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From: chiichick
Date: 04-10-2007, 03:42 PM (1 of 13)
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Hello! I've had my serger a little over a year and I'm having a problem that seems to continually pop up. My thread hangs over the side of my fabric. It stitches onto the fabric and holds where it is sewn but then there is always at least 1/4 of an inch of the stichting hanging off the right side. It's very frustrating because it seems like no matter how I adjust the tension or stitch settings, or how many times I re thread it, it just won't fix the problem. The fabric is a lightweight denim and it cuts through just fine, and the stiching seems to be tight enough where it is attatched. I've used my serger before for other fabrics in a different thread color and it has worked just fine without this problem, but this problem does seem to pop up sometimes (like today) Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks so much for reading! I don't know how to determine my model number, the instruction booklet says it's a singer ultralock and that's all I really know. |
User: chiichick
Member since: 04-10-2007 Total posts: 5 |
From: DorothyL
Date: 04-10-2007, 07:32 PM (2 of 13)
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On mine the stitches seemed to hang over the edge a bit -- nothing like a quarter inch though -- and I used a wider stitch. It seemed to help some, but they still didn't sit on the edge right. Then I realized that it was the way I was holding the fabric. I have to hold the fabric straight behind the needles or it kind of veers to the left right after the knife before the needles. I don't know if that will help because a quarter inch is a lot -- like almost the whole width of the stitch -- so your problem may be more serious. Dorothy |
User: DorothyL
Member since: 12-09-2002 Total posts: 3883 |
From: grandma C
Date: 04-11-2007, 12:53 AM (3 of 13)
I'm not a seasoned serger but the cutting width may need to be adjusted to accomodate the stitch width but that does seem a bit backwards, Should be some way to adjust the stitch width but my book says adjust the cutting width for this problem. Go figure?? I hope you can fix the problem without a trip to the service center. |
User: grandma C
Member since: 01-15-2007 Total posts: 263 |
From: Tom Land
Date: 04-11-2007, 09:47 AM (4 of 13)
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Adjusting your cutting width wider will remove most of the "overhang". You can also reduce it by tightening the looper tensions
Have fun or don't do it, Tom
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User: Tom Land
Member since: 09-21-2005 Total posts: 514 |
From: chiichick
Date: 04-11-2007, 01:30 PM (5 of 13)
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How do I go about adjusting the cutting width? Thanks so much for the replies! |
User: chiichick
Member since: 04-10-2007 Total posts: 5 |
From: plrlegal
Date: 04-11-2007, 05:25 PM (6 of 13)
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The adjustment for your stitch width is the adjustment for your cutting blade -- narrow width -- moves the blade to the left and longer stitch width --distance from where the needle goes into to the fabric to the top of the stitch) the blade moves to the right. Is that as clear as mud??? LOL The adjustment for your stitches going across your fabric is your stitch length or at least that's the way they reference it in the manual for my Juki serger and the problem you're having is the stitch width. There should be an adjustment for your blade to move to the left or the right somewhere on your machine. Patsy Patsy
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User: plrlegal
Member since: 05-19-2001 Total posts: 318 |
From: Tom Land
Date: 04-11-2007, 11:18 PM (7 of 13)
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"Ultralock" is a series of sergers. There should be a model number on the front of the machine or on a tag on back. It will begin with 14 followed by a letter or two letters then 3 more numbers. If you can give us that we can tell you exactly how to adjust your width (cutting width as Patsy pointed out).
Have fun or don't do it, Tom
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User: Tom Land
Member since: 09-21-2005 Total posts: 514 |
From: chiichick
Date: 04-11-2007, 11:58 PM (8 of 13)
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My model number is 14SH654 Thank you so much for helping! The booklet just feels very unclear about exactly what adjusts what and I don't have any universal knowledge of sergers. Thanks so much! |
User: chiichick
Member since: 04-10-2007 Total posts: 5 |
From: chiichick
Date: 04-12-2007, 12:01 AM (9 of 13)
| I also know that this sounds very silly from someone who has had my serger for over a year, but I have NEVER been able to adjust the stich width. I swear that I just have a mental block against this darn serger but that booklet is so unclear about things but I feel like I have changed every lever knob and darn pulley on that machine without success to stitch width . . I feel so hopeless. I work miracles with sewing machines but I just have issues with sergers I guess. |
User: chiichick
Member since: 04-10-2007 Total posts: 5 |
From: chiichick
Date: 04-12-2007, 01:04 AM (10 of 13)
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So after conquering my fears of unscrewing something to adjust the stitch width I now cannot re tighten the screw to save my selected width . . My problem has also turned in a new direction. It is now the lower looper thread (on the underneath side so I'm assuming it's the lower looper) that is sticking out past the fabric. Not the whole thing, it's just the lower looper thread having way tooo much thread and just hanging out in space. Sorry for reposting so many times I just feel like I'm finding out all these things and needing help as I go. |
User: chiichick
Member since: 04-10-2007 Total posts: 5 |
From: wghmch
Date: 04-12-2007, 11:29 AM (11 of 13)
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Sometimes, just understanding better what is happening will help you to correct the problem. Your cutting "width" is definitely what needs adjusting as Tom has said, but here is why. Most of us are used to thinking about the stitch/fabric relationship in the manner that it forms in an ordinary SM. On regular machines, the loop that goes over the edge of the fabric is drawn up against the fabric as the stitch is formed. Therefore, it is almost impossible that you will end up with extra thread hanging over the edge. With a serger, the loopers swing the thread over the tongue on the presser foot, and as the stitch is tightened, it is drawn up not against the edge of the fabric, but against this tongue on the foot. Once this is completed and the amount of thread is in place, the loop is slid off of the tongue by the motion of the feed. As a result, if the blades are cutting off more fabric than will extend out to where the tongue held the loops, the thread will extend this far beyond the fabric. With fairly substantial fabrics, the best blade setting will be lined up directly with where the tongue has held the loop, but with flimsier fabrics, the material will retract somewhat as it comes off of the blades, and you need to adjust for this. Obviously, all of this is tied in with the looper tensions, because the tension needs to be tight enough to cause the loop to be drawn snug to the tongue. Bill Holman |
User: wghmch
Member since: 03-04-2003 Total posts: 249 |
From: plrlegal
Date: 04-12-2007, 02:11 PM (12 of 13)
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When I purchased my first serger (about 10 years ago), I realized that I had to get a different mind set in order to be able to utilize it properly. Once I was able to switch my mindset from how a sewing machine functions (stitches) to how a serger forms stitches, things began to drop in place and now I can't imagine trying to construct a garment without my serger. It took me a while to figure out and understand stitch length and stitch width and how they each adjusted and related to each other on a serger also. Patsy Patsy
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User: plrlegal
Member since: 05-19-2001 Total posts: 318 |
From: Kylnne2
Date: 04-15-2007, 06:32 PM (13 of 13)
| Chiichick, try tightening the tension on the thread that is looping and see if that helps. |
User: Kylnne2
Member since: 07-10-2004 Total posts: 629 |
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