Sewing Machine Without ???

Sewing machine without foot pedal or sewing machine without pedal

Sometimes carrying around and or using a foot pedal might be obnoxious so can you use a sewing machine without a foot pedal? As with most answers to such broad questions, yes you can but only with certain machines. In fact there are numerous machines that can be used without a foot pedal and are listed by brand below. 

These machines all generally have a start/stop button as well as the ability to change the speed on the machine to your liking. Here are a couple examples on Baby Lock machines of these functions.

The process of using this feature is fairly simple. Make sure your machine is turned on and then you’ll need to make sure you unplug the foot pedal if it’s attached to the machine as it will override the start/stop button. Once unplugged, when you are ready to sew press the start/stop button to begin the function. Once you are finished sewing or want to stop for the time being press the start/stop button again to stop the function.

Of course as this is an extra feature it may increase the price of the sewing machine itself so keep that in mind when purchasing one. 

Older Singer and Bernina models have a knee press which was invented by Morris D. Hunt and for some people made the experience more comfortable. The other option of course are hand cranked machines which have been around for decades and even with many modern machines you could crank by hand though it’s not necessary with electricity. 

Now if you have a foot pedal but are either tired of using it or just can't, some people have suggested putting the foot pedal in your armpit, or place the pedal on the table and activate it with a hand or elbow. Another option for those people who are disabled a machine called a ByteSwitch offers the ability of either hand or mouth controls. 

Baby Lock 

Sewing:

Ballad, Brilliant, Chorus, Presto II, Soprano, Vesta

Serger:

Triumph

Sewing & Embroidery:

Altair, Solaris II, Verve

Janome

Sewing:

1600P-QC, 230DC, 360DC, 4120QDC, 5060 QDC, 5270QDC, 6700P, 740DC, 780DC, 8077, 8200QCP-SE, Atelier 3, Atelier 5, Atelier 6, Atelier 7, Atelier 9, CXL301, DC2012, DC2012, DKS100, DKS30 SE, DSK30, DXL603, GD8100, HD9, HD9 Professional, Horizon Memory Craft 8900QCP Special Edition, Innov-is A80,JW7630, JW8100, M100QDC, M200QDC, M50QDC, M7 Continental, MC6600, MOD-100, MOD-100Q, Magnolia 7330, Memory Craft 11000 Special Edition, Memory Craft 6650, Memory Craft 6700P, Memory Craft 9450QCP, National Quilt Museum 25th Anniversary Edition, Skyline S3, Skyline S5, Skyline S7, Skyline S9, TXL607

Quilting:

Horizon Memory Craft 8200QCP Special Edition, Horizon Quilt Maker Memory Craft 15000, MC9400 QC

Sewing & Embroidery:

Horizon Memory Craft 9850, Horizon Memory Craft 14000

Embroidery:

Memory Craft 400E 

Brother: 

Sewing:

Brother CS6000I, FB1757T, Innov-is 1100, Innov-is 15, Innov-is 420, Innov-is A150, Innov-is A16, Innov-is A50, Innov-is A60SE, Innov-is A80, Innov-is F420, Innov-is F480, Innov-is NS80E, Innov-is NV1300, Innov-is NV1800Q, Innov-is NV2600, Innov-is V5LE, Innov-is Vq2, Innov-is XJ1, ST150HDH, VQ2, XR9500PRW,  Innov-is 20LE

Sewing and Embroidery:

Innov-is M280D Disney Sewing and Embroidery Machine

Singer

7258

Bernette 

B37, B38, B77, B79, 

Juki 

Kirei HZL-NX7

EverSewn 

Sparrow 25

Husqwarna

Sewing:

690Q, Brilliance 75Q,  Emerald 118, Jade 20, Opal 650, Opal 670 

Sewing & Embroidery:

Jade 35, Topaz 25, Topaz 40, Topaz 50

Elna

eXcellence 580+, eXcellence 680+, eXperience 550, eXperience 560, eXperience 570

Bernina 

Sewing:

325, 335, 435, 475 QE, 480, 540, 570 QE, , 720, 740, 770 QE Plus, 790 Plus, 790E Plus, 790 Plus Peacock Edition

Sewing and Embroidery:

590E, 880E Plus

Pfaff:

Ambition 610, Ambition 620, Ambition 630, Expression 710, Passport 2.0, Passport 3.0, Quilt Expression 720, Smarter 260C

Sewing machine without bobbin

Having a sewing machine without a bobbin simply will not work. Full stop, you’re not going to be sewing anytime soon without a bobbin. The reason being is that in how a sewing machine works. When sewing, the needle which has thread from the top and the bobbin which has the lower thread hidden under the feed dogs combine together to make a lockstitch. 

If either you don't have a bobbin or don’t want to use a machine that uses one, sergers/overlockers/chain stitch are all variations of the same machine or technique that accomplishes a similar effect to a sewing machine with a bobbin.

Machines like this use a top thread that creates a chain stitch which allows the fabric to hold together. Underneath the cloth you are working on is thread that feeds off a moving looper which in most cases is a hinged hook with thread guides. 

If you don’t have one of the machines mentioned above then you can always resort to hand sewing which while isn’t the most ideal choice in terms of speed can still get the job done. Sometimes, when you will need to hand stitch is when dealing with fabric like chiffon or lace which can be easily torn under the foot of a sewing machine.

Below is a list of machines that work without a bobbin, which are a mix of sergers, overlockers, and chain stitchers.

