How-To: Install New Belts on the Bernina 730 Record

Today I replaced the upper and lower drive belts on a Bernina 730 Record.  I took some pictures along the way so you could see the process.
Start by unplugging the power supply. Take off the side panel under the hand wheel.  There are two screws, one on each side of the panel.

Screws for end panel

The panel then slides out an down to get from under the hand wheel.
Take the screw out of the hand wheel and remove the end cap and the washer.
Turn the machine on its side and remove the two screws holding the motor cover panel.  The panel with then slide/lift off, just be careful to navigate around the motor switch panel.

Screws for motor cover panel located underneath the machine

Now you should have a clear view of the belts and access to the end of the machine and the motor pulley.

End panel and motor cover panel removed

The screw to release the tension on the belt wheels is below the bottom wheel and you will need an allen wrench to loosen it up.  You don't need to take the screw out, just back it out a quarter turn or so until pulley behind the wheel is loose.  This will give the wheel some play horizontally and vertically.

Loosen screw below the wheel, do not take screw out

Remove the lower belt from the motor and wheel first and then slide the wheel up slightly to remove the upper belt.

Lower belt comes off first

The upper belt is nestled behind the lower wheel and stretches up over the hand wheel. Slide the hand wheel off and the belt should come with it.

Both belts and the hand wheel have been removed

Now start putting the new belts back into the machine.  Start with the upper belt and remember it tucks in behind the lower wheel.  You can slide belt over the hand wheel and put it back on the shaft.

Upper belt goes behind wheel and up over hand wheel

Hand wheel back in place and upper belt tucked in behind it

The bottom belt goes over the wheel and connects to the motor pulley.

New lower belt in place

You will need to adjust wheel position so that the belts are not too tight and putting strain on the motor or too loose and not engaging the wheel or hand wheel.  When you think you have the correct tension, tighten the screw back up with the allen wrench.  At this point you can plug in the power supply and try running the machine with the foot controller.  Make sure the belts turn smoothly and make adjustments if necessary.  Remember, the adjustment screw only needs a small turn to loosen or tighten.  Here is a quick video of the machine running with new belts.

Once you are confident with the placement of the belts, you can unplug the power supply and reassemble the machine.  Put the washer back on the hand wheel with the little raised tabs pointing out away from the machine.

Tabs stick out away from machine

Put the cap back on the hand wheel and replace the screw.

Hand wheel reassembled

Slide the motor cover panel back into place and put the screws back into the bottom of the machine. Reposition the side panel and tighten screws.You are now ready to plug the power supply back in and begin sewing.

This is my first how-to segment and I welcome any feedback you have that would help improve future segments. Thank you.

Ruffled Shirt Refashion

Let's start this year off with some color and whimsy.  My first refashion of 2017 was a dress to shirt conversion.  This is the only picture I have of the original dress.  The price tag says $5.88, but I got it for $1.93 last January.  In fact, I bought it on Martin Luther King Day last year, so it it only took me a year to get this refashion done. It was a button-up dress with ruffles on the front that had a matching belt.  It was too big for me, but I liked all the colors in the fabric and thought it could be sized down into a shirt.  

Belt missing from this picture

The first thing I did was to take in the sides a bit and to cut out the side pockets.  The pockets were placed a bit high, and there was too much fabric so it added padding to my already sufficiently padded hip area.  The next step was to shorten the dress to a reasonable shirt length.  Thirteen inches came off the bottom.  I finished the new the hem by hand.

New hem goes in

Finished hem after pressing

The sleeves were a bit short, but I didn't want to take them off, so I cut off the ends of the belt and put straps on the sleeves so I could roll them up and wear them as 3/4 length.  My plan was to make button holes, but I'm still learning how to work with my Bernina 730 and I am haven't mastered consistent buttonholing yet.  I rooted around in my button box and found two small snaps for plan B. They are not the same shape, but I figure they're going on two separate arms and no one will ever notice the difference.

Close enough for now

Here is one sleeve with the snap sewn in place.  You have to look pretty close to even find the snap, so I don't think anyone is going to notice the discrepancy in fastener shape.

Can you find the snap?

Once the sleeve is turned back and snapped up, the snaps are hidden and it looks good.

Finished sleeve

The finished shirt on the dress form.

Front

Side

Back

Zoom in on ruffles

The shirt was finished yesterday and it got its first outing into the city last night.  T and I drove down to meet his brother for dinner.  These pictures are from the hotel lobby near the parking garage.  The lighting is less than ideal, but we just snapped a few pictures before they kicked us out for loitering.

