Pfaff 545 bobbin case opener jams the catch hook

[John D]

Thank you DanishMan and LindanHotAir.

 

Loosened the bobbin case opener and was able to reset the gap a week but. But the action is still frozen in place. 

is it possible to have thread or fabric jammed up below the bobbin bed? I see in my notes that I pulled a small 5cm  by 10cm (1” by 2”) piece of cotton fabric out when I removed the plates on the bed. 
 

Will disassemble later today and check before taking in to the shop. 

[Constabulary]

yeah - that can happen and often owners do not what to do and sell the machine as broke.

This is what I found on my 107w1 between bobbin case and hook when I received it. The thread and oil have built up to a really compact piece. There were 4 or 5 colors of thread in this thread "cookie". They just did not care about the machine until the bitter end (all of a sudden, of course) and then did not know what to do.

Machine cost me 1€ + shipping back then Conclusion - better know your machine and be able to help your self.

Edited July 26, 2021 by Constabulary

[John D]

5 hours ago, Constabulary said:

yeah - that can happen and often owners do not what to do and sell the machine as broke.

This is what I found on my 107w1 between bobbin case and hook when I received it. The thread and oil have built up to a really compact piece. There were 4 or 5 colors of thread in this thread "cookie". They just did not care about the machine until the bitter end (all of a sudden, of course) and then did not know what to do.

Machine cost me 1€ + shipping back then Conclusion - better know your machine and be able to help your self.

Vielen Danke! Je vous remercie! Thank you so very much everyone! 

Works! Now to reset the upper and lower thread tensions! Thank you so very much!

In case it wasn't clear, the entire catch loop assembly would not budge. As if it was fused together. The root cause was a few things (I think):
1 - 20cm (8") piece of thread wrapped around the bobbin bed post that goes through the hook bed
2 - a crapton of soot build up around the thread, the bobbin bed post, and pretty much everywhere underneath
3 - wrong sized needle (it "worked" but it would create a sloppy loop that would result in jams)
4 - wrong position for the bobbin case opener 

NOTE: I may have some of the parts names wrong. Doing my best from memory and horrible lack of a user's manual. :( 

With the photos and descriptions I decided that just because I could not see the jammed threads, didn't mean they weren't there. The bobbin bed would NOT come out of the loop catch hook assembly. I tried everything and finally had to unwedge it with a carefully placed flathead screwdriver. PING! and I had parts all over my work station.

I inspected them very carefully to make sure nothing was malformed and there were not tool marks, especially screw drivers used as levers. Everything was in excellent condition but covered in a black grit that at first I though was from parts rubbing and creating steel/iron dust. But nothing had wear marks. Unscrewed the hook loop catch bed and found a small piece of thread inside. Pulled off the hook loop assembly and voila! Single piece of black thread wrapped tightly around the post of the bobbin bed. And even more gritty black powder. But it smelled like ash. (What the heck!)

Cleaned everything carefully. Another visual inspection. Verified pieces fit as expected and worked without friction and reset the hook and bobbin case opener gap. Discovered the needle was too short by about 15mm. Replaced it. Caught the thread on the first pass! 

Curious about the soot and grimed asked the previous owner and they said "Oh I use a lighter to burn out the threads! It is why I only purchase metal machines!"

Ran some canvas and leather through the machine for a quick 'check' and it looks like all I need to do is iron out the tensions to get it to work again!

Seriously once again, thank you everyone for the assist!

[John D]

[suzelle]

On 7/23/2021 at 6:14 PM, John D said:

The following diagram is for a Pfaff 1245...
I'

Thanks John for posting this diagram!

Does anyone have a part number for the screw shown in above diagram pleasee? It's Marked "2" in diagram. Thank you!

Edited March 15, 2022 by suzelle

[suzelle]

19 hours ago, suzelle said:

Does anyone have a part number for the screw shown in above diagram pleasee? It's Marked "2" in diagram. Thank you!

Uwe helped me with finding correct part # - thanks Uwe! It got ordered! The part number is 91-000699-15