It has been around for a few decades, around 25 years and many of them are still going strong. Pfaff has been in business for almost 150 years. They are one of the premier sewing machine companies in the world.
The problem with the Pfaff 260 is that many of the spare parts are no longer available so you have to try and find them second hand or after market. However, because the Pfaff 260 is a great sewing machine you can rely on it if you keep it in good working order. I’ll try and offer some help as to the common problems that you might encounter with your Pfaff 260 sewing machine as well as some simple maintenance tips to bear in mind so that you can enjoy your Pfaff for years to come.
If you’ve inherited a Pfaff 260 you’ll soon fall in love with it. If you’ve had your sewing machine for some time then you already know what a great machine it is. Even though it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles that the newer machines have, the Pfaff 260 is still very versatile considering how old it is.
The very first thing you want to ensure is that you keep your Pfaff 260 regularly oiled for a long life. This is probably the biggest tip that I can share. Like a car (so my husband says) any machine that has moving metal parts need oil to function properly and to ensure that it doesn’t rust and cause undue friction.
The Pfaff 260 is easy to oil by just taking of the top cover. Using proper Pfaff oil that is non-resinous and acid free or any other good sewing machine oil is crucial to making sure the oil does its job right. You’ll see several small holes and joints that need to be oiled as in the diagram below. Only one to two drops are needed for best success.
Okay, now lets take a moment to talk about some of the most common troubleshooting issues that you might find with your Pfaff 260. The first one is that your Pfaff skips stitches. There can be 3 causes to this.
1. Needle is incorrectly inserted. To fix this, be sure to push the needle as far up as it will go and have the shank of the needle facing away from you and the long groove of the needle should be facing towards you. This should take care of it.
2. Wrong needle. This is an easy fix for the Pfaff 260. Make sure for needles greater than 3/32″ you’re using system 130R needles. For less than that use System 130B needles.
3. Bent needle. Take a look and replace as necessary.
Another common problem with the Pfaff 260 is that you can find that the thread will sometimes break. This shouldn’t happen if you follow up with these solutions:
1. The thread tension is too tight. You need to adjust the thread according to the Pfaff 260 service manual.
2. Poor or knotty threads. Of course, the quality of your thread is always important. If you’ve invested in a good sewing machine then you need to spend just a couple of dollars on a good quality thread.
3. If you find the hook raceway is jammed with thread this can often be due to the fact that the needle needs oiling. This will often alleviate this problem.
Those are some of the most common problems with the Pfaff 260 which is a great sewing machine. Hope that helps. Here are some other articles you might like that I’ve written on the Pfaff Overlock, also general Pfaff Embroidery machines, and more specifically about the Pfaff Creative Vision as well as the Pfaff Select. Can you tell I just love Pfaff sewing machines?