Baby Lock:

Acclaim, Accolade, Celebrate, Cover Stitch BLCS, Diana, Eclipse DX, Eclipse SX, Enlighten, Imagine, Lauren, Ovation, Triumph, Vibrant, Victory

Bernina:

Bernette b42 Funlock, Bernette b44 Funlock, Bernette b48 Funlock, Bernina L450, Bernina L 460

Brother:

1134DW, 1034D, 1034DX, 1634D, 2340CV Cover Stitch, 3234DT, 5234PRW, Designio, DZ1234, M1034D, M343D, ST4031HD, SB3734T Simplicity Limited Edition

Consew:

14TU2345, 14TU854, 14TU858, 693EX, 694EX, 685EX, 695HEX, CM793, CM794, CM795

Costway:

Portable Serger Sewing Machine

Elna:

264, 745, 664 PRO, EasyCover, Elnita 744

Previous Models:

444, 654, 664, 683, 686, 744

E-Z Lock:

EZ100

Gemsy:

Dragonfly DF854, Dragonfly DF858, 737 Super High, 747F, 757F

Husqvarna:

H | Class 250S, HuskyLock s21, Huskylock s25

Jaguar:

489, Novum Supa Lock 486

Janome:

8002D, 1100D, 1200D, 3434D, 6234XL, 9300DX, AirThread 2000D, CoverPro 900 CPX, CoverPro 1000 CPX, Four-DLB, Harmony 7933, Magnolia 7034D, MyLock 204D, MyLock634D, MOD-8933

Juki:

MCS-1500, MO-50E, MO-104D, MO-114D, MO-623 MO-644D Portable, MO-653DE Portable Thread, MO-654DE Pearl Line, MO-655, MO-735, MO-1000, MO-6714s, MO-6716 

Pfaff:

Coverlock 3.0, Hobby Lock 776, Hobby Lock 786, Hobby Lock 788, Hobby Lock 794, Hobby Lock 796, Hobby Lock 4752, Hobby Lock 4762

Reliable:

Dreamstitcher 600SO, Dreamstitcher 787, MSK-3314N-CF7-40H, MSK-3314N-GG7-60H, MSK-3316N-GG7-40H, 5400SO Semi Sub, 5400SO Fully Sub, 5600SO

Rex:

RX3044, RX747-4

Simplicity:

SL350, SL390 Frontier

Singer:

14HD854 Pro Speed, 14SH754 Overlock, Professional 5 14T968DC, ProFinish 14CG754, Finishing Touch 14SH654, Stylist 14SH765, Stylist II 14J250 

Siruba:

700 Series (700QD, 700L/700LD , 700K/Qe, 700UX, 700KS/KST, 700FS, 700DFT/DRT, 700KT), 737K, 747K, 757K, HSO-747D Overlock

Tacony:

American Home AH100

Toyota:

SL-1T, SL3314, SL3487, SLR4D

Yamata:

FN14UAD, FY2000, FY2000A, FY2000A-5-D1, FY2000A-5-QD, FY2100, FY2100-5-D1, FY2100-3/ZQD, FY737, FY747, FY757, FY737A, FY747A, FY757A, FY737A-504M5-04/BK, FY737A-504M5-23/BK, FY737A-504M2-04/LFC-2, FY737AS-504M2-04, FY737B, FY747B, FY757B, FY737D, FY747, FY757D, FY757A, FY757A, FY757A/QD, FY757A-5-D1

Sewing machine without electricity or a sewing machine without motor

Throughout history we’d been using sewing machines without electricity for quite some time before electricity was involved. With these machines they were human powered with a machine on a treadle. Basically this is a cabinet of sorts that the sewing machine would sit on top of and there is a pedal on the bottom that a human pushes on to give the machine the power to sew. 

While in most developed countries these machines aren’t used very often, in countries that aren’t as well developed they still use treadle machines and these machines were built to be repaired, not replaced, so they can operate for decades without issue. Now with these machines they don’t have the ability to do 100s of different stitches because they simply weren’t invented yet, but if you are into DIY it is possible to take some modern machines and convert them into a machine that doesn’t use electricity. 

Anker:

Art Nouveau

Janome:

131, 712T

LUXMI:

Cast Iron

Singer:

Tailor Delux, Magna Straight Stitch Composite, 66, Featherweight 221, Featherweight 222

Usha: 

Bandhan, Anand, 

Sewing machine without table or a sewing machine without stand

When this question is asked about the web generally people are looking for just a treadle machine without the treadle. Unless you are looking for a machine as a decoration piece (warning they are HEAVY) you can’t use a treadle machine without the treadle, it simply won’t work. However if you are looking for a machine that isn’t a treadle and is still a sewing machine the majority of modern machines you can use without issue.  

Sew Without Presser Foot

Contrary to some people's beliefs you don’t have to have a presser foot to sew. A presser foot simply helps assist you at feeding the fabric at a steady rate so without one you’ll just have to take on the responsibility of feeding the fabric yourself. Another function that a presser foot is used for is to help keep the fabric flat while it’s pushed through the machine and stitched. This works in tandem with the presser foot bar that has adjustable spring-loaded pressure and together they keep the fabric from moving.

Now there are lots of different kinds of sewing feet out there and while they help with various stitches like zigzag or zipper and makes the entire process far easier you don’t have to have these feet in order to accomplish your goal. However, you are going to need a lot of practice to get it right and get clean stitches.