Tension release problem

[Eero]

Hello!

I have Adler 69,  and I finally found out what was the problem when I tried to sew thick, nylon strap joints etc.

There is automatic thread tension release, when I lift the foot, and when sewing thick material, it leaves the tension release on when I lower the foot, because the foot can not come down enough. It only allows to sew maybe 2-3mm thick with full and proper, adjusted tension.

Is this how it should be, and is it adjustable?

I know that this machine is not meant for very heavy duty sewing, but it could manage easily 5-6mm nylon straps, that are low density, lightweight material. When making for example dog leashes for big dogs, those thicknesses are usual.

 

Thanks.

[Constabulary]

There is a tiny pin inside the tension unit that pushes against the release disc (not tension disc). You can either shorten the tiny pin a little bit or you can adjust the center bar of the release disc the pin pushes on when you lift the presser foot. In case you shorten the pin too much you still can readjust the center bar a tiny bit or replace the pin with a piece of bicycle spoke.

[dikman]

Eero, I have a similar problem with my (old) Pfaff 335. It has a manual tension release - see lever next to tension disc - so I thought I'd be clever and fit a pin to make it automatic. Unfortunately, every time the foot comes up during sewing it releases the tension. It has me baffled, because I can't see any adjustment or, in fact, anything that looks either wrong or missing. So I've had to leave it as a manual release. I'm curious to see what responses you get.

I haven't seen this type of release on any Pfaff 335 photos anywhere.

[Uwe]

Can you post some close-up pictures of your tension release unit and also the back of the machine? There were some subtle variations on the Adler 69 over time and I'm not sure exactly what your machine has installed. 

The problem you experience may actually have to do with the thread tension release slider on the back of the machine. It looks similar to this Juki version:

This part slides up and down as you lift the feet. The ramp indicated in the picture pushes a large pin through the body to release thread tension up front. There's nothing you can adjust here. The position of the ramp determines when your thread tension starts to release as you lift the feet, and also when thread tension engages again as you lower the feet. This unit may be worn or it may have been replaced at some point with a similar one that works, but isn't quite right. If the ramp position is too high, it will release tension too early as you lift the feet, and tension will re-engage too late as you lower the feet,which sounds a lot like what you're describing. In the long run it may be worthwhile replacing this unit with an OEM new part. The part is itself is cheap but replacing it requires major surgery (I made a video once about replacing this unit on a similar machine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aSNYzUTnW4 ) The video also shows how this slider works. This may end up being your long-term fix.

 

 

As an interim work-around to get you back in business sewing thick dog collars, you can disable the automatic thread tension release.

If your machine has the convenient manual tension release tab on the bottom right like this unit:

... then you have the option of disabling the automatic tension release while keeping the convenient manual tension release. You'll loose a minor convenience feature but in return gain maximum sewing functionality. In reality the automatic thread tension release does not work on about half of the project machines when I start working on them. Many people never notice that it doesn't work. 

To disable the automatic thread tension release mechanism, you can remove the big pin that goes from the back to the front of the machine. This disables the automatic part but keeps the manual tab functional. Removing the big pin is not very hard to do and takes about two minutes. I tried it out on my project machine with an Adler 69 head:

 

[Eero]

Hey!

Thank you so much for good advices.

My machine looks like one in the video, maybe newer model.

Auto release is a nice feature but I guess you can live without it.

I have fought with this as long as I have had this machine, and suddenly it is easily fixed...

I guess even if I could modify it so that it works only when foot is in the uppermost position, it could affect sewing even then, when sewing over thick seams in bags, jackets etc.?

It should be easily disconnectable, so when sewing normal thicknesses it would be on, and when sewing thick, it could be switched off.

 

[RockyAussie]

I had a similar problem on mine and thought I would have to do a lot grinding and what not but to my surprise after taking pin out I found that it was just gummed up and jamming erratically.I cleaned the pin and gave all area's a good oiling and it has been good ever since.Another improvement then was achieved by setting up my foot lift so that when depressed it could not lift high enough to engage the pin. To get the pin to engage I then use the hand lift or a second stage hard push down foot lift. 

[Uwe]

On 4/18/2017 at 1:51 AM, Eero said:

I guess even if I could modify it so that it works only when foot is in the uppermost position, it could affect sewing even then, when sewing over thick seams in bags, jackets etc.?

Normally, if everything works just right, you should be able to sew material that just fits under the feet in the highest manual foot lift position. When you lower the foot lift lever, the feet would stay at the same height, but the tension release "slider" would go down and re-engage thread tension. There's a spring between the slider and the clamping block that separates the two and pushes the slider down to release thread tension even if the presser bar clamping block (and feet) stay up.

 

[SolarLeatherMachines]

Uwe, on an unrelated note, I think your camera work is really well done.  Can I ask what you're using?  

[Uwe]

3 hours ago, SolarLeatherMachines said:

Uwe, on an unrelated note, I think your camera work is really well done.  Can I ask what you're using?  

Thanks! I used my iPhone 6 for the most recent video snippet. My main video gear is a Canon 70D with either a EF 24-105mm f/4L or the EF 100mm f/2.8L macro lens (when I want to get really close.) 

[ljk]

I'm glad this issue has finally come up.  The explanation is good as usual Uwe.  In some

cases the center bar (pictured) can be dimpled.  One spot on our mc chaps was

6/7 layers and I finally learned to adjust up the tension release.    I should mention

many extra hvy. duty machines don't even have a tension release ie. my Singer 144/305