DURKOPP 241-3 or Singer 111w155

[Tejas]

On 8/24/2018 at 9:38 PM, Albob said:

No reverse is a small issue at best. However almost everything I'm sewing is sized where I can spin the work around and back stitch ....

Here are four ways to lock stitches at the start and end of a run without back-tack reverse:
1. Bury the needle, turn the material end for end and sew over the seam. The result is the same as a back-tack but not always practical for large projects.
2. Sew to the end of the run. Lift the foot slightly pull the material about 1/2 inch toward you, drop the foot and sew over the seam. It is important when pulling the material toward you to maintain upper and lower thread tension to avoid a jam.
3. At each end of the run, leave several inches of thread. Tug the thread on the under-side and pull the top-thread through. Tie off the two threads with a surgeon's knot. A square knot can be used, but a surgeon's knot is more secure.
4. Same as above, but leave even longer threads. Do not pull through. Thread a needle on each and sew several stitches back through the same holes in the seam, essentially the same as a manual saddle-stitch. A hassle, but the resulting back-tack should be more secure than a machine back-tack. Also, the result is cosmetic.

However, reverse, at lease on some machines, can be used for needle positioning, such at the end of run or when turning a corner.

 

[Northmount]

@RonJr When the thread is laying on the top, there is too much top tension, or vice versa, too little bottom tension.  But first make sure that the machine is threaded properly, especially where it breaks the thread.  Are you holding the thread tails when you start sewing a seam?  If not, you need to as it can result in a birds nest on the bottom side and result in breaking the thread, jamming the needle, and even bending or breaking the needle.  The tension would also be lost for the first several stitches.

Tom