Fixing my Lighting on my Juki
My Juki machine didn’t come with any extra lighting. It is quite dark compared to my Janome 8900 or 12000 which have several LEDs embedded into the throat area.
I decided that I wanted to do something about it.
So I bought a LED strip a while ago now at a building supplies store and wanted to attempt to attempt a fix. I figured I should at least try!! Why not?
So, after looking at a couple of You Tube videos about these LED strips, I went ahead and tried folding my stickable strip (affiliate link) so I could put it under the throat of my machine. I cut it to the length that would fit in the spot I wanted - in other words, my strip was too long.
It felt strange to cut such a strip as I’ve not really done such a thing before.
I may have to do something else to make sure the LED strip actually stays “stuck” to the machine, but I am really in love with how much light I have under the throat now. I had previously put a floor lamp off to the right beside my machine but I couldn’t find a solution for the throat of the machine until now! Naturally whenever I bent to work on the machine, I blocked a lot of the light from the floor lamp. It has been my ONLY complaint about this machine!
Here is the final look on how much light I have now!
I do need to figure out exactly where to put the cable and secure it tightly so it doesn’t keep moving around. That’s my biggest “thing” I’ve not done yet.
I am ecstatic! Quietly so, naturally!
So far I don’t see any downsides to what I’ve done. I’ll have to let you know if I encounter any problems. I really do like this Juki machine - it is fast and completely dependable - a true workhorse.
If I could recommend you other piecers who have struggles with other domestic machines failing you or costing too much in repairs, consider one of these. It’s a shame that more of us don’t realize that buying an industrial machine like this means you may never have to buy another “domestic” one again for straight piecing!
I know I didn’t seriously consider getting one until I saw Donna Jordan’s machines on her videos. Of course she hasn’t a clue who I am - but I’m very grateful for her sharing her machines and explaining why she likes her industrials. She also has the same machine I have here. Check it out at 4:22 on this video.
I’ll put in an Amazon link here for the Juki I have (affiliate link).
The only problems I’ve had with it to date have been user error. For example, when I first changed the needle, which is round - not with a flat side as most domestics have - I didn’t realize that the eye of the needle had an indent on one side which is supposed to be facing the arm of the machine, and my thread kept breaking. I had it turned 180 from where it was supposed to be!
Once I realized I had to put that indent facing the throat of the machine - problem gone.
One other issue I had with tension was solved completely by a thorough cleaning of the tension discs - which I love since it’s a big complaint of mine that I can’t get to the tension disc on my Janome machines as they hide them in the housing of the machine - so if something gets in there, you inevitably have to send it to the repair shop where they can take it apart. If it were only a screw or two, I’d do it - but it seems pretty major and you have to almost dismantle the machine to get to the tension disks (my Janome 12000 and 8900). And naturally, at least when they are new and under warranty, doing that is a quick way to void any warranty you have!
I’ll write another update on this, as I mentioned, later, after I figure out exactly what to do with the cables and such and see if there are any longer term “negatives” to my fix.
That’s all I’ve got for you today! Thanks for coming along on my journey!
Have a great day wherever you are reading this! Stay safe!
Be sure to check out what my sis has for you in the store here!
Here’s one of the beauties we have!
