How to use?
Sew with a double needle on a sewing machine, just like a normal sewing machine. The main thing is to choose it correctly. The first thing to pay attention to is the maximum width of the needle plate slot. Choosing the wrong needle can cause the needle to break while sewing, because it will catch in the gap in the plate. Here the best guide is the maximum allowable width of the zigzag stitch.
Before you start, check which mode the stitch selection switch is in. And here we need to be careful. Double needle should only be in straight stitching mode.
It is necessary to monitor it strictly, so as not to accidentally switch to another mode. Any other position will break the element.
Reduce the risk of breakage allows a small distance between the needles (0,16-0,25 cm). To be sure, check beforehand how the needle travels without thread when idling. It should pass freely without touching the edges of the needle plate.
Good quality threads should also be used. Choose thin and stretchy ones. To get the stitches without skips and with the correct tension, one thread must be one size smaller.
Double-needle lockstitch machines
Double-needle lockstitch machines allow you to get two parallel stitches. All twin lockstitch machines have a vertical axis of shuttle rotation. They differ in the distance between the needles, the type of material engines: rack and pinion and needle, triple and pulling roller, and can be with uncoupled and uncoupled needle drives. The latter allow you to sew parts with sharp bends in the stitching corners.
The most common are double-needle machines with a combination of slatted and needle transport.
Also known twin-needle machines with a cutting mechanism between the needles, which are used for making slash s in one pass and for some other operations.
The automation of double needle machines is basically the same as for single needle machines. In addition, automatic unlocking and unlocking of needle drivers is possible. The operator from the control panel pre-sets the sewing program, starting with the receipt of the signal to turn off one of the needle drives. Program includes the following parameters: number of needlewheel disengaged, the number of stitches with the needlewheel disengaged before turning, stop the machine with the needlewheel in the lower position, the number of stitches from the stop to turn on the second needlewheel.
The main classes of double lockstitch machines are shown in Table 2.
Also include shuttle stitch machines zigzag stitch machines. They can be two-, three-, and four-cornered, and can also be designed to perform finishing stitches based on a modified zigzag stitch, similar to home machines.
It should be noted that the leading companies have recently acquired mechanically controlled zigzag stitch machines, which allow a quick transition from sewing with a regular zigzag stitch to sewing with a multi-bead zigzag stitch, for example, “Juki” LZ 2284N, “Pfaff” 938-U-6/01.
Decorative stitches in the automotive industry made on a twin-needle machine
Decorative stitches made on a twin lockstitch machine are often used as a special decorative element in car upholstery and trim. The visual effect of the decorative stitches offers incredible design possibilities for car seat covers or interior components. Stringent demands are placed on the appearance of the seam.
For decorative seams in the automotive industry, polyester or polyamide-based sewing threads are mostly used. AMANN supplies high quality sewing threads in a variety of thicknesses:
| SERAFIL | Polyester, continuous filament (complex) yarn | Nm 15/220 tex, Nm 20/150 tex, Nm 30/90 tex, Nm 40/73 tex |
| STRONGFIL | Polyamide 6.6, continuous filament yarn | Nm 13/240 tex, Nm 20/161 tex, Nm 30/107 tex, Nm 40/80 tex |
Nm 13/240 tex, Nm 15/220 tex or Nm 20/150 tex and Nm 30/90 tex are often used as needle thread, while Nm 30/90 tex or Nm 40/80 tex as lower thread.
Why do you need a twin needle for your sewing machine?
There are many different ways to hem knit fabrics. Today we suggest you use the double needle. Armed with our simple techniques, your knitwear will look more professional and high quality.
One of the advantages of knitted fabric. in its durability. Although hemming knitwear is optional, a neatly hemmed hem will make your handmade outfit look more sophisticated and professional.
So the next time you’re sewing knit fabric, take your product to the next level of craftsmanship by using a double needle to create a beautiful hem.
Using a double needle on the bottom of the garment
The double needle can be installed on all machines that have a zig-zag stitch.
To perform hemming like a pro we will use a double needle, two bobbins of thread and one bobbin. Install the twin needle in the same way as the single needle. The needle groove (spike) must point backwards (away from you), and the round side of the needle bulb. on itself. The lower thread in the bobbin will sew simultaneously with the two upper threads alternately, forming a “zigzag” stitch from the wrong side. That is why it must be loosened. Relieve the tension of the upper threads as well, because two threads will pass through the thread guide.
