What's your problem?

You are not exactly threading the machine when you wind the bobbin. So follow the directions for winding the bobbin, make sure the thread fits under the little revolving wheel, and make sure that the stitch part of the machine is disengaged.

Sounds like it is actually the tension on the bobbin winder. Make sure that the thread is following the correct path to the bobbin. Other than getting it repaired, a stand-alone bobbin winder (avlb @ JoAnn's or online) for ~$30 would work. One brand is called the Sidewinder. Verify that your bobbins will work on it because some Singer bobbins will not. It's a nice accessory to have because it saves wear 'n tear on your machine plus you can wind bobbins without unthreading the machine.

FWIW, it is usually better to wind bobbins at a slower speed. Higher speed will tend to make the bobbin jump around and the thread to pop off. In addition, higher speed will tend to stretch the thread going onto the bobbin. The thread will not relax until unwound from the bobbin and stitched into your garment. It may cause the fabric to pucker as the thread relaxes. Slower is better!

To get that same thread onto the bobbin, you'll need to windit. Here are the steps:1. Removethebobbin from the sewing machine. If your machine has a free arm, you'llhave to remove this first. Open the bobbin door to reveal the bobbin case, forvertical loading models. If your machine has a drop-in bobbin (horizontalloading) you may have to simply slide the metal plate open, which sitsunderneath the presser foot.2. Lift the latchand pull the bobbin case out of the machine (for vertical loaders). Butfor drop-in bobbins, simply lift the bobbin out of the housing.3. Tip the bobbincase over and let the bobbin fall into your hand. (Some bobbin caseshave a latch on the side, that when lifted releases the bobbin). If the bobbinhas another color thread on it, use a new bobbin. Or, if it's not too muchthread, roll it all off and reuse the bobbin. Just make sure the bobbin youwind begins empty. (But in a pinch, you can wind a new color thread over theold color. Just know that you may have to rewind the bobbin fairly soon, as thedesired color thread finishes faster.4. Place yourselected thread onto the spindle and insert a holder over it, if there is one(usually on horizontal spindles only). Many machines just use gravity toretain the thread, so if your spindle is vertical and you have no such part,don't worry about it. If thisis a brand new spool of thread, you may need to free the end. Look for a smallnotch on one end of the spool. You may have to peel back the label a bit to getat it. Then yank it free.5. Loop the free endof the thread over the bobbin tensioner and any hooks on it. Thelocation of this part varies, but it generally looks about like this. Thread the end of the thread through the pinhole in the top of the bobbin. 6. Press the bobbinall the way onto the bobbin winding spindle. Make sure any springs orclips engage. Put it on so that the end of the thread that you put through thepin hole sticks out towards you (or sticks up, depending on if your bobbinwinder is at the top of your machine). 7. Disengage theneedle mechanism. Many machines have this control in the handwheel. It may require a push, pull or twist of the middle of the hand wheel.Check your sewing machine manual to be sure. The sewing machine may run fasterwhen winding a bobbin than when sewing and you don't want the needle moving upand down wildly. Engage the bobbinwinding mechanism. On some machines, it's done by pushing the bobbinspindle over to one side. You may also need to move the stitch selector to abobbin winding position.8. Hold the free endof the thread and, keeping fingers clear of all moving parts, press the footpedal or knee lever. The bobbin spindle will turn. If you have thebobbin threaded correctly, the bobbin will wind smoothly, evenly, and snugly,with perhaps a slight bulge in the middle. You should cut off the end of thethread you were holding in your hand (very close to the bobbin) as soon asthere's enough thread on the bobbin to hold itself in place so it won't slipout. This will prevent this thread from tangling onto any moving parts.9. Fill the bobbincompletely. It may seem like a lot of thread, but you don't wantto run out too soon while you're sewing. Many machines have a built-in deviceto stop winding when the bobbin is full, often a small blade that automaticallycuts the thread when the wound bobbin is full. If your machine has such adevice, let it tell you how much to fill the bobbin. If not, fill the bobbin nofurther than its edges. Hold the bobbinand case so that they are oriented as shown. Check that thebobbin will unwind in the correct direction. If not, flip it.10. Insert thebobbin into the bobbin case. Pullthe thread under the bobbin tensioner (a thin metal latch). The threadshould advance with a little resistance when you pull at it. Allow this excessthread to just hang. Lift the latch onthe bobbin case and hold it as shown.11. Insert thebobbin case into its housing. Make sure it is all the way engaged (youshould hear it click into place) and that the direction is correct. The bobbincase shouldn't spin and shouldn't come loose when you release the tab. Itshould be locked in. And the loose end of the thread should hang free. Do notclose the bobbin door.12. Re-engage theneedle at the hand wheel, disengage the bobbin winder, and set the machine backtoa straight, forward stitch. Thread the machine with the top thread as usual. Once the threadis through the needle, you must raise the bobbin thread. Hold the end of thethread with your free hand. Turn thehand wheel towards yourself. The needle should go down and back up to itshighest position. One full rotation should do it. The top thread will passaround the bobbin.13. Watch as the topthread pulls the bobbin thread up through the hole in the plate under thepresser foot. Pull the looseends to extend them, and continue to hold them firmly so they don't get tangledas you begin to sew.Closethe bobbin door before sewing.Hope this will help you. Good Luck.

If you are finding that the bobbin is winding with more thread towards one edge of the bobbin than the other, the bobbin winder motor needs to be adjusted so that the angle of the winder shaft is properly aligned with the tension disc next to the head cover. Unfortunately, unlike many of the other models, you have to remove the covers on the Activa range to get at the adjuster. There is a spring-tensioned screw just to the left of the bobbin winder motor that adjusts the angle of the motor and therefore how it loads the bobbin. If the winder is loading the bobbin with most of the thread towards the bottom edge, the screw should be turned clockwise and if most towards the top, it should be turned anticlockise. Make adjustments until the thread is winding evenly or, at least, towards the centre of the bobbin.

