Thursday, November 3, 2011

This sewing machine is making me crazy

I swear, if I weren't in a time crunch, I would put my quilt projects away and wait for my Juki to get back from the repair shop.  But I'm trying to make a quilt for Mom for Christmas and I need to get the top put together pronto so I can wheedle my longarm quilter into doing it soon.

By the way, don't worry about Mom seeing this post and spoiling her Christmas surprise.  Mom is resolutely anti-computer, has no interest in learning how to use one and frankly can't see why anyone would.  I once tried to explain about my blog to her and could watch her eyes glaze over as I spoke.  So no one in my family is gonna see this!

Anyway, I'm trying to use my alternate sewing machine to put this quilt together.  I wrote about it yesterday.  It's a nice machine if you were making clothes or drapes or something, but for quilting -pfffft.  Not so much.  There's the strangely shaped 1/4" foot, first of all.
See that strange angle on the left side?  It catches your seam allowances ever time.  EVERY TIME.  And pulls the fabric sideways so your seam's not accurate.  You have to slow to a crawl and use a stylus to flatten every seam as you inch over it.  And see the shape of the foot?  It's 1/4" wide at the front, all right, but not the whole length, so you can't use a seam guide.

The needle adjusts from left position to center position, but not further to the right.  You have to manually reposition it by hitting a button after you turn the machine on.  And when you turn it off, it defaults back to the left position.  Which is really not good if you're using a foot that requires a center needle.  Do you have any idea how easy it is to turn the machine on, forget to hit that darned button and bring your needle down on the side of the presser foot?  Far too easy.

The machine has the world's smallest bobbin.  I can't tell you how many times I've stopped to fill it.  And though it's a front drop-in kind it doesn't fill in the machine.  You have to take it out and fill it on top of the machine like other sorts.  If so, why make it a drop-in?  Who knows?

And the machine stops in the needle down position.  Which you can't change.  You have to push a button to raise the needle.  And you have to push the button before you raise the presser foot, because the button doesn't work when the presser foot is up.  Why?  Who knows?

It has a variable speed control built in (also can't be overridden) so that when you step on the pedal it starts VEEERRRRRY SLOOOOOWLY and then speeds up suddenly.  The machine is insane.

And I cannot find any oiling ports on the whole sewing machine.  The manual (which is in six languages, all mixed in together, how's that for irritating) doesn't talk about lubricating the machine.  I have never heard of a sewing machine you don't oil.  Is that something new?  I figure this model has metal parts moving on metal parts like every other sewing machine in the world, why doesn't it need oiling?  It SOUNDS like it wants to be oiled. 

Finally, it has the world's dimmest built in light.  I had to drag my OTT lamp over to the sewing table and position it about 6" above the sewing surface to be able to see anything.

I want my Juki back!   

3 comments:

Paula, the quilter said...

Do you have an ETA on the Juki?

Katie said...

Can you just use the basic foot and a seam guide?

Andee said...

I feel your pain! My machine is in the shop too. I got a chuckle out of the post because I felt like I was right along side you nodding!