Sewing Ranked
Which sewing machine needle do I need? System, size and point, read off your own machine
After reading this you will know which of the three things printed on a needle package answers which question, how to tell a household needle from an overlock one by looking at the needle itself, and why the size a fabric chart recommends can be more than your own machine allows.
Three separate things are printed on a needle package, and only one of them is about your fabric. The system (130/705 H, ELx705, DBx1) is about your machine. The size (90/14) is about your thread and fabric weight. The point (Universal, Jersey, Microtex, Jeans) is about how your fabric is built. Get the system wrong and the needle does not fit or does not form a stitch. Get the size or point wrong and it sews, badly.
The short answer
If it is a household sewing machine, the needle system is almost certainly 130/705 H. SCHMETZ, which makes the needles, states that "Needle system 130/705 H is used by 99% of all home sewing machines." The same company states that 130/705 H and 15x1 H "are equivalent, same needle anatomy - a flat shank with a scarf." So a package marked 15x1 H is the same needle. 130/705 refers to the flat shank; on the page where SCHMETZ explains how to read a package, it says "The H refers to a German word, Hohlkehle, that translates to scarf" — the indentation above the eye.
If it is a serger, overlock or coverlock, you cannot answer it by brand. Read the manual. That is not a hedge — it is what the needle maker says, three separate times on one page.
Step 1: the system, which is about the machine
| Machine type | System printed on the package | Source and note |
|---|---|---|
| Household sewing machine | 130/705 H (equivalently 15x1 H) | SCHMETZ: used by 99% of all home sewing machines. Extra letters narrow the point: -J jeans, Q quilting, M Microtex. |
| Newer serger / overlock | Often 130/705 H | SCHMETZ: "Many new sergers use home sewing needle system 130/705 H." Brother's DZ1234 serger chart specifies 130/705H at #80 and #90. |
| Older serger | BLX1 or DCX1 | SCHMETZ: "Some older sergers use needle systems BLX1 and DCX1." |
| Overlock / coverlock | ELx705, ELx705CF, ELx705CF SUK | SCHMETZ. Two grooves, front and back; the second is needed to form chain stitches. SCHMETZ on the ELx705: "Do not use this needle in home sewing machines." |
| Some household overlock / coverlock | JLx2 | SCHMETZ: two thread grooves, shorter point and a 2 mm longer shank than ELx705. "The JLx2 Overlock Needle with flat shank is only suitable for household overlock and coverlock machines where the JLx2 needle system is specified in the instruction manual." |
| Some Elna sergers | ELx705 ZWI | SCHMETZ: a double needle on one mounting shank, offset, right slightly longer than left. |
| Industrial lockstitch, as a class | 134 | Groz-Beckert: "The standard needle for lockstitch applications: Needle system 134." The brochure states this for lockstitch generally and does not break it down by machine sub-type. |
| One industrial single-needle lockstitch machine, worked as an example | Juki DDL-8700: "DB×1 (#14) #9～#18‚134 (Nm90)" | Juki's own specification. The DDL-8700A lists "DA×1 (#9)" and the DDL-8700H lists "DB×1 (#21) #19～#23". Three variants of one model number, three different needle designations. |
| Single- and multihead embroidery | DB x K5, DB x 1, CE x 3 | Groz-Beckert's embroidery range brochure. |
Two rows above name different things and are not interchangeable on the strength of both containing the word lockstitch. 134 is what Groz-Beckert calls the standard for lockstitch as a class; DB×1 is what Juki prints on the spec sheet for one particular machine. We did not find DB×1 mentioned anywhere in the Groz-Beckert apparel brochure, and we found no published source establishing that either system substitutes for the other. Read the system off your own machine's specification or off the packet the needle in it came from.
SCHMETZ says of ELx705 CF, "Use only as recommended by the machine manufacturer," and of ELx705, "Do not use this needle in home sewing machines." Inferred, from SCHMETZ's own statement that the flat shank exists "for perfect positioning in the needle bar in relation to the hook": a needle whose shank is not the flat 130/705 shape cannot be relied on to sit at that position, which is why industrial round-shank systems are not a substitute. We have not tested this.
