My mother gave my wife a Kenmore sewing machine and now after retiring my wife wants to start sewing again. The machine is in pretty good shape, after oiling and cleaning. My question is that the tensioner seems loose. You can screw the tension all the way in and it still appears loose between the body of the machine and the tensioner itself. If you get the bottom stitch to be tight then the top is loose, when the top is tight the bottom is loose. It is a Kenmore model 148 13101. Thanks for any help as I do not have the shop manual for it.

Steve, June 2009

I can't find a way to thank you on the page "drivewithken" but I thank you. The set screw was very loose and now works like a charm. It seems you can't beat some of the old stuff.
steve

steve, June 2009

Hello Steve,
If the tension unit itself is loose there should be a screw if you open the faceplate that tightens onto it, if there is no screw then the tension unit screws into the machine itself,
if that is the case screw the unit in and then pull the plastic cover off the tension unit, there should be a white plastic adjuster, have the machine threaded and working, tighten the plastic adjuster bit by bit and test sew, when you have the stitch right pop the plastic cover on with number 4 at the top, you should be able to pull the thread through on the bobbin case with some slight resistence, if it is too tight loosen the screw on the bobbin case anti clockwise about a quarter of a turn at a time, this site no longer allows email addresses to be shown but if you type this address in as you say and not as you see it you will be able to get a manual. www dot sewing dash machine dash manuals dot com

drivewithken, June 2009