Impressions - February 2014 - 23
The best way to oil your needle
bars, as well as control the quantity of oil
applied, is to use a cotton swab. Dip it in oil,
pull each of the needle bars on the sewing
head down individually and wipe them. By
doing it this way, you're simultaneously
cleaning and oiling the needle bars.
(the part you snap your bobbin case into)
is imperative to keep your machine humming along smoothly.
Watch the needles. The most
important part of the sewing process is the smallest part of the
machine: the needle. It pierces
the fabric and carries the thread
through. It is designed to create
the loop of thread that the hook catches to
make a stitch. Most importantly, the needle's eye allows the thread to pass through
it smoothly.
Any given spot on the thread will pass
back and forth through the needle's eye
30 or more times before it is laid down
on the fabric. Thus, the needle is critical
to making the machine run properly. Any
small burr or rough spot on the needle will
cause a thread break.
You may be wondering if there's a
standard for how often you should change
your needle. That is a tricky situation because embroidery machines have multiple
needles and they don't all get the same
amount of usage. So rather than replacing
all the needles at a set interval, I recommend replacing them as the performance
falls off for each particular needle.
You can measure this by the number
of thread breaks that occur. If a particular
needle begins to break thread consistently,
impressionsmag.com
then it's time to replace that needle. Another easy way to measure this is by using
the "three-strikes-and-you're-out" policy.
If a particular needle breaks thread three
times within a relatively short time period,
I replace it. Nearly every time the thread
breaks, stop immediately.
It's not always the machine's fault. Just because your
embroidery machine is not
running properly doesn't always mean there is something
wrong with it. Many times,
the problem can be the design you are attempting to sew. An improperly digitized
design can cause thread breaks and slower
production.
Stitches that are too close together also
will cause thread breaks. If a design has
tiny stitches - usually the result of too
much small detail in a design - thread
breaks also can result.
Sometimes, there may be no indication there are too many stitches other
than a longer sewout time. Longer stitch
lengths on fill areas can dramatically cut
down your stitch count. For instance,
changing the stitch length from the default value (usually about 3.5mm) to
about 5mm can decrease your stitch
count by 30% in some areas. That's a lot
of stitches saved, which transfers into a
lot of time saved on your machine. As an
added bonus, the design will appear flatter and softer on the garment.
Another design issue is the number of
trims. Design efficiency is critical to keeping your machine at its highest production
level. For one thing, every trim takes an
average of seven seconds. The way I look at
it, each trim eliminated equates to seven
seconds saved on the design. That may not
seem like a lot, but if you can save 10 trims
in a design, that is more than one minute
per run. During the course of a day, that
small amount of time saved can add up to
30-40 minutes.
Those seven seconds may not be the
only time savings you get from having
fewer trims. A thread trim is the most difficult thing your machine does. This means
there is a higher chance that the machine
will malfunction and stop. It may be that
it didn't cut and got hung up, or that it
unthreaded after the trim. Keeping the
number of trims to a minimum reduces
the chances of these malfunctions.
Get to know your machine. While keeping your
embroidery machine running
smoothly is critical to higher
productivity, it's just one important factor. Using the features built into your machine can help
you save setup time and overcome everyday challenges. There are many machine
brands available on the market, and each
one tries to set itself apart from the pack
with various features.
Did you know many machines have
February 2014 | Impressions
23
http://www.impressionsmag.com
Impressions - February 2014
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Impressions - February 2014
Impressions - February 2014
First Impressions
From the Show Director
FYI
Product Gallery
ISS Conferences
5 Things to Know About Your Embroidery Machine
Essentials for Better Embroidery
Professional Picks
Better Business: Create, Show and Sell
Building & Segmenting Your Contact List
Turning a Specialty Into Success
Shop Spotlight
Embroidery Design & Digitizing
Embroidery Production
Tech Tips: Embroidery
Screen Printing Graphics & Design
Screen Printing Technique
Digital Decorating
Classifieds
Online Directory
Ad Index
Impressions - February 2014 - CT1
Impressions - February 2014 - CT2
Impressions - February 2014 - Cover1
Impressions - February 2014 - Impressions - February 2014
Impressions - February 2014 - 1
Impressions - February 2014 - 2
Impressions - February 2014 - 3
Impressions - February 2014 - First Impressions
Impressions - February 2014 - 5
Impressions - February 2014 - From the Show Director
Impressions - February 2014 - 7
Impressions - February 2014 - FYI
Impressions - February 2014 - 9
Impressions - February 2014 - 10
Impressions - February 2014 - 11
Impressions - February 2014 - 12
Impressions - February 2014 - 13
Impressions - February 2014 - 14
Impressions - February 2014 - 15
Impressions - February 2014 - Product Gallery
Impressions - February 2014 - 17
Impressions - February 2014 - 18
Impressions - February 2014 - 19
Impressions - February 2014 - 19a
Impressions - February 2014 - 19b
Impressions - February 2014 - ISS Conferences
Impressions - February 2014 - 21
Impressions - February 2014 - 5 Things to Know About Your Embroidery Machine
Impressions - February 2014 - 23
Impressions - February 2014 - 24
Impressions - February 2014 - 25
Impressions - February 2014 - 26
Impressions - February 2014 - 27
Impressions - February 2014 - Essentials for Better Embroidery
Impressions - February 2014 - 29
Impressions - February 2014 - 30
Impressions - February 2014 - 31
Impressions - February 2014 - Professional Picks
Impressions - February 2014 - 33
Impressions - February 2014 - 34
Impressions - February 2014 - 35
Impressions - February 2014 - 36
Impressions - February 2014 - 37
Impressions - February 2014 - 38
Impressions - February 2014 - 39
Impressions - February 2014 - Better Business: Create, Show and Sell
Impressions - February 2014 - 41
Impressions - February 2014 - 42
Impressions - February 2014 - 43
Impressions - February 2014 - 44
Impressions - February 2014 - 45
Impressions - February 2014 - 46
Impressions - February 2014 - 47
Impressions - February 2014 - Building & Segmenting Your Contact List
Impressions - February 2014 - 49
Impressions - February 2014 - 50
Impressions - February 2014 - 51
Impressions - February 2014 - Turning a Specialty Into Success
Impressions - February 2014 - Shop Spotlight
Impressions - February 2014 - 54
Impressions - February 2014 - Embroidery Design & Digitizing
Impressions - February 2014 - 56
Impressions - February 2014 - 57
Impressions - February 2014 - Embroidery Production
Impressions - February 2014 - 59
Impressions - February 2014 - 60
Impressions - February 2014 - Tech Tips: Embroidery
Impressions - February 2014 - Screen Printing Graphics & Design
Impressions - February 2014 - 63
Impressions - February 2014 - 64
Impressions - February 2014 - 65
Impressions - February 2014 - Screen Printing Technique
Impressions - February 2014 - 67
Impressions - February 2014 - 68
Impressions - February 2014 - Digital Decorating
Impressions - February 2014 - 70
Impressions - February 2014 - Classifieds
Impressions - February 2014 - Ad Index
Impressions - February 2014 - 73
Impressions - February 2014 - 74
Impressions - February 2014 - Cover3
Impressions - February 2014 - Cover4
Impressions - February 2014 - I1
Impressions - February 2014 - I2
Impressions - February 2014 - I3
Impressions - February 2014 - I4
Impressions - February 2014 - I5
Impressions - February 2014 - I6
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