Step 2: the size, which is a diameter
The first number is metric and means something physical. SCHMETZ: "To determine needle size, SCHMETZ measures the diameter of the blade resulting in numbers like .80, .90, etc. This measurement is multiplied by 100." So Nm 80 is a blade 0.80 mm across. The second number is the older American or Singer number, and the two were standardized against each other — "a metric size 80 always equals a size 12, 90 = 14." Both are always printed.
| Metric (Nm) | American | Blade diameter |
|---|---|---|
| 55 | 7 | 0.55 mm (inferred from the rule) |
| 60 | 8 | 0.60 mm |
| 65 | 9 | 0.65 mm |
| 70 | 10 | 0.70 mm |
| 75 | 11 | 0.75 mm |
| 80 | 12 | 0.80 mm |
| 85 | 13 | 0.85 mm (inferred from the rule) |
| 90 | 14 | 0.90 mm |
| 100 | 16 | 1.00 mm |
| 110 | 18 | 1.10 mm |
| 120 | 19 | 1.20 mm |
| 125 | 20 | 1.25 mm |
| 130 | 21 | 1.30 mm |
Not every size exists in every point. SCHMETZ lists Universal in 60/8 through 120/19, but Stretch only in 75/11 and 90/14, Quilting only in 75/11 and 90/14, Topstitch only in 80/12, 90/14 and 100/16, and Leather only in 70/10 through 110/18. That is why the fabric chart below mostly gives Stretch as two discrete sizes rather than a range: for Cotton Knit and for highly elastic warp-knit it prints "75/11, 90/14". The Fleece row prints "Stretch 75/11-90/14" in range form, but SCHMETZ makes no Stretch needle between those two sizes, so it comes to the same pair. Before buying, check the size you want against the needle guide's list for that point type.
Step 3: the point, which is about how the fabric is built
The table below is eighteen rows taken verbatim from SCHMETZ's published fabric list, which runs to roughly ninety fabrics alphabetically. If yours is not here, use the full chart — link at the end. This is one needle manufacturer's recommendation, not ours, and not the only one published. We have not sewn any of it.
| Fabric | Needle type and size, as published |
|---|---|
| Cotton, Woven | Universal 70/10-90/14 |
| Cotton, Knit | Jersey 70/10-90/14 or Stretch 75/11, 90/14 |
| Jersey | Jersey 60/8-80/12 |
| Knits | Jersey 70/10-100/16 |
| Highly Elastic Warp-Knit Fabric (Lycra, Silk Jersey) | Stretch 75/11, 90/14 |
| Denim | Jeans 90/14-110/18 |
| Canvas | Jeans 90/14-110/18 |
| Corduroy | Jeans/Denim or Universal 80/12 |
| Microfiber | Microtex 60/8-90/14 |
| Silk | Microtex 60/8-90/14 |
| Chiffon | Universal or Microtex 60/8-70/10 |
| Organza | Universal or Microtex 60/8, 70/10 |
| Leather, Thick (Real or Faux) | Leather 100/16-120/19 [Reproduced as published, but SCHMETZ's own Sewing Machine Needle Guide lists the Leather needle only in 70/10, 80/12, 90/14, 100/16, 110/18 and Assorted. We found no 120/19 Leather needle in it. Observed discrepancy between two SCHMETZ documents; treat 110/18 as the practical ceiling.] |
| Leather, Thin | Leather or Universal 70/10-90/14 |
| Quilt | Quilting 75/11, 90/14 or Jeans 70/10-110/18 |
| Fleece | Universal 70/10-90/14 or Stretch 75/11-90/14 |
| Terry Cloth | Universal 80/12, 90/14 |
| Tulle | Universal or Jersey 70/10, 80/12 |
A second opinion from the machine's side
Brother publishes its own chart for the CS7000X, organised by fabric weight and thread rather than fabric name. It is worth reading as an independent column, because it ties needle size to thread weight, which the needle maker's fabric list does not.