                                        

Good finished length

From where I sit, this project appears finished.

Borletti 1102

The gentleman who brought this machine in said that it had worked for a bit, but now thread was getting caught in the bobbin and it wasn't making stitches.  After posing for a few quick photos on the kitchen counter, this machine was ready to introduce himself.  I had never seen a Borletti in person before. This one needed to be cleaned up a bit, but it did have distinctive features already visible. The Borletti is Italian made and the overall shape and the white top on a different color body reminds me of a Necchi.  I think the gray color on this guy makes him look more reserved than my pink and green Necchis.  This model is the 1102.  The knobs, buttons, and levers are interesting and, to me, look a bit like gumballs stuck to the front of the machine. The bobbin winder is tucked under that gray panel above the hand wheel. The panel on the front center has a matching one on the back, they're both for cams for fancy stitching.  On the back there's also a max/min speed switch for the motor.

Here we are meeting for the first time

When I started cleaning I found a couple things that could have been causing problems for this guy. The first issue was with the brown threads hanging out of the bobbin case. I think this may have been a result of the bobbin not being secured in the notch. It was left to turn freely and thus created a mess within a couple rotations.

Bobbin arm should be reaching upwards not to the left

The second issue I found that was probably causing problems was under the needle plate. There was a significant amount of lint behind and below the feed dogs.

Packed in there pretty good

The third issue was similar to the second and didn't take long to clean out.  Not surprisingly, there was lint buildup behind the needle and in the tension discs.

After I got everything cleaned up and the machine lubricated, I rethreaded the machine and tried out the stitches. The machine was slow to start and then only sewed for a few inches before stopping again. It sounded like the belt was sliding.  When I took the belt out I found it to be very worn.  

Time for a new one

I looked online for a replacement belt, but turned up nothing. I couldn't find a part number or anywhere that someone specifically mentioned a replacement belt for the 1102. This belt is very narrow, here it is next to a 1/4 in. belt I tried.

New belt on left, original on right

The 1/4 in. belt length was a good length (20 inches), but it was not tapered and did not fit snuggly into the channel on the hand wheel, so I couldn't put the hand wheel back on the machine. I also tried a 1/4 in. lug belt that was 19 3/4 in. long. That fit into the channel on the hand wheel, but was not long enough to reach the motor. Finally, I ended up with a rubber belt that fit in the channel and stretched to the full 20 1/8 inches needed. I know that rubber belts have a shorter life-expectancy than others though, so if anyone has a source for a v-belt or lug belt that would work on the 1102, I'd love to hear it. With the machine reassembled, I tried out both the min and max speeds for the motor. It might just be my preference, but I think this machine prefers a faster speed. He seems to sing at the faster speed and it feels like he would sew through anything at this point.

All cleaned up and looking for a cabinet

Front, cam closure door open

Back, cam closure door open

Bobbin winder hidden near hand wheel

Bobbin case is free of loose threads and arm is secure in notch

The needle plate is small, but this one is in very good shape.

Top to bottom: Buttonhole settings, reverse lever (gray), stitch length regulator (black),  zig-zag limit buttons, zig-zag width control (red), left-center-right needle position (white), automatic reverse stitch length (black knob) and feed dog raise/lower button on bottom.

This machine is working well and will be going home soon.  I'm glad we had the chance to meet and hopefully, some day down the road, he'll update me on the wonderful projects he has tackled in the interim.

Spool Birds for My Niece

Baby on the way...

No, not to this house, to my sister's house in Minnesota.  My fourth niece is due to be born in February, and we're eager to meet this little one.  When I started thinking about my gift for the new baby, I tried to think outside the box.  I come from a family of talented quilters, knitters, weavers, and sewers so this baby will have no shortage of made-with-love items to welcome her home.  For my gift I wanted to challenge myself to try something new.  I was looking at ideas for nursery decorations, toys, and crib mobiles.  Several times I came across a version of a crib mobile or nursery decoration that incorporated birds and each time I liked the idea of working with birds.  The pattern I decided to use is for Spool Birds designed by Michael Fulkerson.  These birds were designed to be sewn by hand, and I thought it would be a nice break from machine sewing for awhile.  The fabric I decided to use was from an estate sale this summer--yay, I found perfect project for the vintage fabric!  I decided to make the birds in three sizes, and I started by printing out the pdf pattern.

