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Kenmore Sewing Machine Bobbin Instructions

Bobbins can be made of metal or clear plastic.
Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images

Being able to sew anything from clothes to quilts can be a useful skill in the home, and sewing is made faster with a sewing machine. A sturdy yet affordable machine, such as a Kenmore, can last for years. However, the best machine in the world won't be useful unless you know how to load the bobbin with thread and insert it into your machine. Luckily, filling and reinstalling a bobbin on a Kenmore machine takes only minutes.

Things You'll Need:

  • Empty Bobbin
  • Spool Of Thread
  • Scissors
  • Kenmore Sewing Machine

Threading a Bobbin

Place a spool of thread on the spindle on top of your machine. Pull the thread to the left toward the bobbin winder tension disc; this piece looks similar to a watch battery.

Loop the thread from back to front under the disc and pull the thread back to the right in front of the spool of thread.

Hold an empty bobbin upright like a spool. Hold the tail of your thread near the center bar of the bobbin and slip it up through one of the holes open in the bobbin's top portion. Pull the thread up by about 2 inches.

Place the bobbin onto the winder shaft, which is a short, spindle-like rod located on the far right of the machine.

Engage the winder shaft. This can be done in one of two ways, depending on your model. Push the shaft to the right until it clicks or push the winder latch to the left, toward the shaft, until it clicks. Alternatively, pull the hand wheel outward on the side of the machine to the right until it clicks to release the clutch inside the sewing machine and allow the winder shaft to spin.

Hold the 2-inch thread tail in your hand tightly. Push the foot pedal down to start winding the bobbin and hold the pedal down until the bobbin is full.

Clip the 2-inch tail off as close to the bobbin as possible. Clip the connecting thread from the spool a few inches away from the bobbin.

Loading the Bobbin into the Machine

Move the winder shaft or winder latch back into place and push the hand wheel back into position. Pull the bobbin off of the shaft.

Pull the bobbin case, which resembles a drum with an arm, from below the needle of the machine.

Hold the bobbin in front of you with the thread running clockwise around the spool so the bobbin and thread tail resemble a number six. Turn the bobbin case so that the open end of the drum is facing you and the arm is pointing in a northwest direction.

Push the bobbin into the case, keeping the thread tail held out. Along the right side of the bobbin case is a narrow notch in the metal. Pull the thread tail away from you into the notch and then upward through the small space between the metal until it comes out of the narrow, rectangular window in the side of the bobbin.

Turn the bobbin case around so that the arm side is facing you and the arm is pointing upward. Push the bobbin case into the bobbin assembly until it locks in place.

Use the hand wheel to make one stitch with a threaded needle to bring the bobbin thread up.

Tip

You can test the assembly of your bobbin in the case by holding the thread tail and letting go of the bobbin and case. When loaded properly, the bobbin should not drop.

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