Modern sewing machines (Janome, Brother, Juki, etc.) have a standardized needle system.) have two racks for the spool, paired thread guides and thread guides in which the upper thread is threaded separately. If you only have one spool stand installed, see if there should be a second one in the kit (like in the photo below).
The extra bobbin rod can be placed on the bobbin winder or in a special hole in the body of the machine. Place the second spool of thread on top of the rod.
If your machine has one thread drive, then both threads run through all thread drives, including the upper thread tensioner. Separate the threads only at the very last thread guide (at the base of the needle). If we have a single needle threader, we guide the left thread through the needle threader and thread the right threader next to it and tuck it into the eye of the right needle.
If your machine is not equipped with an extra spool pin for the second spool, you can place both spools of thread where you would place one spool of thread, or place the second spool in a small cavity nearby. Then thread the second thread through the machine as usual.
Thread the left thread through the left needle, right needle. into the right needle (the photo below shows a machine with two lower thread guides).
Sew the fabric with a double needle
Since knit fabric is not as frayed as fabric, we only need to twist 1 cm of the hem edge once to the wrong side of the garment. Bend the edge to the wrong side.
Using straight pins, pin the bobbin to hold the edge in place.
Note: Double needle should only work in straight stitch mode.
Sew the edge with a double needle on the front side of the fabric. Remove the pins as the fabric approaches the foot. There will be two parallel lines of straight stitching on the front.
On the wrong side of the hem we see the zigzag stitching, so it can stretch a little.
This technique allows you to create a durable hem that will look like it was sewn with an expensive overlock.
I hope you will find this article useful. Thank you for your attention and see you soon!
These machines are straight-stitch machines (Siruba DL720 series), and allow you to work with any material, including high-density. The design is made in such a way that additional operations can easily be performed:
Siruba is constantly improving their products, so their “one-needle” machines are low on energy and thread consumption, as well as forming smooth, high-quality stitches.
Peculiarities of selection
these machines are usually equipped with a bottom draft function. Based on the needs of production and the fabric used, they are divided into two categories. medium-light and medium-heavy. This feature is always worth considering when choosing. Because, for example, machines for heavy materials have a sewing speed of 3,500 rpm and for light materials 4,500 rpm. If speed is important to you, then you need to look at models with bottom feed and adjustable fabric trimmer.
You always need to start with the finished product, that is, what you will sew. In many cases it is justified to buy models with a shuttle stitch. In this category, there is also a division by material density:
There are also models with double advancement and walking foot. They have a stitch length of 8 mm, and the mechanism is equipped with an oversized shuttle. You can buy them at a specialized store on the Solium online store. Simultaneous lower and upper advancement is needed when working with heavy and very dense materials. This option is ideal for those who are going to sew bags or covers.
For the same category of materials, there are also variants with triple advancement. They make it possible to work with six layers of fabric, which are firmly fixed and do not move relative to each other even for a millimeter. The special design of the needle with teeth and foot allows you to sew elements made of plastic or cardboard between layers of fabric.
Some tips on how to sew with a double needle on a sewing machine
The double needle for the sewing machine has a special attitude. Beginners are wary of its unusual appearance. They wonder how it can be installed and used effectively. But professional seamstresses are sure that you can’t do without such a needle if you want to make beautiful and smooth parallel stitches, decorative double patterns, neat gathers and pinches.
A twin needle makes sewing a pleasure (
A needle is easy to install on most sewing machine models, making sewing a pleasure.
Industrial Sewing Machine Needle Selection Guide
For beginners in sewing, the question of how to choose a sewing needle can be very non-trivial, because from their point of view, all machine needles look the same. There’s something to it. after all, looking with the naked eye, we can’t catch all the details that distinguish different types of needles, but it’s the details that determine the ultimate success, i.e. a neat and smooth stitch. In their justification, we can say that there are dozens of types of sewing needles with many different parameters. However, even experienced tailors and sewing technologists do not always know what needles to use for what fabrics. To study this situation, representatives of the Taiwan company Triumph Needles, a manufacturer of sewing needles, visited almost a hundred garment factories and found that more than half of them do not pay due attention to the choice of sewing needles. Employees of only about 40% of these sewing factories had basic knowledge of sewing needles suitable for sewing certain textile or leather products.