| Fabric | Thread | Needle | Stitch length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lightweight: lawn, georgette, challis, organdy, crepe, chiffon, voile, gauze, tulle, lining, etc. | Polyester 60-90; cotton or silk 50-80 | 65/9 - 75/11 | 1.8 - 2.5 mm |
| Medium weight: broadcloth, taffeta, gabardine, flannel, seersucker, double gauze, linen, terry cloth, waffle weave, sheeting, poplin, cotton twill, satin, quilting cotton, etc. | Polyester 60-90; cotton or silk 50-60 | 75/11 - 90/14 | 2.0 - 3.0 mm |
| Heavyweight: denim 12 ounces or more, canvas, etc. | Polyester or silk 30 | 100/16 | 2.5 - 4.0 mm |
| Heavyweight: denim 12 ounces or more, canvas, tweed, corduroy, velour, melton wool, vinyl-coated fabric, etc. | Polyester 60; cotton or silk 30-50 | 90/14 - 100/16 | 2.5 - 4.0 mm |
| Stretch: jersey, tricot, T-shirt fabric, fleece, interlock, etc. | Polyester, cotton or silk 50 | Ball point needle 75/11 - 90/14 | Setting appropriate for fabric thickness |
| For top-stitching | Polyester 30 | 90/14 - 100/16 | Setting appropriate for fabric thickness |
| For top-stitching | Polyester 50-60 | 75/11 - 90/14 | Setting appropriate for fabric thickness |
Observed, between two published charts: Brother puts corduroy in its heavyweight group at 90/14-100/16, with polyester 60 or cotton or silk 30-50 thread. SCHMETZ's fabric chart gives Corduroy as "Jeans/Denim or Universal 80/12" — finer, and in a different point. Both are reproduced here as published. We have sewn neither and do not resolve it; the weight of the particular cloth, and your machine's size ceiling from step 1, decide it.
Brother also states its own limits, and they read as warnings rather than preferences: "Never use thread of 20 weight or lower. It may cause machine to malfunction." The usable range it gives is 30 to 90 weight. On another support page it says a 75/11 "may bend or break, which could result in injury" on heavyweight fabric, that a 90/14 is recommended for embroidering denim or puffy foam stabiliser, and that gold-colored ball point 90/14 needles "are not recommended for embroidery, as they may bend or break, causing injury." Note that this last one sits beside the same company's instruction to use a gold ball point 90/14 for character and decorative stitch patterns — the two cover different operations, which is exactly the kind of detail that only the manual for your model resolves.
Why the wrong needle skips stitches
This is mechanical, not mystical. Cale Schoenberg, who writes the Sewing Machine Man newsletter from a repair shop's perspective, describes it plainly: "the hook must pass within a specific distance range from the back of the needle in order to catch the thread loop." Too close and it strikes the needle; too far and it passes behind the loop instead of through it. "A bent needle— even one that is ever so slightly bent— can negatively affect the machine's needle-hook clearance and cause skipped stitches." His first troubleshooting step is to fit a new needle and see whether the problem goes away. SCHMETZ describes the same relationship from the needle's side: the flat shank is there "for perfect positioning in the needle bar in relation to the hook," and the scarf is "the indentation above the eye that allows the bobbin hook to smoothly grab the thread."
Groz-Beckert's published embroidery troubleshooting gives the two failure directions on the fabric side. Under the heading "Fabric damage during embroidery of knitted material": "Needles that are too thick stretch the loops too wide and they burst," with sharp or damaged points tearing the knitting yarns. Under "Irregular embroidery appearance on woven fabric," the listed causes include "Ball point too big" and "Needle too thin," causing needle deflection. Both sections are about embroidery specifically, and both prescribe embroidery systems (DB x K5 Nm 65 and Nm 75). the mechanism is the relationship between needle thickness and yarn, so it should carry over to ordinary sewing — but the source measured it in embroidery. The governing principle Groz-Beckert states is "The needle should be as thin as possible and as thick as necessary."
If your package is marked R, RG, FFG or FG
Industrial and embroidery packages use point codes instead of names. Groz-Beckert publishes them.
| Code | Point | Published application |
|---|---|---|
| RS | Sharp round point | Standard for blind stitch and for very straight lockstitch seams in fine fabrics |
| R | Regular round point | Standard for lockstitch, woven fabrics, artificial leather, coated woven fabrics |
| RG | Round point with slightly rounded tip | Standard for chainstitch and embroidery. [In Groz-Beckert's separate single- and multihead embroidery brochure the same point is headed "Round point with small ball point" and described as the universal point for embroidery of knitted and textile material such as microfiber.] |
| FFG | Light ball point | For all kinds of knitted fabrics and woven cotton or synthetic fabrics |
| FG | Medium ball point | For elastic or coarse structured fabrics or fabrics with rubber or elastomer content |
| G | Heavy ball point | For very coarse, highly elastic and open structured fabrics |
| SKL | Special ball point | For warp-knitted fabrics with a high elastomer content |
| TR | Special ball point | For Schiffli embroidery in open fabric structures, cotton tulle and/or synthetic fabrics |
What to check on your own machine
There is no way around the model-specific part, so here is exactly where to look.
