Urgent sewing machine help!

[FlamingoCrimbo]

My bobbin thread is too loose and my Janome machine hasn't got a tension adjuster for the bobbin. What can I do?

It's really getting me down now as I have lots of sewing to do before Christmas and I don't have time to get it serviced. Does anyone have any ideas?

Going to ring Janome in the morning, but I was hoping someone might have had a similar problem who could help me out?

Thanks

I hold the thread between my finger nails to increase tension. You can look as bobbin is winding to measure whether you're holding thread taught enough

Why doesn't it have a tension adjuster?

Are you sure you've threaded it up correctly to the bobbin?

I think you could do what worstwitch says and hold the thread to put tension on and also hold onto the end of the thread that has gone through the bobbin.

Not sure what you mean about holding the thread - do you mean while I'm sewing?

I'm threading the bobbin the way I have done for years!

Don't know why it doesn't have a tension adjuster - the manual doesn't say anything about troubleshooting a loose bobbin thread, just a loose top thread

I think to adjust the tension on the bobbin you need to tighten/loosen one of the screws on the actual bobbin.

Try Googling it (sorry if you've done that already) because that's what I did when I had the same problem and I'm pretty sure that was the solution.

You tighten/loosen a tiny, tiny bit by the way.

Thanks Shona. Just tried that - hasn't worked.

Do you mean hold the bobbin thread as I start sewing, the same way I hold the top thread?

I'm nearly in tears over this - I'm doing top-stitching as well, so it needs to look good

Is this any help?

Flamingo - I don't have a Janome, but every sewing machine I've ever used had an outer case that you slip the lower bobbin into before placing it into the machine. This outer case has a tiny screw on it holding a little piece of metal in place, and it will be where you bring the end of the thread from the bobbin out. It's this tiny screw that you need to either tighten or loosen to change the tension.

Hope this helps - the bit at the bottom of shona's link recommends a way to do this.

No, I mean if the thread on bobbin is loose, then hold on to thread to create tension when winding bobbin.
If bobbin thread is correctly wound and problem is when you're sewing, then there should be a little screw at front of bobbin holder which you might be able to tighten. And, you might also want to make sure that the the thing which you switch to tell machine wehther you are sewing or winding bobbin up is fully in sew position.
HTH

Sorry, i thought you were still trying to put thread on the bobbin.

What happens if you increase the tension on the top thread?

Ok, I have solved it. Thank you all for your help. I have been a complete thickie doodah and haven't been threading it properly, as was suggested earlier.

I have had this machine since I was 21 - got it for my 21st birthday - and have used it at least every few weeks or months since then. I have no idea how I suddenly went from threading it correctly to threading it wrongly - obviously got complacent!

However, thankfully it's not my machine that's broken, and I can get on with my present-making with plenty of time to go

Yay. Well done.

Well done - sounds like you just got a bit of pre-Christmas frenzy on you! What are you making? [nosey emoticon]

Going to post pics in a minute - handbag for my step-mother to stick in post asap along with the glasses case I made for my dad and a card.