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From: nannylin
Date: 12-06-2006, 10:07 PM (1 of 7)
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I am not a happy stitcher today. I have been trying to make all of my Christmas gifts, including a quilt for my daughter which included 36 machine embroidered 8" blocks. I have finished 32 of them. I wrote for advice last week about breaking needles and shredding threads. Changing to a 14 needle helped for a time. Suddenly last night needles broke left and right and what few stitches were made were crummy looking. So it was off to the repair shop today. My machine is the older model Babylock Ellure which is less than 2 years old. I love this machine and have made some beautiful things. I use the Ultimate Box. Prior to today I loved everything about this machine. To get to the point: First problems discovered were some needle nicks in the shuttle, which could cause broken thread and "birds nests" under the hoop. That was changed. Next, there were some threads in the tension disk area. Those were removed. The repair guy demonstrated that the upper tension was so high it pulled the needle into a bow, causing the breakage. He called the Babylock people and was told to send it to them. Apparently there is some known problem with the tension assembly on these machines. It may be "unfixable" amd I will have to wait at least 2 weeks for an answer. Does anyone have definite knowledge about this issue with this model? I would like to get my ducks in a row in case I am hit with a mega-bill for repairs and to decide if it is worth it. Linda (Longing for my old Viking) |
User: nannylin
Member since: 02-27-2006 Total posts: 47 
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From: Tom Land
Date: 12-07-2006, 12:25 AM (2 of 7)
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That tension assembly has a few different problems that are common and on going. Babylock has come out with updates to alleviate them but they will still continue to be a chronic problem. Just not as often. I am surprised your dealer felt he needed to send the machine in. Is he a fairly new dealer? The "fixes" are relatively simple but if your dealer isn't familair with them it is understandable that he would want to make sure they get corrected properly for you. Things that will help prevent the problems are to avoid metallic and nylon threads (occassional use is OK but that is the wrong machine if you want to use them a lot). The other is to always unthread the machine by cutting the thread on top and pulling the thread down instead of pulling the thread up from the top. DON'T WORRY YOUR MACHINE CAN BE FIXED. The parts are still under warranty. Labor may be high unless your dealer decides to absorb it. Relax, Babylock is going to take care of it. The bobbincase problem is also a chronic sore spot. By now you already know how expensive that bobbincase is. Take care to keep the bobbincase area clean and avoid metallic, nylon and heavy threads. Be very carefull of how you thread the machine. Misthreading even once can cause the bobbincase to spin and be ruined by the needle. If you do these this shouldn't be a problem anymore. One more warning. Never tighten the needle more than finger tight. That needlebar is subject to bend if a screwdriver or other tool is used to tighten it. This will cause the needle to cock off to the left and eventually get to the point that the needle will actually rub or hit the throat plate. Babylock acknowledges this as a defective part and the needlebar will be covered under warranty but the labor won't. The replacement needlebar will be the same thing. So be careful. Again this will only be a problem if you use something to overtighten the needle screw. Have fun or don't do it, Tom
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User: Tom Land
Member since: 09-21-2005 Total posts: 514 |
From: CindyBee
Date: 12-07-2006, 06:09 AM (3 of 7)
| I also have the Babylock Ellure which is about 2 years old now. I'm sorry to hear about these problems and I hope you do get them resolved to your satisfaction. Please let us know how the situation turns out in the end. I will be watching my own machine closely for any sign of trouble. |
User: CindyBee
Member since: 10-21-2006 Total posts: 8 |
From: nannylin
Date: 12-13-2006, 07:30 AM (4 of 7)
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Thanks, Tom. This information is useful to have. I have recently been burned by Ford, having to fight for the cost of known problems they did not admit to up front, so I am a little gun shy about trusting manufacturers to make good! (Ford finally did come through, though.) As to the repair guy, he is very experienced with these machines but none of his fixes took care of the problem. It was a conundrum. That's why he called Babylock, I guess. We'll see. I'll let you know what happens. Linda |
User: nannylin
Member since: 02-27-2006 Total posts: 47
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From: nannylin
Date: 01-10-2007, 08:27 AM (5 of 7)
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Well, I finally got my machine back. Very mysterious, I think. If you remember, the tesioner pulled the thread so tight that it bent the needles, causing breakage. It was sent to Babylock because my local repairman couldn't figure out what was causing it. I got it back with an admonition not to pull on my fabric when sewing so that I don't cause the needle to break. That makes my blood boil because all I do is machine embroidery, and the unit moves the hoop. They didn't even mention the original problem. They charged me for a new needle plate assembly, labor, and shipping for a total of $159.00. My local guy says that he knows they did something to the tensioner unit but they did not mention that. It feels sneaky to me that it is a known problem. In any event, it works now for straight sewing and I will try some embroidery today to see what happens. Linda |
User: nannylin
Member since: 02-27-2006 Total posts: 47
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From: nannylin
Date: 01-10-2007, 08:33 PM (6 of 7)
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Well, I got one design done, a smallish one. It looks OK. However, the last thread color is stuck in the tensionsers, so it is off to the shop. I was so careful to clip the thread at the spool and pull it down rather than pulling it up. Good quality thread. I'm afraid to yank on it so it's back to the shop we go. Linda, who is not happy |
User: nannylin
Member since: 02-27-2006 Total posts: 47
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From: Tom Land
Date: 01-10-2007, 11:35 PM (7 of 7)
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Linda, don't let Tacony hit you with another shipping charge. Have your dealer call them to issue a call tag. Without seeing the machine I don't know what is causing the problem but Tacony does have some good service techs and I expect they will get it right this time. Possibly a newer tech worked on it or it might just be a human error by a more experienced tech. Which ever it is it should be corrected and if you stand your ground you won't have to pay any more. The machine is out of warranty (labor) but you should not have been out for the shipping just because your local dealer couldn't fix it (I am assuming you bought it from him). This is one reason we encourage buying locally.
Have fun or don't do it, Tom
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User: Tom Land
Member since: 09-21-2005 Total posts: 514 |
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