Review on Brother ST4031HD Construction Extension Stitches by Kristen Simpson

I have had an overlocker brother for over 10 years. During this time I have changed the sewing machine 3-4 times, but this old overlock has held up so far. So it's time for a new car. Since I often sew with denim, I chose the ST4031HD. Unfortunately I was very disappointed. The first thing that struck me was that the LED light on this machine was so dim that even in my brightly lit room I still couldn't see the threads on this machine. Secondly, threading on this machine is not as easy as it was on previous models. I followed the instructions exactly, and yet it took several attempts to thread the threads correctly each time. (And yes, I clearly saw that the threading order was slightly different than other models.) The biggest problem with threading seems to be the new way of threading the bottom looper. Third, the presser foot doesn't have much extra lift to start those thicker stitches like my old machine did. Eventually the machine couldn't push the needle through the thick layers of blue jeans and even broke the needle the first time I tried it, not knowing it couldn't handle what my 10 year old machine could do with ease ! I couldn't believe it when I got to my first seam which was 5 layers thick and was pretty standard for my designs. It couldn't push needles through layers like my old machine did. As a note, I've also tried the Brother 1634D (because they sell that in the local store), it cuts the threads easier and in my opinion will hold up as much or even more than a strong and rigid model. Especially since it has withstood 5 layers of blue jeans. It also came with the same accessories.