If you are finding that your bobbin is being loaded somewhat randomly, make sure you are using the vertical spool holder to hold the spool and that you've got a foam pad under the thread spool. Route the thread through the thread guide before winding around the tension disc in the correct direction (see the arrow on the case) and ensure that the spool and thread do not vibrate unduly when the bobbin is being wound. If you let the spool vibrate whilst the bobbin is loading, it may result in varying tension on the thread and uneven winding onto the bobbin.

If the fly wheel is going around then the clutch isn't disengaged to wind the bobbin, you need to pull out the flywheel on your model to disengage the clutch for bobbin winding.


Take thread from thread spool across to bobbin winder thread guide, then back to bobbin and thread the tail through the hole on top of the bobbin. Place bobbin onto spindle on top of machine and then push it against the stop to engage the bobbin winding motor. HOld the thread tail up and start winding slowly until the bobbin core has been covered including the starting point. Stop and trim off the thread tail with scissors. COntinue winding bobbin and give the thread a nudge if needed to wind evening top middle and bottom of the bobbin. A good smooth wind is important. Also don't wind at full speed and keep an eye on the thread reel that the thread is coming off, you don't want it bouncing around as this will **** the thread and stretch then relax it affecting your bobbin wind.

Obviously if you know this and the bobbin winding mechanisim is just not working, then it will need a service/replacement by an Elna repair person.

Sounds more like the way the bobbin has been wound, is it loose and uneven or tight and smooth. Is it properly into the tension spring? being loose doesn't sound right, a thread under correct bobbin tension is usually pretty firm.

Is it loaded into the bobbin holder the right way ?

Also check the bobbin itself hasn't been damaged in some way, not worn/bent. It needs to turn smoothly in the bobbin holder so if one edge has been bent a little this will cause problems.

When winding bobbins, you must have tension on the thread so it winds smoothly with consistent tension on the thread. Most machines have a little tension disc on top or the thread goes through the regular tensioner in order to achieve this. But I always wind bobbins at about 3/4 speed and also add a little extra tension by holding my scissors handle on top of the thread spool so it doesnt bounce around. Also start winding with a little tail pulled through a hole on top of the bobbin and wind until this starting end is covered, then stop and snip off the tail. Then continue winding and watch the thread, giving it a nudge so that it fills evenly across the bobbin, not just all in the middle.

Think of it like the garden hose reel; if you wind it really fast the hose all goes into the middle of the reel, then jams up and you can't get the whole hose onto it. Same thing, wind smoothly and evenly across the whole depth of the bobbin so that the thread is smooth and even. Then when the thread feeds off it will be smooth evenly tensioned and should stitch out evenly.

There is some good trouble shooting information on this page too which might help you to work out what is causing this thread breakage.
http://sewing.about.com/od/sewingmachineindex/a/mtroubleshot.htm

you can dowload a manual from the singer website http://www.singerco.com/accessories/manuals.html

If the bottom stitching is uneven, its mostly the top thread not under tension correctly so check the tension dial and the threading up from the thread spool to the needle.

Also, review how you wind a bobbin, you want a nice smooth wind, not twisting or uneven build across the bobbin. The manual for this machine is pretty brief on this but bobbin winding is crucial to getting a good even flow from the bobbin when stitching seams. You want to wind thread smoothly onto the bobbin, across the full width of it, not just mainly in the middle. Give the thread a nudge with your finger tip to fill top and bottom as it winds.

Also, ensure the thread goes through the bobbin tension disc on top of the machine, and even then, use your scissors handle to put some downward gentle pressure onto the thread spool you are winding off so it doesn't jump or bounce as you wind. Wind the bobbin to 3/4 full, then stop.

And lastly, load the bobbin correctly following the manual directions, make sure it is turning the right way in the bobbin case. Also look at page 16, it shows the "dangle" test where you can check the tension on the bobbin case is right, you should be able to dangle the bobbin by the thread tail and it should "stay" but you should be able to pull on it to release thread too. Adjust the little tension screw in minute increments to get this right. Bobbin case tension springs can fail or break too, so check this out.

Hope this helps you; it is my experience that 90% of machine issues are caused by blunt or wrong sized needles, wrong threading, no tension or incorrect tension or lack of maintenance.

Could be in around the wrong way, poorly wound or not under tension correctly. Or even the wrong bobbin for this machine.

I suggest that you check that the bobbin is correct, ie do you have several that came with the machine and are they all the same in shape and diameter? Consult the manual if you have one.

Nextly, wind a fresh bobbin taking the thread from the spool through the tensioner (if your machine has one on the top) and then onto the bobbin. Keep a little tension on the thread spool with the handle of your scissors to ensure that the bobbin winds smoothly and evenly. Use your finger tip to nudge the thread to fill all areas of the bobbin. You want a neat smooth wind so the thread will then flow smoothly off the bobbin when it is in the machine making stitches.

Now, load the bobbin into the bobbin holder or bobbin case as per your manual, ensuring the thread is correctly into the tension spring and bobbin is rotating the right way around.

Now thread up and test sew again.

Iam very picky about my bobbins!

make sure you are threading the machine for the bobbin correctly, In my opinion I don't think any machine really winds well.

What I do is hold the thread about an 1" away from the bobbin. start to wind and I guide the thread slowly up and down the bobbin so that it winds even

If the bobbin is on correctly try crossing the thread before going through the tensioner which should solve this problem and also a more evenly wound bobbin.