kgg Report post Posted February 3, 2019 I have always seemed to have had a problem with 8 oz spools of bonded nylon thread particularly black of uncoiling then the excess thread going under the bottom of the spool and getting jammed. I do like the smaller 8 oz spool size as it gives more colour options rather then having to purchase the 1 lb. spools. Tried various methods of stopping the excessive uncoiling of thread with the traditional way of standing the coil straight up on the thread spool rack. None of my methods seemed to work and even on occasion had it happen with 1 lb. spools. Never had it happen with bonded polyester thread, hum. My solution seems to have worked. I mounted the 8 oz. spool or troublesome 1 lb. spool horizontally using stuff I had on hand (2 - turn buckles, 1' of scrap pipe 3/8" pipe, adjustable grooming arm, 2 eye bolts). The turn buckles allow the spool to swing if needed, provide support to the spool and unhook to allow for a spool change. I placed one eye bolt about halfway up the 8 oz spool forcing the thread to always be in the middle and about 4 inches above the spool. The second eye bolt is there just in case I need to use a second thread hole. I tried 3/4" pipe and it had to much surface tension with the spool shaft but 3/8" pipe works just fine. The adjustable grooming arm allows for 2 points of height adjustment on the shaft and can be clamped to the table top anywhere. I did have to change the thread path and use the thread hole for the bobbin tensioner rather then the normal top thread path. So far all I had to do is make a minor top tension adjustment. I have attached some pictures, I hope this helps someone else. Comments always welcomed. The green cloth is under the presser foot to catch any oil drops, I just done my weekly oiling on the machine. kgg Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dikman Report post Posted February 13, 2019 Just saw this, it's an interesting idea. I've never really liked the way thread unwinds off a spool. Might have to give this some thought. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kgg Report post Posted February 13, 2019 Hi dikman This was an ongoing battle having to contend with the spring back / excessive uncoiling of 8 oz spools of bonded nylon thread. The d stuff would go under the bottom of the spool and get wrapped then of course screw-up tension and break. Having the spool suspended horizontally solved my problem. I have tried it with 1lb spools and it works as well. I think the most important part is forcing the direction of the thread so it uncoils from the middle of the spool. The only thing is, it does change tension of the thread a fair bit and you have to readjust your tensioner to compensate for the increase in spool thread tension. kgg Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jimi Report post Posted February 13, 2019 I think normally for this situation you would use a piece of mesh over the thread, the type they use to protect tubes and bars. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dikman Report post Posted February 15, 2019 Those socks should stop the thread from dropping loose coils under the spool, but I've noticed when winding bobbins that the thread can often start twisting after the bobbin is partially wound. Unwinding from a horizontal spool should be a more "natural" thread flow. A bit like unwinding fishing line from a spool onto a fishing reel, after a while it starts to develop a reverse twist and if you're not careful you can get some frustrating tangles occurring. I'm going to modify my stand-alone bobbin winder to use horizontal spools and look at how to make a unit that can be swapped between machines, maybe with bearings to reduce drag. That should eliminate at least one possible potential problem. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kgg Report post Posted February 15, 2019 Hi dikman, I would be interested in knowing what you come up with. Bearings would really reduce any thread tension drag. I seen quite a bit of difference going from 3/4" to 3/8" for the horizontal support rod, would have tried a smaller diameter rod but didn't have one. kgg Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dikman Report post Posted February 15, 2019 I'll post it on here (assuming it works!) but might be a while, I keep getting distracted with other things. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kgg Report post Posted February 15, 2019 Look forward to seeing your improvements. kgg Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kgg Report post Posted February 16, 2019 On 2/15/2019 at 12:54 AM, dikman said: Unwinding from a horizontal spool should be a more "natural" thread flow. After re- reading your natural thread flow comment I decided to do a little look around and realized that a lot if not all thread is placed on spools in the horizontal position. So you are right it would be more natural to uncoil from that position. Why most spools are stood up in spool stands today probably has more to do with space saving. It might be just a left over thread spool position from the beginning when spools were more like large wooded domestic thread spools. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dikman Report post Posted February 16, 2019 I would say it's more to do with convenience and simplicity (and cost!). Making a fitting that can hold multiple rolls of thread horizontally would be more complicated, and as you found if simply placed on a rod/pipe rolling friction can become an issue. I've used a length of light tube for the spool support and have a large bearing fitted to the end so it rolls easily. Now I'm trying to figure out the best way to clamp the bearing and make support that can be easily moved between machines. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dikman Report post Posted February 19, 2019 I posted it under sewing machines, as it seemed more logical. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
