Timing is the relationship between the needle’s position and the hook’s position as it passes to catch the thread loop. If they are out of step, the hook misses the loop and the machine does not stitch.
It is the last thing to suspect, not the first. The symptoms of bad timing — skipped stitches, no stitch forming — are identical to the symptoms of a blunt needle, a wrong needle, bad threading or a full bobbin race. Those four account for the overwhelming majority of cases and take ten minutes to rule out.
What actually knocks timing out. Hitting a pin at speed. Forcing the handwheel against a jam. Sewing fabric far beyond what the machine can take. And on plastic-framed machines, gradual frame flex over years.
Can you fix it yourself? Technically it is adjustable, and on some older mechanical machines it is a documented procedure. In practice, unless you know what you are doing, adjusting timing on a modern machine turns a repairable fault into an expensive one. It is a workshop job.
What it costs. A re-time is usually a modest part of a service, and far less than a new machine — which is why a metal-framed machine remains worth repairing and a cheap plastic one often does not.
The prevention is a fresh needle and not forcing anything.
Questions people actually ask
How do I know it is timing and not something simpler?
Rule out the simple things first: new needle correctly fitted, re-thread with the foot up, fresh bobbin of the right class, clean race. If it still will not stitch on ordinary fabric, then consider timing.
My machine skips only sometimes.
Intermittent skipping is far more often a needle or thread problem than timing. Timing faults are usually consistent.
Last reviewed 2026-08-11