So how do you know what needles to buy for your sewing machine?? To this end, we have just prepared the article presented to dispel all your doubts, to help you choose the right needles and learn about their capabilities and applications. In general, the sequence of the correct selection of a sewing needle is as follows: choice of needle system choice of style point choice of size.
Let’s first talk about sewing needle marking. Labeling is a technical information that is applied to the packaging of needles, which serves as their “passport”. As an example, let’s review the information from the photo below of the Triumph machine needle packaging (TNC).
DBx1 / 16×231 is the alphanumeric designation of the needle system. Needle system refers to the technical specifications of the sewing needle reduced to a single standard. These include needle-to-earl length, bulb length, bulb diameters, and at least three other parameters. This means that all DBx1 needles have the same eye length of 33.9 millimeters and the same bulb diameter is 1.62 millimeters (however, some of the specifications, such as the length of the eye and the diameter of the rod are calibrated, that is, they change depending on the size of the needle, but we’ll talk about this a little later). Specifically in our case, two needle systems are listed on the package, but there may be more. What does this have to do with? The fact is that, until the late 1940s, there were no unified global designations for needle systems and other parameters. Needle systems were standardized in the 1950s, but some sewing needle and sewing machine manufacturers prefer to use their old designations that they used in the past. So DBx1 and 16×231 are just different system names for the same sewing needles.
The needle system designation can be used to determine which sewing machines the needles are suitable for. This means that the sewing machine must have a needle clamp for this needle system. Accordingly, the needle and shuttle (or loopers) are also designed to work with these sewing machine needles. Needles of the DBx1 system, for instance, are installed on straight-line sewing machines for sewing light fabrics.
There are many needle systems for industrial sewing equipment. The most basic ones are: DBx1, DPx5, DPx134, DPx17, DPx35, DCx27, UYx128GAS, DBxK5, TQx1, DOx558, TVx7, DVx57.
DBx1. Needles for single needle straight sewing machine (light weight fabrics), for sewing machines. DPx5. Needles for single-needle straight sewing machine (heavy fabrics) for dvuhigolnohochnyh sewing machines with needle advancement for zigzag sewing machines for columnar machine for tacking machines for looping machine shuttle stitch. DPx134 is the same as DPx5, only for this system other sharpening styles are available (about this ). DPx17. double advance sewing machine needle, triple advance sewing machine needle, enlarged locking machine needle, buttonhole stitch machine needle. DPx35. Needles for sewing machines with triple advancement. DCx27. Needles for industrial overlock machines. UYx128GAS. Needles for industrial sewing machines. DBxK5. Needles for industrial embroidery machines. TQx1. needles for chain stitch button machines. DOx558. Needles for chain stitch looping machines. TVx7. needles for straight sewing machines chain stitch. DVx57. Needles for special chain stitch sewing machines.
Once you are familiar with the needle systems, we can talk about industrial sewing needlepoint styles. The point of the needle is the tapered part of the needle, from eye to tip. The function of the point is to guide the thread through the material, so it is very important to choose the right style needle so as not to damage the material to be sewn and get a quality stitch. All of the point styles that exist are primarily designed for sewing materials with a particular fiber structure or type of weave. Let’s look again at the DBx1 sewing needle package for an example. In our case, the tip style is labeled SES. This means that these needles have a rounded point for sewing knitted fabrics, because the blunt point allows to move the loops in knitted fabrics.
Generally speaking, there are a large number of styles of needlepoint. The most in-demand ones are: R, RG, SES (BP), SUK (SI), S, D, LL, LR. But this does not mean that all these styles are present within a particular needle system. For instance the DBx1 needlepoint system has only three styles, R, SES (BP) and SUK (SI). If you notice the quotation marks, they are an alternate name for the style. The logic here is exactly the same as with the alternative names of needle systems from different manufacturers of sewing needles. There is also one important point with R and RG sharpening styles! Some manufacturers don’t put them on the needle package at all, because they are sort of the default tip styles. So if a pack of needles of the DBx1, DPx5, DPx17 or DPx35 system is not marked with a sharpening style, it means that the sharpening style is R. This is also true for needle systems DCx27, UYx128GAS, DBxK5, TQx1, TVx7 and DVx57. Only in this case the style of the point is RG.
