# SWF 1501 breaking needles



## Teamwear (Mar 12, 2007)

My SWF 1501 is breaking needles. Timing is set right, no burrs onthe hook.

What else should I check?

Breaking needles on more than 1 color.


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## FatKat Printz (Dec 26, 2008)

what are you trying to sew?? I usually break needles on hats..


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## pairadice (Sep 20, 2010)

is your garment tight in the hoop or are you getting alot of bouncing. that can break needles


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## ShirlandDesign (Nov 29, 2009)

Needle depth


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## tfalk (Apr 3, 2008)

Are you certain you have the needle scarf facing to the back of the machine? Right needles?


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## Teamwear (Mar 12, 2007)

Needles are right, scarf to the back. Sewing a sample felt, hooped tight. I also break needles on caps-I wonder if I have the right needle plate for caps-is there a special one that is raised more?

I looked at the cutter blade-it was not getting completely out of the way-I adjusted it and it is better-but still breaking needles. Hard to tell if it is completely clearing the needle path so to speak. 

I will look at the instructions on how to adjust the depth on the needles-but I wonder if that could be it when it sewed fine the last time we sewed- and now it is consistently breaking across all needles.

Thanks for all of the help.


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## ikkuh (Apr 8, 2010)

On my brothermachine i have a "riserplate" that i can put on to the needleplate when i do caps.


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## Xpert Apparel UK (Jul 18, 2009)

I've seen three different plates now, the normal flat one, then the one with a dome for caps, but my new machine has one which looks like a small coin with the centre taken out, leaving the outer rim, this works well with everything, shirts,caps etc.


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## Liberty (Jul 18, 2006)

Question, where is the piece of the broken needle after it breaks? Is it above the needle plate or below? This will tell you where the contact is taking place. Also look for the scars in the needle plate, hook, trimmer knife etc. Needles break when they hit something and they can leave scratches and scars from the impact which can tell you where the impact is occuring. One exception is when the pantograph starts to move the substrate before the needle is retracted but you can notice the needle shaft will bend before breaking in this case.

Also make sure you are running the right needle, A DBK5 is what you should be running. Others may have different shaft lengths, scarf and eye positions. And I'm assuming you're running a 75/11 size? A 65 needle on a tough substrate can cause problems but since you're banging needles on a felt swatch that's not likely the problem.

Is this happening randomly in the design while sewing or only after a trim/color change?


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

Teamwear said:


> I looked at the cutter blade-it was not getting completely out of the way-I adjusted it and it is better-but still breaking needles. Hard to tell if it is completely clearing the needle path so to speak. .


put a drop of oil on the solenoid piston that pops out to move the lower knife. to do this at the back of the arm there is a square plate with 4 screws. take that off and you can see it below there. do a trim and you can see the shaft turn and there is a groved cam. that is where the piston runs to do the trim. 

that piston gets stuck. just put a drop or two of oil on it and it should start working again.

here are some videos on different parts. 
http://www.swfeast.com/en/embvideos.asp

Adjusting the Thread Cutting Angle CAM video 1 shows the square plate i am talking about.


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## bungy (Aug 24, 2006)

As a test, slow down the machine speed and see what happens.
Before you do, make sure you have all the needle bits from previous breaks.
If you don't, it could get ugly if one gets caught in the workings of the arm.
Think screwdriver in bike spokes - not good.

By the sound of it, you have a lot of needle deflection and this may be the cause of the breakages,
especially if it is happening on more than one color.

Deflection can be caused by a number of things, machine speed (always run slower for caps than flats)
this can lead to needle not clearing material before pantograph moves to next needle insertion point.
Usually occurs when you have thick material and high machine speed, like felt or doing caps and bags.

Just because your machine will do 1000+ stitches a minute doesn't mean you need to run it that fast.
My car will do 120mph...do I drive that fast....NO.
Road conditions (material being stitched), driver skill (machine operator skill) etc dictate the correct speed.
Flat out all day everyday leads to increased wear and tear, and more frequent breakdown.

Just my 2c


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## SunEmbroidery (Oct 18, 2007)

If you are using the correct needle plate for caps you might try:

1. Slow machine (especially when starting to get through ruff part)
2. Use larger needle (many people need a 80/12 for hats)
3. Use extra backing (2-3 pieces) 
4. Start design slightly off center (if design starts center and that's when needle breaks)
5. Only for single head - use tweezers to hold down hat to frame (reduced gap between hat and plate will lessen flagging) to start design

The curvature of some hat hats won't fit all frames. Stiff buckram can make some hats impossible.


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