- In your manual, find the specifications or accessories section and look for a line naming the needle. On the Brother CS7000X that line reads: "Needles that can be used with this machine: Home sewing machine needles (size 65/9 - 100/16)." That is both the system and the size ceiling for that model, in one sentence. Write the ceiling down; you need it in step 6.
- On a serger, go to the manual's needle page specifically, not the general specs. Brother's DZ1234 serger chart names the system inline as "130/705H" alongside each fabric weight. Other sergers name ELx705, JLx2 or BLX1 instead, and nothing about the brand tells you which.
- No manual? Pull the needle that is in the machine and look at the shank. A round shank rules the household family out — that is an industrial needle, because SCHMETZ defines 130/705 as a flat shank. But a flat shank does not rule it in. Many new sergers take flat-shank 130/705 H anyway, and SCHMETZ's JLx2 overlock needle is described as a flat-shank needle "only suitable for household overlock and coverlock machines."
- So look at the blade instead of the shank. A household 130/705 H needle has one long groove down the front and a scarf — a short indentation just above the eye. Overlock systems have a second long groove down the back as well, and SCHMETZ says that second groove "is necessary to create chain stitches like overlock or coverlock stitches." SCHMETZ puts the difference plainly: standard home sewing needles "have the same basic measurements but only one groove." Two grooves means do not buy a household needle for it.
- That narrows it; it does not close it. What closes it is the packet the needle came from. This is SCHMETZ's own advice to an owner whose manual said only "needles suitable for overlocker" with no model number: use the system the machine came supplied with. Failing that, the needle page of the manual for your exact model.
- Now open a needle manufacturer's published fabric chart — SCHMETZ's is the one quoted above — find the fabric actually in your hands, and note the point and size. Then check that size against the ceiling from step 1. The fabric chart is written for machines in general, not for yours. If your manual caps you at 100/16 and the chart says Jeans 110/18 for denim, your machine's limit wins: use the heaviest size your manual allows and adjust thread weight and stitch length instead. This is not theoretical. SCHMETZ reports that "some machine manufacturers have started making smaller bore holes in their needle bars," so that a 120/19 needle no longer fits machines that older needles fitted. Brother's warning for a needle used outside its stated range is that it "may bend or break, which could result in injury."
- Last, check the needle you are about to fit is straight. Brother's method: "Place the flat side of needle on a flat surface and check that the distance between the needle and the flat surface is even."
On refitting: "With the flat side of the needle toward the back of the machine, insert the needle all the way up until it touches the needle bar stopper." That is Brother's wording in its needle-change instructions for its PR-series embroidery machines. The orientation is the same on its household machines, but the tooling is not — there you turn the needle clamp screw, not an Allen screwdriver and a needle changing tool. Confirm the direction in your own manual before assuming it.
SCHMETZ's own list of clues that a needle needs changing, verbatim: shredded or broken threads; skipped stitch, uneven stitches; puckering or damaging fabric; large stitch holes; machine makes popping or clicking or clunking sounds. On how often: "Hard to know. It could be three seconds or 20 hours."
Two related questions have their own pages here: which bobbin class your machine takes, at the bobbin guide, and whether a given presser foot will fit, at the presser foot guide. The needle system, the bobbin class and the shank height are three independent facts about your machine. Knowing one tells you nothing about the other two.
Check it on your own equipment
These take you to the manufacturers and standards bodies the page draws on, so you can look up your exact model.
- Manufacturer specification
SCHMETZ needles by fabric type (full published chart) (opens in a new tab)The needle maker's complete alphabetical list of roughly ninety fabrics, each with the recommended point type and size range. Find the fabric actually in your hands rather than the nearest category. — www.schmetzneedles.com - Manufacturer specification
SCHMETZ needle guide: which sizes each point actually exists in (opens in a new tab)Every SCHMETZ point type with its available sizes listed underneath. Use it to check that the size the fabric chart recommends is made in that point at all — Stretch, Quilting, Topstitch and Leather each stop well short of the Universal range. — www.schmetzneedles.com - Official support page
Brother CS7000X: fabric, thread and needle combinations (opens in a new tab)A machine maker's own table tying fabric weight to thread weight, needle size and stitch length, plus the line stating which needles and thread weights that model accepts. Use it as the template for what to look for in your own manual. — support.brother.com - Manufacturer specification
SCHMETZ serger needles: which system your overlock takes (opens in a new tab)The fork between 130/705 H, BLX1, DCX1 and the ELx705 family, with what the second groove on a serger needle is for — and the instruction to check your owner's manual, repeated three times. — www.schmetzneedles.com
What this page does not tell you
- This page compiles published manufacturer and needle-maker specifications. Nothing on it was tested, measured, sewn or owned by the publisher.