Which needle systems have which style of needlepoint? DBx1. R, SES (BP), SUK (SI). DPx5. R, SES (BP), SUK (SI). DPx134. S, D, LL, LR. DPx17. R, LR, SES (BP), SUK (SI). DPx35. R, S, D, LL, LR, SES (BP), SUK (SI). DCx27. RG, SES (BP), SUK (SI). UYx128GAS. RG, SES (BP), SUK (SI). DBxK5. RG, SES (BP), SUK (SI). TQx1. RG. TVx7. RG, SES (BP). DVx54. RG, SES (BP).
For sewing which materials are designed for which styles of pointing? R. sewing needles with a sharp point to pierce the material. These needles are designed for sewing woven fabrics and imitation leather. RG. machine needle with extra small rounded point for loosening fabric fibres. Presented needles are designed for sewing woven materials and microfiber. SES (BP). machine needles with slightly rounded blade tip for loosening fabric fibers. Machine needles for sewing knitted fabrics, cotton and synthetic fabrics. SUK (SI). machine needles with a medium rounded blade tip for opening the fibers of the material. These needles are designed for sewing heavy knitted garments. D. sewing needles with a ground tip in the shape of a triangle, for cutting through the material. These needles are suitable for sewing leather. Puncture holes are wide open. Stitches are slightly separated from each other. S. sewing needles with a sharp point sharpened in the form of a pointed oval at an angle of 90 °, for cutting through the material. These needles are suitable for sewing on natural leather. Sewing results in a stitch with straight stitches. The stitches are elongated and clearly visible. The stitches are significantly distanced from each other. LL. Sewing needles with pointed oval point sharpening at 135°, for cutting through material. Suitable for sewing in leather. The result is a stitch with an almost straight stitch. The stitches are heavily threaded. LR. Sewing needles with a pointed oval point at a 45° angle, for cutting through. The needle is suitable for sewing on leather. Sewing creates a stitch with the stitches slanting to the left. The degree of slant can be mild to moderate. The pinholes are clearly visible.
Now we logically came to the final phase of the sewing machine needle selection process. the choice of sewing needle size. Needle size is marked on the packaging and each needle individually, with the marking consisting of two digits at a time. Let’s go back to our DBx1 needle package, which shows needle size 13/85. The first figure is the size of the needles of the American standard Singer. The second number is the European metric size of the needle. In Ukraine, it is naturally practiced to use the second standard. The number 85 stands for the diameter of the needle rod cross-section, multiplied for convenience by one hundred: 0.85 mm 100 = 85. The larger the sewing needle number, the thicker it is, the larger the eye size, the thicker the thread this needle can work with and peorate more dense fabrics. In general, there are the following size machine needles: 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 100, 110, 120, 125, 130, 140, 150, 160, 180, 200, 230. But, as a rule, the size range of a single needle system is somewhat narrower.
Needle size is critical in causing material damage. A needle that is too large can cause the structural threads of the fabric to break or tension in the stitch area, resulting in holes that are too large. For this reason, you should use the thinnest needle possible that allows you to work with the thread you want. However, consider also the significant variation of thinner needles at higher sewing speeds, which may cause frequent needle breakage.
Material density is also important. For your general understanding, here is an informative table showing the size of the needle in relation to the thickness of the thread and the density of the fabric. Density symbols (arbitrary): L. light (up to 200 g/m²), M. medium (200-300 g/m²), H. heavy (over 300 g/m²).
| 320, 260 | L | 55 |
| M | 65 | |
| H | 70 | |
| 200, 180, 160, 150 | L | 65 |
| M | 70 | |
| H | 75 | |
| 140,120, 100, 80 | L | 75 |
| M | 80 | |
| H | 90 | |
| 75, 70, 60 | L | 90 |
| M | 100 | |
| H | 100 | |
| 50, 40 | L | 100 |
| M | 110 | |
| H | 120 | |
| 36, 30 | L | 110 |
| M | 120 | |
| H | 130 | |
| 25, 20 | L | 120 |
| M | 130 | |
| H | 140 | |
| 18, 16, 13, 12 | L | 160 |
| M | 180 | |
| H | 200 |
A few words about the possible coatings of machine needles. All needles are chrome plated for corrosion protection and durability. However, most manufacturers also stock specialty machine needles with titanium nitride and ceramic coating. The titanium nitride coating gives the needle a higher degree of hardness and makes it more resistant to wear, especially protecting it against damage around the point and eye. This extends needle life when sewing dense materials. Ceramic coating prevents static electricity and has a low coefficient of friction. This reduces the heat of the thread and reduces the chance of thread breaks.
