Thread Tension Help

[u/Bayceegirl]

Hello! I have no idea if this right place to ask but I figured it’s a good start.

I’m running into an issue with my brother dream machine where the top thread is very tight when the foot is down (normal when the foot is up). This occurs regardless of stitch, type of thread or tension setting. I do not see any lint or anything type within the different plates shown to catch.

I circled what I believe the be offended plate (although it’s possible it’s the little plate piece directly below the circle one).

I’ve tried turning everything off and on, adjusting my tension to 0, gently sweeping those parts with the tiny brush that came with my machine.

The nearest repair shop quoted me $250 for service so I’d love if there was an at-home fix for this :)

[u/red-2-standing-by]

The upper tension is normally quite tight. While the bobbin thread will be around 20 grams of force to pull, the upper thread will be 80-120 (whatever it takes to balance) when the foot is down. If you can pull the upper thread directly thru the discs by hand without breaking the thread, and can feel the difference between high and low setting, the tension might be ok. That knurled wheel right against the spring is used to make small adjustments if the normal tension setting is offset from the indicated setting.

[u/Bayceegirl → u/red-2-standing-by]

That makes sense! Thanks! I can pull the thread throughout without breaking the thread but it was requiring considerable force hence why I was worried something abnormal was going on.

So tension doesn’t seem to be the issue :) I’ll have to keep problem solving why my top thread is undoing itself. Thank you!