How To Thread A Serger
If you’ve ever sewed anything before, then you know that threading a sewing machine is an essential skill.
But if you’ve never threaded a serger before, this simple task can seem daunting. Luckily, it’s not as hard as it seems!
In the following article, we will walk step by step through threading your new serger and doing a test sew to ensure everything is in working order.
Steps on How To Thread a Serger
Step 1 : Unbox your serger
It’s always exciting to open a new sewing machine or serger, but you need to make sure you don’t skip any of the important steps.
After removing tape and packaging, remove the instruction manual and set it aside for now.
If all parts are included (all thread spools, different needles/guides for specialty stitches, etc.), insert the accessories into their respective holes in the machine.
Make sure you don’t miss any parts by going over every inch of your new serger with a fine-tooth comb.
Step 2 : Threading the needle and upper looper
To get started, you must disengage the upper looper by pushing both levers on either side of your machine back toward the bed until they click out of their position. These levers are usually labeled “L” and “R” so it’s easy to remember which one goes against each arm of your machine. It’s also important that you’re using a cone-shaped spool pin – not a flat-bottomed one!
Now, insert a bobbin filled with four or five inches worth of thread into each side of your machine – be sure to check if good tension is being applied onto your needles by pulling on the thread.
Now locate the upper looper tension dials, which are usually found on either side of your machine.
Usually, all sergers come with a manual that will tell you which tension to use for different stitches, but if not, start with #3 and increase or decrease as necessary. For now, set both dials to “3” (most sergers come preset like this). Don’t replace the presser foot yet!
Now take one end of your thread and run it through the first hole in your needle plate (not far left side) until it reaches the underside of your machine.
Pull some tail out so you can easily locate where to re-insert it later.
Next, take that same thread and run it through the eye of your needle, which you will have removed earlier during unboxing.
Pull it all the way out so half is on one side of your needle and half is on the other side.
Now, reinsert the needle back into its original position without pushing down – just let go of it so it can lower itself back into place.
You should now have equal amounts of thread snaking out from both sides of your machine.
Step 3 : Threading the looper
The next step to serging with a serger is threading the looper – this means putting threads in loops by using two spools that are connected together. There are three loops that need to be formed in order to successfully thread the looper – two are actively looping while one is passively looping.
Now locate your lower looper and disengage it just the same as you did for your upper loopers.
To do this, push both levers up until they click into place:
Some models will have a screwdriver slot on either side of their machine, which can be used to turn and keep these levers engaged (these screws should always be kept tight).
While disengaging the lower looper, make sure not to pull out any un-wound thread from underneath your machine! This is very important because if your threads wind too tightly around each other they could jam or break your needles.
Now, take the two spools you previously threaded through the hole in your needle plate and attached them by feeding their ends through each other.
The un-wound thread should be coming out of the top while the wound thread should come out of the bottom – this way when they are both pulled, they’ll tighten around each other perfectly.
Now take one end of these doubled threads and feed it into the lower looper tension dial on either side of your machine.
If you’re right-handed you will want to start with the left dial (it doesn’t really matter), but if you’re left-handed do it vice versa – it is important that both loops are looping at exactly the same time.
Now take your other set of doubled threads and feed them through the first hole on the right side of your machine (assuming you are right-handed).
Pull both sets of threads all the way through until they become tight like a guitar string.
Remember that one set should come out of the top while the other comes out from underneath, otherwise your loops will not tighten correctly around each other.
Now, without letting go of these threads, return to threading your looper by first feeding them into opposite ends of your serger – if you’re right-handed start with left, vice versa for lefties.
The un-wound part should be from inside your serger while the wound part should come from outside your serger – make sure to give yourself a little slack for this step.
Now hold onto both sets of thread and pull them tight as your feed these threads through the corresponding lower looper tension dial holes, one by one.
Adjust each dial so they are somewhere between “1” and “3” as you go.
Once completed, continue holding on to those two sets of threads as you return back to the first hole on either side of your machine, pulling them all the way out until they become taut again (you may need to help guide it along with another set of hands). Don’t worry about what this wire shape looks like – the looper should still be engaged and looping.
Now that your upper looper threads are tight, we can continue with threading the lower loopers.
To do this, first disengage both of them (just like you did in step 2) and then take one end of each set of doubled threads from earlier and feed their ends through either side of your lower looper tension dial so they come out from underneath – similar to how you did it for your upper loopers.
Then hold these two sets of threads as you pull them all the way through until they become taut again.
Once completed, return back to threading your left or right hole on either side depending on which hand you start with (vice versa for right-handers) and pull it all the way through.
This time you need to pull out a very special shape: one set of thread should be coming out from underneath and the other should come out from inside your serger – remember that one is wound while the other un-wound, otherwise they won’t tighten correctly around each other.
Feed these sets of threads into their corresponding lower looper tension dial holes as you did with your upper loopers.
Now hold onto those two sets of threads as you return back to either side and pull them taut once more until you come up with another wire shape similar to earlier (don’t let go now!).
Your lower loopers are now engaged and looping.
Great – all of your threads are now tight, perfect for sewing!
Step 4 – Use a universal needle threader
The final step is to thread your needles using a universal needle threader which you’ll find attached on the right side near the needles themselves.
Thread both of these without cutting them off first by feeding their ends into either end of the needle threader until they come out the other end. Now pull them taut with one hand while turning the dial on top with your other hand to open up the hook holes.
Now you can simply insert each of these threads through their respective loops around your machine (one of these will be very nearby) and pull through until next to their corresponding looper.
Conclusion
By following the above steps, you will learn how to thread your serger correctly. The most important thing to remember is every time you thread it, re-tension all threads by pulling them taut before continuing. With enough practice, you’ll be able to thread a serger in no time at all!