- The fabric-to-needle table is SCHMETZ's published recommendation, reproduced as an eighteen-row excerpt of roughly ninety. A different needle maker publishes a different table. Neither is a measurement of your fabric.
- Brother's chart is specific to the CS7000X, its serger chart to the DZ1234, and the Juki figures to the DDL-8700 and its A and H variants. Other models, including other models from the same makers, publish different numbers. Do not carry these to a machine whose own manual you have not read.
- This page does not establish which needle system any particular industrial machine takes. Groz-Beckert's brochure names 134 as the standard for lockstitch as a class and never mentions DB x 1; Juki names DB×1 and 134 together on one spec line for the DDL-8700. We found no published source stating whether the two substitute for each other, so we make no claim either way. The only reliable answer is your machine's own specification.
- The 55/7 and 85/13 size pairs come from Groz-Beckert's embroidery size row; their millimeter diameters are inferred from the stated hundredths-of-a-millimeter rule, not read off a published diameter table.
- SCHMETZ's fabric chart recommends Leather 100/16-120/19 for thick leather, but SCHMETZ's own needle guide lists the Leather needle only to 110/18. We report the discrepancy rather than resolving it; we do not know which document is current.
- Brother assigns corduroy, velour, tweed, melton wool and vinyl-coated fabric to the heavyweight group on its CS7000X chart, at 90/14-100/16, while SCHMETZ's fabric chart gives corduroy Jeans/Denim or Universal 80/12. We reproduce both charts as published and resolve neither.
- The needle-in-the-machine test narrows the answer and does not close it. A second groove down the back of the blade indicates an overlock system; one groove plus a scarf indicates the household 130/705 H anatomy. But SCHMETZ states that standard home needles and ELx705 CF share the same basic measurements, so a needle found loose in a machine is evidence about what was last fitted, not proof of what the machine takes.
- Brother's two statements about gold ball point 90/14 needles — recommended for character and decorative stitch patterns, not recommended for embroidery — are reproduced as published. We did not resolve which applies to any particular operation on your machine.
- The mechanical explanation of skipped stitches rests partly on a named repair writer's article rather than a manufacturer service document. We corroborated the underlying needle-to-hook relationship against SCHMETZ's own anatomy page but did not find a published machine-timing specification to cite for the clearance window itself.
Sources
Manufacturers revise specifications. Every source below is dated — open it before you buy.
- Needle system 130/705 H is used by 99% of all home sewing machines.
- 130/705 designates a flat shank, and H is from a German word meaning scarf, the indentation on the back of the needle above the eye.
- The German word behind the H in 130/705 H is Hohlkehle.
- Needle packages often carry an additional letter after 130/705 H: -J for jeans, Q for quilting, M for Microtex.
- Needle systems 130/705 H and 15x1 H are equivalent, with the same anatomy: a flat shank with a scarf.
- Both the metric and the Singer or international size designation are always shown on the package.
- SCHMETZ determines needle size by measuring the diameter of the blade, producing numbers like .80 and .90, and multiplying by 100 to give sizes 80, 90 and so on.
- Needle manufacturers standardized sizing so that a metric size 80 always equals a size 12 and 90 equals 14.
- The European metric needle designation, established in 1942, corresponds to the diameter of the needle in hundredths of a millimeter at a non-reinforced point above the scarf.
- Size equivalences and diameters: 0.60 mm = 8/60, 0.65 = 9/65, 0.70 = 10/70, 0.75 = 11/75, 0.80 = 12/80, 0.90 = 14/90, 1.00 = 16/100, 1.10 = 18/110, 1.20 = 19/120, 1.25 = 20/125, 1.30 = 21/130.
- Groz-Beckert's embroidery needle range is published across sizes Nm 55/7, 60/8, 65/9, 70/10, 75/11, 80/12, 85/13, 90/14, 100/16 and 110/18.
- The blade diameters for sizes 55/7 and 85/13 are 0.55 mm and 0.85 mm.
