How do you attach cutting wheel to the bit?

Jill Timm's class, The Amazing Dremel, into one blog post.
Bwahahahahahahah!!!
I did not take into account how many notes I took during the workshop. In fact, my table neighbor at the workshop teased me for two days on how many notes I took.
My plan is to split the information into three blog posts:

• Dremel bits and what they do (hey - that's what you're reading now!)
• Tips for using a Dremel with specific materials
• Dremel resources for artists

Please note that this post only focuses on what the bits look like and what they do. Oh, and the bits mentioned are the only ones that we used in the workshop - we didn't use any routing bits. Sorry.
That said, let's talk Dremel bits.
I think that one of the things that both attracted me and freaked me out about the Dremel was its huge buffet of accessories. The packages are labeled by use, but it still seemed like gibberish to me. Jill created the perfect environment for overcoming my Dremel fear.
You can read about my class in the following blog posts:

• The Amazing Dremel with Jill Timm - Day 1
• The Amazing Dremel with Jill Timm - Day 2

This post is in no way meant to replace the total awesomeness of taking Jill Timm's class. I benefited so much from hearing Jill's experiences and seeing her work in person. If I had bought a Dremel and experimented with it on my own, most likely I would have never tried it on the range of materials that we did in class.
Jill recently announced that she's taking her Dremel class on the road and would love to be scheduled by your group. I highly recommend the class if you have a chance to attend.
The main categories of bits, according to Dremel, include the following:

1. Carving & Engraving
2. Sanding
3. Cutting
4. Grinding & Sharpening
5. Cleaning & Polishing

These categories are pretty consistent among other manufacturers of rotary tool accessories, so you can often find alternatives if you shop around. Carving & Engraving I used two different types of bits that fall into the carving & engraving category - diamond bits and high speed cutters.
Diamond Dremel bits
Diamond bits can be used with the following materials:

• Aluminum
• Bookboard
• Ceramic tile
• Glass
• Mirror
• Steel

Dremel high speed cutters
High speed cutters can be used with the following materials:

• Bookboard
• Linoleum
• Polymer clay
• Wood

Sanding Sanding involves two different parts - the drum and the sanding band. Sanding bands come in different grits, just like sheets of sandpaper.
Dremel sanding bands and drum
To use the sanding band, you simply slide it over the drum. Replace it when it wears out. Easy peasy.
Sanding bits can be used with the following materials:

• Aluminum
• Bookboard
• Plexiglass
• Polymer clay
• Wood

Cutting There are different types of cutting wheels for different materials.
Abrasive cutting wheels
Abrasive cutting wheels can be used with the following materials:

• Bookboard
• Plexiglass
• Wood

Fiberglass cutting wheel
Fiberglass cutting wheels can be used with the following materials:

• Aluminum
• Bookboard
• Ceramic tile
• Wood

To use a cutting wheel, you have to attach it a mandrel.
Dremel mandrel
Unscrew the tiny screw on top of the mandrel and remove one of the washers.
Slide the wheel onto the screw, then add the second washer. Attach the screw to the mandrel base and tighten.
Replace the wheel it when it wears out.
Grinding & Sharpening Grinding and sharpening stones are made of two basic materials: silicon carbide (green bits) and aluminum oxide (brown, orange, pink, or grey bits). You may have noticed that some of my grinding stones are oddly-shaped. This is because the stones wear out with use. You can reshape your grinding stones using a dressing stone.
Orange grinding stones
Orange stones can be used with the following materials:

• Ceramic tile
• Glass
• Mirror
• Steel

Blue/green & pink grinding stones
Blue/green and pink stones can be used with the following materials:

• Aluminum
• Ceramic tile
• Glass
• Mirror

Cleaning & Polishing Felt polishing wheels and cones are used in combination with polishing compound.
Polishing felts and mandrel
Polishing compound
To use a polishing felt, you have to attach it a mandrel (different from the cutting wheel mandrel). The felt has a tiny hole in the center of it - you screw the mandrel into the hole to attach it.
Felt polishing wheels and cones can be used with the following materials:

• Aluminum
• Ceramic tile
• Glass
• Mirror

Take a good look in your manual and see how to clean and oil you machine. Now, take a new paint 2" brush(from Dollar store) and really brush that thread, when you get a little tail slowly pull it while turning the handwheel slowly is the key. Use tweezers if you need too. Keep going until you have no more thread, remove bobbin and cut the thread attached to the machine.

