Threads - which do you prefer?

[karen f.]

Lorchen I wonder what the dealer was doing every three months if they didn't even clean the lint out of her machine?!

[Betty J.]

Keith, you are fun. My mother taught me to sew at such an early age I cannot remember for sure exactly when...maybe I was about 4 when she started. And yet, I clearly remember that one of the earliest lessons was how to clean and oil my machine. She said it was our responsibility as "seamstresses" to take proper care of our equipment and that way it would not have to be replaced or repaired very often so we can "have our ball gowns ready when they need to be". :lol:

I, too, will use whatever I have that works for what I'm trying to do, but I truly prefer Superior threads for the most part. I have an 830 LE among my machines and find that it will sew with most threads, but there are some it spits back out at me (what a prima donna it is). :roll: It really hates Sulky threads though it does work ok with them if I insist, especially with their 12 weight. Still, if the tension is right and I clean it and oil it frequently (I oil it with every bobbin change), it accepts nearly everything. It does have a particular need to have its tension set right for each type of thread. One of the funny things about it is that it wants the metallic threads to have a higher upper tension rather than a lower tension, while my other machines want a lower upper tension.

All my other machines aren't nearly as picky, but even they require proper tension settings and a good cleaning and oil every now and again. Also the needle I use needs to be right for the threads. I'm convinced that most problems anyone may have with threads are caused by the wrong needles or tension settings, so I keep a notebook as I find out things.

[Keith D.]

Aauuugh, shucks... ops: ops: 8)

I was really trying to be helpful for the Lady from Glouchestershire about what threads she should stock in her store - but then I did editorialize a bit about lint-free thread, huh? (I sometimes like a little bit of fuzz.) And I didn't define what I meant by periodically clean my machine.

I think I have more fun sometimes shopping for thread than I do shopping for fabric. I think it's important to stock them too - I like to buy thread in a store where I can touch it and see it all in front of me. Thread cards and the internet are not the same for thread shopping. Opps! having said that, I do think I buy a lot of my thread at quilt shows where it all is right in front of me... And actually fabric shopping almost always wins too...

By periodically , I mean almost every time I change the bobbin. Whether it looks like it needs it or not, I wisk my little brush around inside. It came with my machine - I think the manufacturer wants me to use it... :?: And now I feel like I'm sassy sermonizing again... :shock: :roll: And I try to oil every 8 to 10 hours - way more often than the little indicator light shows up on my machine. I do only oil where the manual says to - as opposed to my mother who oils everything she can get at that moves.

You know, it's a both a blessing and a curse. Because of the way I was raised, I wipe my feet before I enter a building, I face forward and don't speak in elevators, I don't cut paper with fabric scissors, and I keep my bobbin area clean. This uneasy chill goes up my back when I don't do these things... :shock:

Hi Norma! - When I sewed some garments as a pre-teen it was on a Singer or Kenmore and I didn't pay attention to threads much. Maybe I should have made ball gowns instead of Hang Ten styled tank tops. When I started quilting, I almost immediately got a hand-me-down Bernina 900, and then a 1000 series. And now I mostly piece, applique, and quilt on a Bernina 430. All three Berninas handle well almost every thread I throw at them. Like others said, if I'm not cleaning often enough, they let me know by how they sound.

Hi Lorchen - I love you! The laughter I share with you is good for my soul. Margo and Betty Jo too - it's so nice to feel like part of the crowd - similar in many ways!

Is using a lot of different threads out of the ordinary?

[Hannelore N.]

Yohooo, Keith Darling!! I'm intrigued.... You say: "as opposed to my mother who oils everything she can get at that moves". I now can't get the picture out of my mind of you being chased around the kitchen table by your Mum because you need oiling somewhere. :P

Sewing machines and threads are another whole new topic. My two Berninas (220 and 630) are well-behaved with most threads, but I often have to adjust the tension a little when changing threads. My very first machine (still much loved and used) is a little Frister and Rossman Cub4 from the early 1970s. That one copes with anything I throw at it - unusual threads, unusual fabrics.... no problem, and the quality of the straight stitch is superb. It also weighs more than the 630 even though it's so small. Everything on that baby is solid metal. If I would be forced to have only one machine, I think I'd go for my little heavy metal friend. Also, because it's not computerised I can totally service it myself and there is much less to go wrong than with most of todays machines.

[Norma H.]

Keith and Lorchen, you just made my day :lol: :lol: :lol:
I'm very relieved to hear that occasionally means every time you change a bobbin. Phew!

[Norma H.]

Love this thread!!! :shock: ~no pun intended~ :shock: Very informative and oh so much fun. :lol: :lol: :lol: Thank you all for the great information.

[Rita C.]

Yohooo, Keith Darling!! I'm intrigued.... You say: "as opposed to my mother who oils everything she can get at that moves". I now can't get the picture out of my mind of you being chased around the kitchen table by your Mum because you need oiling somewhere. :P

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: Maybe that's what's wrong with me....I didn't get oiled enough when I was young! :lol:

Seriously though, I have a Janome Horizon and it doesn't say anything about oiling it anywhere in the manual that I can see. Where do you oil? Is it underneath the bobbin? Fellow Janome-ites do you oil and if so where? (Mystified mother of 3 Ireland!)

[Norma H.]

Hi Mother Mystify! My former Janome MC 9700 did not need oil anywhere. I think it has to do with the horizontal bobbin.
Well you can oil your children instead :lol: :lol: :lol:

[Rita C.]

At this stage Norma I don't think they would let me! :lol: The Horizon does have a horizontal bobbin though. Maybe I should ring my dealer and ask?

[karen f.]

At this stage Norma I don't think they would let me! :lol: The Horizon does have a horizontal bobbin though. Maybe I should ring my dealer and ask?

Rita I wondered about that too when I got my Horizon and couldn't find anything in the manual about oiling it. I called the dealer and they said not to oil it.
I always liked oiling and taking apart and cleaning my older machines. Made we feel so virtuous and efficient!

[Rita C.]

Thanks Karen, it's good to know that I haven't missed something I should have been doing for the past year or so. :roll: I guess we will just have to get our oiling fix on one of the other machines we all own. :lol:

[Annis C.]

Thanks for the info. I was beginning to feel guilty for all of the years I went without oiling my machine. I sewed on a New Home (Janome) for years before getting my Pfaff which seldom gets oiled either except occasionally the bobbin area when it gets a little noisy. I do get it serviced regularly. As for my current favorite thread, I'm using Aurifil for piecing. I tried Superior's Masterpiece once but it didn't do well with my Pfaff - too much breakage. Someone else I know that uses the same machine had the same problem. Most of the local stores carry Aurifil.

[karen f.]

It's funny that they don't tell you that information in their booklet. I guess they figure we only need to know what we DO need to do.
Yes Rita luckily we keep our old friends (machines) around when inspired to be all mechanical and handy womanish!

[Hannelore N.]

Rita, if your kids refuse being oiled regularly, you could try the cat or the husband. If all fails you'll have to save up, fly over to the US, and visit Keith, seeing that he is well used to the 'Let's Oil Anything That Moves' ritual.

[Paula D.]

Am I the only one looking at this topic to learn about threads? If you want to talk about oiling your machine, please make a new folder for that. I find it's been a constant problem that conversations veer into different directions and no longer pertain to the topic at hand. Stay on the subject, for everyone's benefit. THANK YOU!