor

[miaoreo]

Wow, thanks.... good ideas...

Mia

[miaoreo]

OK making progress, slowly... all back together. Wound new bobbin, re-threaded machine, new needle with leather point. Sews 4 layers of denim fine, sews 2 layers of wool rug/blanker fine, when I added a layer of garment leather, (soft) to the 2 layers of rug/blanket BAM! loopy threads on bottom and thread breaks after about 8 stitches.... darn... Help! Please!

[J Hayes]

Is it possible the added material height under the foot is engaging the tension release? I've read loops on the bottom is a top tension issue.

[gottaknow]

Loosen your bobbin tension, and crank down your top tension. I've edited your pic to show how to rethread the guide before the disk. Also, loosen screw "A" and move the thread guide as close to your tension discs as you can without touching. This will help keep your disks from spitting out your thread, as will the way it's wrapped shown by my red editing. It doesn't show in your picture, but also on the thread guide on top of the machine, wrap your thread in a counter-clockwise manner as well.

Regards, Eric

Edited May 1, 2013 by gottaknow

[gottaknow]

Oh, and your thread breakage is likely related to the fact that you're not setting the stitch. There are loops left over from your previous stitch and the hook is simply coming around for the next stitch and the loop from your previous stitch is still there, so it grabs them both. This is characterized by a definate "snap" of of your top thread. Once you get your tension adjusted and the loops are pulled up properly, your thread will likely quit breaking. Most of all, have fun and don't get discouraged!

Regards, Eric

[miaoreo]

Thanks Eric... appreciate the help.. I am gradually getting the hang of this. I will try your suggestions tommorrow. I put a small white mark on the tension adj nut, with liquid white out. So I can "see" how far I have tightened the tension down. By adjusting 1/2 turn at a time I am getting better control. I also found I am suffering from what my father used to call "Operator Ineptitude". For 40 years I have sewn on a home machine with a knee control. This whole knee lever/foot feed is new to my brain. I discovered I was unconciously pressing the knee lever when I was sewing!!! DUH!! Tension released = Loops!!! Retrain the brain.

[gottaknow]

Thanks Eric... appreciate the help.. I am gradually getting the hang of this. I will try your suggestions tommorrow. I put a small white mark on the tension adj nut, with liquid white out. So I can "see" how far I have tightened the tension down. By adjusting 1/2 turn at a time I am getting better control. I also found I am suffering from what my father used to call "Operator Ineptitude". For 40 years I have sewn on a home machine with a knee control. This whole knee lever/foot feed is new to my brain. I discovered I was unconciously pressing the knee lever when I was sewing!!! DUH!! Tension released = Loops!!! Retrain the brain.

Opereator ineptitude...heh..that's a new one. In the factory, I've always called that operator error. I'm glad you're getting more comfortable with your machine. Over time, you'll learn that adjusting your tension is almost automatic. When I adjust tension, I go by pulling on the thread before you thread your needle. I have a few machines that are extremely sensative to tension (a keyhole buttonhole machine used in jeans production) that I also use whiteout on. More often than not, I change the tension enough to make something change that I can see. On your particular machine, if you're near the capacity with thickness and thread size, loosening your bobbin tension will allow your needle thread to pull up the stitch tighter, compensating that you could be over capacity some. This is especially true of leather. Wooven fabric not so much. Ok, I'm rambling. Have fun!

Regards, Eric

[miaoreo]

OH Eric... fun? Fun would be machine sewing and not skipping stitches, and breaking thread.... seem to have solved the 'loops' tension problem. But it still skips stitches and breaks the thread. Pictures attached. Seems to happen Most OFTEN when my "less that perfect" control of the foot feed, lets it go too fast. Sure wish I had a servo motor....