Deep cleaning the needle bed

This article discusses how to take all needles and jacks out, and how to clean them and the needle beds. Read how to place everything back  .

Despite regularly cleaning and oiling your machine, some dirt will still seep into the needle bed, making it harder for needles to move. We recommend deep cleaning the needle bed once every year for everyday use of the machine. Always schedule a few days for a deep clean, as it's quite a lot of work. If you're cleaning it by yourself, schedule 3 to 4 days; if you're with two, schedule 2 to 3 days.

1. Take out the doors and carefully place them somewhere safe. Don't risk scratching or breaking the doors.
2. Take off one of the side panels.
3. Use a vacuum cleaner to remove loose fluff and dirt from the needle beds.
4. Slide all needles from one bed up, and check if there are any needles that need replacement.
5. Mark needles that are bent, broken, or worn by sliding them down a bit.
6. Remove the horizontal bar using the bar removal tool.
7. Take out the needles that replacing and throw them out.
8. Remove all needles and place them on (paper) towels to protect your table from oil stains.
9. Slide the cover rail to the side using the tip of plyers or scissors and take it out. Place it somewhere safe. Don't risk bending it.
10. Take out all the jacks by lifting them up from the bottom and place them on another (paper) towel to protect your table from oil stains.
11. Repeat steps 3 to 11 on the other bed.

You are now ready to start cleaning!
Never use any cleaning products or water when cleaning the needle bed!

The needle beds:

1. Wipe as much dirt as possible from the bed using a tea towel or piece of cloth.
2. Place a barrier of paper towel in between the beds. Let it stick up around 6 centimetres. This will catch some of the dirt in the next step.
3. Using compressed air, blow the dirt up and out of the grooves.
4. With a clean small brush (toothbrush works) clean the part of the grooves from where the horizontal bar was and up. Regularly remove bits of dirt by using the compressed air.
5. With another clean small brush, clean the deeper parts of the grooves.
6. Once you finish one bed, cover it with (paper) towels to prevent dirt from falling into the grooves you've just cleaned.
7. Repeat the cleaning process on the other bed.
8. Some of the dirt may have flown onto the carrier rails. Wipe them clean with a piece of cloth.

The needles:

1.  Wipe the needles clean with a piece of cloth.
2. Check if the latch is still in good shape. If the latch is bent or you feel some resistance when opening and closing it, it's time to replace the needle.
3. Check if the transfer spring is still in good shape. If it's bent, it's time to replace the needle.
4. Check if the but is still in good shape. If there are any chips from the metal, it's time to replace the needle.
5. With another clean small brush (again, a toothbrush works) clear out any dirt from under the transfer spring.
6. If there is any dirt on the needle that you can't remove using a piece of cloth, you can put the needles in a bath of benzene to soak the dirt loose. Make sure all benzene is removed completely before step 7, you can use compressed air to dry small parts such as the latch and needle spring.
7. Oil the needles and they are ready to be placed back in the machine.

The jacks:

1. Wipe the needles clean with a piece of cloth.
2. Check if the butts are all still in good shape. If there are any chips from the metal, the jack must be replaced.
3. f there is any dirt on the jacks that you can't remove using a piece of cloth, you can put the jacks in a bath of benzene to soak the dirt loose. Make sure all benzene is removed completely before step 7.
4. We recommend sorting the jacks into their 6 categories as you clean them.
5. Oil the jacks and they are ready to be placed back in the machine.

Read how to put all parts back in the machine here.