Hat Hoop

[Juli in Kona]

I am having trouble hoping a hat. I can't seem to get the hat far enough in for the clamp to grab it. And when I take the hat off the hoop station to put it on the machine, it is very hard to pull off. And when I check it carefully, I can see that the clamp is not over the bottom (so it can grab) but rather it is just out in space. I can easily just shove the hat completely of the hoop because nothing is holding it to something solid.

So, what is the trick to hooping hats?

Do they teach this at the training? I have a training coming up in 2 weeks.

Juli in Kona

[Steve]

They teach you everything about the Amaya including hooping caps. Bring a notebook to take notes. It is good you are 'playing' with the machine before you go into training so you get a feel for the machine and software. Don't be afraid to ask the trainer any questions. I'm assuming you are taking the training in California or Denver since you flying from Hawaii.

[Juli in Kona]

Yes, I am definately playing. Did a 3" tall name on a towell for my grandaughter to take as a present for her friend. Ran the speed up to 1500! Man! Warp speed and not one thread break.

I switch back an forth plugging in the machine to the computer or the computer to my LAN. Then, of course, I can't figure out why I can't "Load design". A few more times beating my head against the wall and I should remember to check that I have the right wire plugged in.

And I finally took the time to figure out exactly the diameter of the usable area for my two round hoops. Now when I want to digitize a design and make sure it will fit into one of those hoops, I set my hoop size to the diameter. Generations just came out with a new upgrade where I can permently create custom hoops. That will be nice not to have to enter it in each time.

I am starting to write down my questions so that when I go to class I'll be sure to get all my concerns addressed. Kinda like going to the doctor. "How are you?" asks the Dr. "Fine," says the patient.

Juli in Kona

[J&O Enterprises]

HI Juli,

Are you using the old-style hat hoop or the newer one for the "constructed" front hats? Either way, you must fold "down" the sweat liner of the hat. Hold the hat with the inside facing the front of the hoop gauge (frame attached to gauge), and with a hand on each side of the Bill. ****KEY*** You must hold the sweat band out, and "bend" the hat bill flat (you will see a natural bend in nearly all the bills these days). By holding the bill flat and the sweat band out, you will be able to push the hat far enough into the frame. Try this a few times without backing in place as to not confuse the situation. Patience fellow young Amaya-Jedi... Today I sewed some hats on the "constructed" style of frame, and it is a little different too.

Thanks,

[Juli in Kona]

I haven't the foggiest if I have the new or old hat hoop! I am giving up on it until the class. I am tired of taking out stitches to save all my hats!

Juli in Kona

[HERB]

Juli,
Do you have a contact phone number?

[HeatherStitch]

How do you keep the unstructured from gathering when sewing out a design? I have no problem with the structured caps, just the ones that are wimpee!!

Heather Williams
Embroidery Solutions

[J&O Enterprises]

Hi Heather,

What I found was that just prior to clamping the frame down, you must pull the hat as HARD as you can to the "outside" of the frame(holding at the bottom of the hat and pulling down), then clamp down. This will make the front as tight across the sewing area as possible. In my humble experience, you need a lot of tension across the front of the un-structured hat to get a good sew.
Thanks,

[Juli in Kona]

Ok, I am now able to hoop a cap - with the friendly help of the members.

But, the closest I can get a design to be to the seam is 1 1/4 inches. That is unacceptable. How can it get it closer. There is way too much space being wasted there for no reason. I cannot bring the cap out anymore or it just comes off. There must be some adjustment that I can make, but I can't figure out what.

Juli in Kona

[Impressive Threads]

Juli in the amaya os software after you have loaded your design, chosen the correct hat frame and turned the design upside down for sewing, select settings on the tool bar, select move tab. You will see an X and Y setting option. To move the design down towards the seam of the cap bill you want to put in a number ( I usually start with 25) and hit apply. This will move your cap frame on the machine out towards the front of the machine, causing the design to move towards the bill of the cap. I hope this makes sense. Then if you want to move it more type a number in and hit apply again. You will see the design on your screen move towards the edge of the hoop outline.

Cindy Chamberlin
Impressive Threads

[HERB]

I use the keypad on the machine to position my caps.