- SCHMETZ lists the Universal needle in sizes 60/8, 65/9, 70/10, 75/11, 80/12, 90/14, 100/16, 110/18 and 120/19.
- SCHMETZ lists the Stretch needle only in sizes 75/11, 90/14 and Twin; the Quilting needle only in 75/11, 90/14 and Assorted; and the Topstitch needle only in 80/12, 90/14 and 100/16.
- SCHMETZ lists the Leather needle only in sizes 70/10, 80/12, 90/14, 100/16, 110/18 and Assorted — it does not list a 120/19 Leather needle — even though its own needles-by-fabric-type chart recommends Leather 100/16-120/19 for thick leather.
- The SCHMETZ fabric chart gives: Cotton Woven → Universal 70/10-90/14; Cotton Knit → Jersey 70/10-90/14 or Stretch 75/11, 90/14; Jersey → Jersey 60/8-80/12; Knits → Jersey 70/10-100/16; Highly Elastic Warp-Knit Fabric (Lycra, Silk Jersey) → Stretch 75/11, 90/14.
- The SCHMETZ fabric chart gives: Denim → Jeans 90/14-110/18; Canvas → Jeans 90/14-110/18; Corduroy → Jeans/Denim or Universal 80/12; Quilt → Quilting 75/11, 90/14 or Jeans 70/10-110/18.
- The SCHMETZ fabric chart gives: Microfiber → Microtex 60/8-90/14; Silk → Microtex 60/8-90/14; Chiffon → Universal or Microtex 60/8-70/10; Organza → Universal or Microtex 60/8, 70/10; Tulle → Universal or Jersey 70/10, 80/12.
- The SCHMETZ fabric chart gives: Leather, Thick (Real or Faux) → Leather 100/16-120/19; Leather, Thin → Leather or Universal 70/10-90/14; Fleece → Universal 70/10-90/14 or Stretch 75/11-90/14; Terry Cloth → Universal 80/12, 90/14.
- SCHMETZ's needles-by-fabric-type chart lists roughly ninety fabrics alphabetically; the eighteen rows reproduced on this page are an excerpt, not the whole chart.
- Many new sergers use home sewing needle system 130/705 H, some older sergers use needle systems BLX1 and DCX1, and ELx705, ELx705CF and ELx705CF SUK are used on overlock or coverlock machines.
- Serger needles have a groove on the front and back sides of the blade to reduce skipped stitches, the second long groove being necessary to create chain stitches like overlock or coverlock stitches.
- Standard home sewing needles such as the Universal have the same basic measurements as ELx705 CF but only one groove, so the number of grooves rather than the shank distinguishes them.
- SCHMETZ states of the ELx705: "Do not use this needle in home sewing machines."
- The SCHMETZ JLx2 is a flat-shank overlock needle system, with two thread grooves, a shorter point and a 2 mm longer shank than the ELx705, suitable only for household overlock and coverlock machines where the JLx2 system is specified in the instruction manual.
- SCHMETZ advises an owner whose serger manual specified only "needles suitable for overlocker" with no model number to use the system the machine came supplied with.
- Some machine manufacturers have made smaller bore holes in their needle bars, so that a 120/19 needle that formerly fitted no longer fits those machines.
- ELx705 ZWI is a double needle on one mounting shank, grooved front and back, offset with the right needle slightly longer than the left, designed for some Elna serger models.
- The SCHMETZ serger needle page instructs the reader to consult or check the owner's manual three separate times.
- SCHMETZ says of ELx705 CF that it should be used only as recommended by the machine manufacturer, and that ELx705 is the needle system frequently used by sergers and overlocks, with two grooves, one on the front and another on the back.
- Home sewing needles have a flat shank for positioning in the needle bar in relation to the hook; needle size is determined by measuring the blade diameter; the scarf is the indentation above the eye that lets the bobbin hook grab the thread.
- An industrial round-shank needle cannot be relied on to sit at the correct position relative to the hook in a household machine.
- Groz-Beckert calls needle system 134 the standard needle for lockstitch applications and UY 128 the standard for chainstitch applications. The brochure states this for lockstitch as a class and does not name DB x 1 anywhere.
- Juki's published specification for the DDL-8700, a 1-needle lockstitch machine, gives the needle as "DB×1 (#14) #9～#18‚134 (Nm90)"; the DDL-8700A gives "DA×1 (#9) #9～#11‚ 134 (Nm65)" and the DDL-8700H gives "DB×1 (#21) #19～#23‚ 134 (Nm130)".
