Potential Reasons Why Your Overlocker Sewing Machine Is Not Feeding Fabric

When your overlocker sewing machine starts acting up, it can be incredibly frustrating. But this does not mean that it is immediately time for repairs. In some cases, you may have simply overlooked some certain aspects and that is what is causing your machine to start presenting issues. And one common problem that you may face with your sewing machine is its refusal to feed fabric. Read on to learn about a few potential reasons why your overlocker sewing machine is not feeding fabric.

The sewing machine's feed dogs are in the down position

If the last time you used your sewing machine was for quilting, the feed dogs are probably in the down position. Even if you were not quilting, any work that you were doing on the machine that requires the adjustment of these feed dogs is what could be causing your issue. Check their position and lift them to see if the issue will resolve. If not, troubleshoot with the next possible reason.

The tension of the thread is extremely taut

For your sewing machine to feed the fabric easily, the thread needs to be loose so that the movement of the thread is not rigid. If the tension is too taut, the sewing machine will be incapable of properly feeding the fabric, so you will not be creating any stitches, or your stitches will not be neat. Simply loosen the tension of the thread and try sewing again to see if this irons out the issue.

The sewing machine's presser foot is not in position

Yoru sewing machine's presser foot has the primary function of holding the fabric down for you as you stitch. Newbies to sewing with this equipment may forget to put this component in the down position the next time they want to sew since the presser foot is supposed to remain raised if the sewing machine is not in use. It is best to try to make positioning this component down each time you sit at your sewing machine so that this problem does not crop up.

The layers of fabric are excessive

Although sewing machines are strong enough to pierce through multiple layers of fabric if you need to, this ability will depend on the type of material that you are sewing. For instance, while your overlocker sewing machine can easily feed into multiple layers of cotton fabric, it may not be capable of doing this if you are sewing faux leather since this material is much thicker. Therefore, if you experience this issue when trying to stitch multiple layers together, you should reduce the layers.

These are four common reasons why an overlocker sewing machine may not be working quite right and the quick ways to fix the problems so that you can start sewing again. 

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