The positioner is an additional part attached to the servo drive. The latter are divided into two types depending on the availability of the device: with a positioner and without. This attribute is useful for beginners in sewing, as well as for experienced seamstresses.
Sewing machine needle positioner: what is it? The positioner serves as an adjuster, fixing the position of the needle during work stoppage. If necessary, the needle can be left in an up or down position and the fabric can be rested or corrected.
The positioner is only suitable for machines with electronic control gear (
The only nuance. the installation of a servomotor needle positioner is possible on motors with an electronic control unit. When buying this device and the motor separately, you need to check that they fit together.
Needle positioning in straight-line and two-needle sewing machines: what is it? When sewing, the sewer periodically has to pause. They may be necessary to correct fabric that has moved out of position. When working with bulky fabrics, such as when stitching upholstered furniture covers, you must hold the fabric with both hands while sewing, or the stitch will be crooked. And also a craftswoman can simply get tired and pause.
In all these cases, needle positioning allows the working tool to be locked in place, and work can continue immediately after a pause without the needle having to be repositioned.
The needle can be left in its highest or lowest position.
Lower needle position. This position is used infrequently (when working with complex areas). For example, when the seamstress needs to sew sleeves or pant legs. In particularly difficult areas, you have to hold the material with both hands, otherwise it will slip out. The lower positioning of the positioner allows the work to be done quickly and accurately.
The same position is also true when sewing decorative stitches on a contour, as well as when sewing small parts. Collars, cuffs, belts. this is not a complete list of details of products, which helps to qualitatively sew the servo drive with a positioner.
The same applies to stitching and decorating fur garments.
Upper needle position. The upper position is considered universal. Its main function is to prevent the upper thread from slipping out of the needle. Where previously the position of the needle depended on the quality of the seam and the finished product, here the positioner helps to avoid unnecessary energy and time consumption. At a minimum, you can save a few minutes spent on threading the needle.
Also to the upper positioning of the masters resorted to when tired, and after a short rest do not want to pay much attention to the start of the sewing machine.
Advantages of positioners
The main advantage. saving time and effort of the craftsman. This is true for beginners as well as for professional seamstresses. When mastering the basics of sewing, a lot of time is spent on simple procedures, like threading the needle and adjusting the fabric. On the one hand it is not difficult, but with large quantities every second counts.
The needle positioner is indispensable when sewing cuffs or hemming curtains (
For the experienced seamstress, a positioner also saves time. It means that you can do more work in the same amount of time, or pay more attention to complicated tasks.
How to Use a Twin Needle on Your Sewing Machine
And the positioner also ensures that the material remains in position while sewing. It does not matter how heavy or light the material is, does not slide on the table surface or not. Thanks to the positioning of the needle there will be no problem with the slippage of the fabric.
How to install and adjust the servo needle positioner
- First screw the positioner’s fixing rod into the head.
- The positioner should be placed on the stem and on the main shaft.
- There must be a space between the body of the positioner and the pulley of the main shaft of the sewing machine.
- Then connect the positioner connector to the motor control unit.
- Keep in mind that the control unit must be electronic.
- On the motor control box, set the parameter “P” from “NO” (off) to “N1” (on).
- To do this, display the P value on the screen, then switch to “S”.
- After this the value “N1” will appear.
- All this is done with the button marked “P”. To fix the position, the same button should be pressed three times.
- Rotate the pulley to fix the bottom position of the needle and fasten the positioner to the shaft with the screw.
Once the positioner is fixed in the lower position, proceed to perform the sewing operation. At any stop during operation, the needle will remain in the lowered position. To change the position to the upper position, you need to put your foot on the foot control of the actuator.
To fix the upper position, use button marked “P” to select parameter “F”, and use button marked “S” to select position. It is also fixed by pressing the “P” button.
Types of positioners
Positioners can be external or internal.
Internal positioners are mounted on the body of the sewing machine. Two magnets are fixed on the pulley. During stopping, magnets turn the main shaft to the desired position (this allows the needle position to be held up or down). The internal positioner allows you to change the position of the needle from up to down, depending on the type of material and type of product.
on how to install the sewing machine needle positioner can be found in the video below.
Tips for choosing
When choosing a sewing machine or overlock, the deciding factors are the specifics of the tasks for which you are buying the tool. Consider the kind of fabrics you are working with, the amount of work you regularly need to do, and choose one of the models.
Only buy sewing machines from official Jack suppliers. with warranty and in full set.