- Groz-Beckert lists DB x K5, DB x 1 and CE x 3 as the needle systems in its range for single and multihead embroidery machines.
- Groz-Beckert cloth point codes: RS sharp round point for blind stitch and very straight lockstitch seams in fine fabrics; R regular round point for lockstitch, woven fabrics, artificial leather and coated woven fabrics; RG round point with slightly rounded tip, standard for chainstitch and embroidery; FFG light ball point for all kinds of knitted fabrics and woven cotton or synthetic fabrics; FG medium ball point for elastic or coarse structured fabrics or fabrics with rubber or elastomer content; G heavy ball point for very coarse, highly elastic and open structured fabrics; SKL for warp-knitted fabrics with high elastomer content; TR for Schiffli embroidery in open fabric structures, cotton tulle and synthetic fabrics.
- In Groz-Beckert's single- and multihead embroidery brochure the RG point is headed "Round point with small ball point" and described as the universal point for embroidery of knitted and textile material such as microfiber — different wording from the apparel brochure's "Round point with slightly rounded tip".
- Groz-Beckert's embroidery troubleshooting states, under the heading "Fabric damage during embroidery of knitted material", that needles which are too thick stretch the loops too wide and they burst; and under "Irregular embroidery appearance on woven fabric", that the causes include a ball point that is too big and a needle that is too thin, leading to needle deflection. The prescribed solutions are DB x K5 Nm 65 and DB x K5 Nm 75.
- The needle-thickness failure mechanism Groz-Beckert describes for embroidery should carry over to ordinary sewing.
- Groz-Beckert states the governing principle for needle thickness: the needle should be as thin as possible and as thick as necessary.
- Brother's published CS7000X chart pairs lightweight fabrics with 65/9-75/11 and 1.8-2.5 mm stitch length, medium weight with 75/11-90/14 and 2.0-3.0 mm, stretch fabrics with a ball point 75/11-90/14, and top-stitching with 90/14-100/16 at thread weight 30 or 75/11-90/14 at 50-60. Heavyweight is two rows with different fabric lists: "Denim (12 ounces or more), canvas, etc." at polyester or silk 30 with needle 100/16, and "Denim (12 ounces or more), canvas, tweed, corduroy, velour, melton wool, vinyl-coated fabric, etc." at polyester 60 or cotton or silk 30-50 with needle 90/14-100/16.
- SCHMETZ's fabric chart gives Corduroy as "Jeans/Denim or Universal 80/12", while Brother's CS7000X chart places corduroy in its heavyweight group at needle 90/14-100/16 — the two published charts disagree.
- Brother states for the CS7000X: "Never use thread of 20 weight or lower. It may cause machine to malfunction," gives a usable thread range of 30-90 weight, and states that the needles that can be used with this machine are home sewing machine needles in size 65/9 to 100/16.
- Brother instructs that when sewing lightweight, medium weight or stretch fabrics for character and decorative stitch patterns, a gold-colored ball point needle 90/14 should be used.
- Brother states that a 75/11 needle may bend or break, which could result in injury, that gold-colored ball point 90/14 needles are not recommended for embroidery as they may bend or break causing injury, and that a 90/14 is recommended when embroidering on heavyweight fabrics or stabilizing products such as denim and puffy foam.
- Brother's own bent-needle check is to place the flat side of the needle on a flat surface and check that the distance between the needle and the flat surface is even.
- Brother's DZ1234 serger chart specifies needle system 130/705H at size #80 for fine materials, #80 and #90 for medium materials and #90 for heavy materials.
- Brother's needle installation instruction — insert the needle with the flat side toward the back of the machine, all the way up until it touches the needle bar stopper — appears in a procedure written for its PR-series embroidery machines, which uses an Allen screwdriver and a needle changing tool rather than a needle clamp screw.
- Cale Schoenberg, writing the Sewing Machine Man newsletter, explains that the hook must pass within a specific distance range from the back of the needle to catch the thread loop, that a bent needle can negatively affect needle-hook clearance and cause skipped stitches, and that his first step on skipped stitches is to insert a new needle.
- SCHMETZ's published clues that a needle needs changing are: shredded or broken threads; skipped stitch, uneven stitches; puckering or damaging fabric; large stitch holes; machine makes popping or clicking or clunking sounds. On how often to change, SCHMETZ answers "Hard to know. It could be three seconds or 20 hours."