Thread keeps breaking

[selby baggers]

I went to pick up the boy from his grannie's and whilst there she asked if I could take another look at her machine as it was still not working. No wonder as the needle had snapped, a part of the needle holding unit was bent and it was a right sorry old mess. Last time I managed to extract all the broken bits of needle but couldn't get it to accept a new needle.

This time I was sober so I realised I needed to bend the bit of metal the other way. Then I added the needle and everytime I tried to sew the tension was all over and the thread kept breaking. It was only after a glass of wine that I wondered whether the needle might be round the wrong way. It wasn't very clear mind what was construed as the right way round bar one thing..

If the tensions wrong and thread keeps breaking try turning the needle around.

This I tried and the machine worked brilliantly. I was able to run up 2 morsbags and defo confirmed the machine was mended.

From now on I will defo try the needle round the other way if my stitching is going all to pot!

[Offcuts]

When you say turn the needle round do you mean put the flat side at the front instead of the back?

[selby baggers]

Nope I had to put the flat side to the back. It was completely opposite to how I thought it should be lol

[beattie]

My mum had a sewing machine where the flat side of the needle had to go on the right. All the ones I've had, the flat side faces the back.

[Offcuts]

I have always been told to put the flat side at the back Is it Singers where the flat side goes to the side. These things happen though - I always thought February was spelt Febuary until yesterday

[beattie]

Strange thing to find out in August!
My mum's sewing machine was a Singer but I don't know if it applies to all of them.

[Offcuts]

In who wants to be a millionaire last night CT asked how many months of the year have 8 letters and the answer was 3. I was shouting NO NO NO its 2! It took me hours to realise about Febuary, 50 years of spelling it incorrectly

[selby baggers]

Probably goes to show how often I have had to change a needle.

I did have a machine were it didn't matter which way you had it.. can't remember what it was but it was a long long time ago.

[scallywagbags]

fantastic alcohol fuelled perseverence there Selby bagger!

The answer to the great which way round debate is - it depends, sorry I can't be more definitive. To add to the confusion, some machines are designed so you thread the needle from front to back and then some from left to right. There are also some which have a completely circular needle shaft, ie no flat bit to help decide which way around the needle should go.

Best thing I can offer is whatever way around you try the needle, turn the wheel by hand and slowly until you're sure it is stitching properly. A badly set needle can present itself into where the moving parts are underneath at the wrong point in the stitch cycle. If this happens and it collides with the moving bits it can knock the timing out and will mean that you won't get a satisfactory stitch even when the needle is properly inserted.

Enough of the cautionary tales anyhoo - I love that all of these machines are seeing the light of day, pressed into service by making more and more lovely morsbags