Hello Jenny hornsey

This may sound traumatic, but there is no easy way to pin point where the tie-up is located. So proceed as follows.
Cut all the threads as they come off the antennas.

Open the front cover and pull-out all the threads by pulling them straight toward the back. If they do not come easily, try moving the hand wheel back and forth by a 1/4 revolution .. this is like a rocking motion. If still not budging, start cutting back the threads and removing them in sections until all the threads are cleared. If this step is still challenging; check that there is no residual fabric or threads still wrapped around the loopers or other part/s of the serger. If so cut them out bit by bit until everything below is cleared.

Great. Now check for threads wrapped and/or jammed anywhere above.

Since the overlocker jammed, it is possible that the needles were bent. This will continue to cause issues in stitch formation. So just to make sure; change the needle/s. Make sure that the correct needle type is being used. Every overlocker is engineered to be used with a specific needle type. The needle type will be specified in the manual and will also appear on the needle package. If the needle types are not the same, do not use those needles.

Re-thread the overlocker and stitch test on a piece of fabric before pressing down on the foot control.

This should get the overlocker back on track and you back to overlocking.

Please let me know how this works out for you.

Happy overlocking
Sewingirl/

Thread size makes a difference:
3/8 x 16 NC is 5/16 drill

3/8 x 24 NF is Q size bit

There may be a bit of thread stuck in the bobbin or somewhere under the machine. Turn the machine sideways and look with a flashlight. Then turn the wheel a couple times and look again...Good Luck...xo

Assuming your bobbin is threaded correctly. Try to pull your top thread thru the needle a bit longer & suggest you turn your hand wheel towards you till the needle just poked thru the fabric, then only you start sewing.

There are a number of possible reasons for this, but, assuming the thread hasn't actually broken (!), it may well be that the upper thread sensor flag has come off the check spring - this is something I see fairly regularly and is frequently the result of people pulling the upper thread 'backwards' out of the machine a bit too quickly, rather than cutting it off at the spool and drawing it through the machine in the correct direction. It's a bit fiddly and very difficult to explain how to check this, without taking all the covers off. However .... if you take the head cover off (single screw) and look carefully at the bottom of the metal takeup lever cover you will see a large slotted screw with a spring wound around it - this is the check spring. The end of the check spring pokes-out behind the takeup lever cover and the thread goes through a loop in its end when you thread the machine up. Thread the machine up as far as the takeup lever, take hold of both ends of the thread and gently raise it - you should see the check spring move upwards. Now, look very carefully at the part of the spring between the big coil around the screw and the loop where the thread passes-through ... there should be a black plastic part attached from the other side of the takeup mechanism (you cant get at this without taking the front cover off !). If it's not attached, you can very very carefully wiggle the spring and sensor flag back so that the spring sits in the slotted part of the sensor flag (either that or take it to your Bernina service agent !). If the sensor appears to be attached, it could also be the optical sensor which is attached to the front cover just above the reverse switch - sometimes this gets full of fluff or I have seen a couple with manufacturing faults where the sensor flag gets caught in the optical sensor circuit board ... whatever the case, this is really a job for the service agent.
Good Luck

Drill the keyhole and stick a slide hammer (dent removal tool) with a threaded bit. Once threaded bit is secured in the hole you just drilled, pull the slide hammer action (like pulling a dent out) so the key mechanism can come off and release the lock hold on the serrated teeth on the rod of the club.

If that's just too much to be able to happen, another solution could be found in Home Depot. Purchase a Dremel high speed tool with a cutting disc for metal. Cut through the rod and you're home free.

You did not say it jammed from thread or just stopped working.

If it is thread, then you will need to carefully use embroidery scissors with a sharp point or a razor blade to cut at the lump of threads and carefully pull them out with your tweezers till you clear the mess. Use your vacuum to get all bits out of there, being careful and not hitting the loopers. You can knock them out of alignment with thread jams and such.

If it just stopped and you cannot turn the wheel, then it needs a trip to the repair shop, either your dealer or to a sew and vac repair where they know how to service sergers.

Do not use the threaded bit. You need a mandrel that has a tiny screw on the top. Take the screw out and thread it onto the cutting wheel and then screw it back on. My book says its mandrel #401.