Help! Is my Pfaff's timing off?

[Annette R.]

I hope someone out there can give me some advice. My DD's Pfaff 2025 suddenly stopped working - the needle hits the bobbin chase (I've broken a needle, just testing it). We cleaned it out thoroughly, and it's been oiled recently. We called the quilt store that sold it to her, and she suggested the timing is probably off. It will be in the shop for about 3-1/2 weeks! This machine has not been used much, so I'm surprised the timing would be out of whack so soon. We did not abuse this machine, but a corner of a triangle did get "eaten." The bobbin chase (that holds the bobbin) seems to be loose - is that a symptom of the timing being off? I'm confused...

[Annette R.]

Did you by any chance hit a pin? That can throw the timing off. I wouldn't think just having a triangle corner eaten would do it, but I suppose anything is possible. I've never had a timing issue with any of my machines, but since the newest one was made in 1956, and all of them are all-metal, they're a little sturdier than the newer ones seem to be.

Pat in Rockport, TX

[Annette R.]

This is not a high-end machine, and personally, I think my Bernina is built a lot better. It just sort of jammed on the cloth, and after I got it dis-entangled, the bobbin chase seemed loose, and it would no longer sew. My husband finally examined it and says he thinks a gear went in it, as the chase just spins loosely. :cry: Looks like it will need to go to the hospital. My SIL says he will bring it in tomorrow. (DD is not going anywhere, as she is a week or 2 from delivery and very uncomfortable). I am really kicking myself for not bringing my Bernina along with me; I've finished the May BOM, and didn't bring any extra fabric along with me for this visit! (Thought I'd have a new grand-baby by now...) Guess I'll have to start knitting! I DID bring my knitting needles along.

[Annette R.]

I suspect your husband is correct. In the 1960s, Singer, and I suppose other sewing machine manufacturers, started using plastic gears, instead of steel, and they tended to deteriorate over time. My DH brought me a machine he had found at a garage sale several years ago. When I took the bottom off to clean it, the gears fell out in fragments. That machine went to the trash bin. It wasn't a good enough machine to bother trying to find new gears for it. :cry:

Pat in Rockport, TX