Only 2 pieces per bird

I used nylon thread to make seams invisible

I decided to make eight total birds and that meant I didn't have to use any of the fabrics more than once. It really was delightful sewing these up.  I was picturing my niece looking at the fabrics and shapes in a few months as she lay in her bed. I chose not to put eyes on the birds, but I think the shape and fabrics are endearing as they are.

All of the seams get done except for the end of the tail and then the birds are flipped inside out and stuffed.  I put quilt batting in my birds, and I had a bit of supervision during this process.  Stewie yielded to the siren call of a warm and fluffy sleeping surface.

Yes, this quilt batting is good for snuggling

The final seam is put on the tail and then the birds, themselves, are finished.

The flock is growing

The birds were finished one day and then next day T and I went for a walk around the neighborhood in search of the perfect perching branch.  I carried home several possibilities and now we have a pile of second, third, and fourth choices in the back garden.  The chosen branch was hung from the dining room chandelier and then the birds flew up to secure their roosting positions.  There is a pair of love birds that chose to sit together, a group of chatterboxes meeting for a circle gab session, two kids hopping about on the various branch levels, and one lone bird singing to himself on the end.  The birds chose their spots and then I just secured them to the branch so they didn't have to worry about falling off.  When everyone was comfortable, we moved the branch out to the yard for a few pictures.

Here's the whole gang

Kids hopping on the left and the gab session on the right

Lovebirds

I have done a little reading about birds and it turns out they're good omens.  So, my dear niece, you'll have some powerful friends and protectors in your nursery. 

 "In fact, most things associated with birds tend to spell good fortune, such as when birds fly to your home and start making nests in and around your house. While bats bring abundance, birds bring good news and opportunities. The next time a flock of ravens, pigeons or magpies come to your home, feed them with bird seeds. Birds are also said to be powerful protectors and guardians."   WOFS.com

The birds travelled to Minnesota this week and hopefully, I'm posting this after my sister has seen the finished project. 

Poodle Shirt

Here is my last post of the year.  Thank you to everyone who took time to read or comment on any of my posts this year.  This is still a very new-to-me adventure, but I am looking forward to growing my sewing and blogging skill sets in 2017.  Happy New Year to all!

It may be a bit too chilly to wear this shirt for the next couple of months, but I'll be pleased to have it hanging in my closet come spring. It's my second attempt at the McCall's 7247 top after I added a couple inches length in the torso.

Front view on dress form--this one is going to need a camisole

Side view

Back view

I know that the pattern calls for some sort of stretchy knit, but I didn't have any on hand.  Instead, I decided to use my poodle fabric that was waiting for the perfect project.  The poodles on this fabric are a bit stiff and seem to be painted or glued on the fabric, but are also fuzzy to the touch.

I don't know exactly what the fabric content is here, but it was basically trying to cut water with scissors.  I laid everything out on the kitchen floor and then spent a good while trying to pin my homemade paper patterns to basically air that kept slipping through my fingers.  It was so challenging, in fact, that I avoided sewing with it on a sewing machine and I decided to try sewing my first garment by hand.  There are no zippers or buttons, so this seemed like a good way to get my feet wet. I started by going back to one of the lovely resource books that I had picked up this fall when I purchased a serger.

 The book is Couture Sewing Techniques by Claire B. Shaeffer.  I know next-to-nothing about couture and I spent a couple hours reading through this book and studying pictures.  The descriptions for a wide range of couture techniques are given and there are diagrams illustrating the process as well as pictures of beautiful completed garments incorporating the techniques.  As a beginner, I chose to tryout the running stitch (to set in sleeves and as part of the hem), a french seam (for the side and shoulder seams) and a self-bound seam (for the neckline).  

I used gray silk thread that slid through the fabric effortlessly.  The poodles were a bit tricky to sew through at times, but it was nice to have something to anchor stitches to every few inches.

Shoulder seam with neckline on one side, sleeve seam on the other, and front flat in the middle

My seams need a lot of finessing for style, but I think they will sufficiently hold the material together. Let's pretend I was going for function over form.  Next time, I will try to finish the sleeve and neckline seam differently.  I do not like frayed edges as an end result.  

Neckline from the front.  

I do think the side seams turned out well.  The stitches are relatively small and regular and there are no frayed edges sticking out.

Side seam

From the side, I like the added length

From the back

Just watching the first snowfall of the year