“Pop! Pop! Pop!” was the sound that I heard coming from my machine as I worked on my Children at Play quilt. I checked to see if there was any lint caught under the stitch plate. Nothing. I checked to see that the thread was in properly. It looked okay. I checked to see that the needle was inserted properly. That looked fine. But still the popping sound continued every time I sewed.
And then I asked myself, “When was the last time you changed this needle?”
It had been a while. I know that you’re supposed to change your needle every 4-6 hours of sewing time, but I can never figure out exactly how long that is. Usually seeing my stitches start to look funny is a reminder that I need a new needle.
To see if my needle was the culprit of this weird sound, I popped in a new needle. And would you believe that’s all it took to bring my machine back to its usual purr?
So just in case your machine starts to sound a little funny, you may want to pop in a new needle to stop your machine from complaining.
9 comments
I definitely do not change my needle often enough. Glad you're back on track!
I haven't changed my needle often, but boy does it make a difference when I take the time to do it!
Where did you get your free motion foot? And what brand is it? I am looking into buying one soon and would love to hear how you like yours! 🙂
I changed my needle this last weekend and usually put in a new one every time I start to machine quilt. Since I do that pretty regularly between all my piecing, it seems to work!
I feel like changing my needle is the equivalent of rebooting my computer!
I am so terrible at remembering to change the needle. I've gotten better at changing before I start quilting a big project, but little stuff…. And yet, i'm always amazed at how big a difference it makes.
Hee hee, that noise is usually how I know I sewed over a pin ;o)
I changed my needle just before I stopped sewing a month ago. My needles usually last quite long. I'd feel I was using up too many if I changed them every 4-6 hours =D
I try to change to a new needle at the beginning of each new project and for sure before I begin quilting a quilt.
I sometimes get a crunching sound when sewing. Like dry rubbing on something. I know it is time to clean the bobbin compartment and add a drop of oil. I hate taking it all apart but each time I do, problem solved. Annoying sound goes away.
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