Successful sewing with a sewing machine requires matching up materials, equipment, and intended task. important to have the correct needle for your sewing machine. Sewing machine needles differ in materials, size, and intended purpose.

Sewing machine needles can be split into two categories, home sewing machine needles and industrial sewing machine needles. Home sewing machine needles are usually identified by the half round flattened shank part that inserts into the needle bar of the sewing machine to ensure proper orientation. Industrial sewing machine needles have many different sizes but most common industrial needles have a completely round shaft that inserts into the needle bar and allows for fine adjustment of the orientation of the needle.

Sewing Machine Needle Parts

• Butt - top part of the needle that can determine the overall length after being fully inserted in to the needle bar of the sewing machine of the needle and often identifies its type

• Shank - part that is clamped in the needle bar and determines the orientation of the needle

• Shoulder - section that tapers from the diameter of the shank down to the thinner shaft

• Shaft - thin part of the needle that begins after the tapered shoulder sometimes referred to as the blade

• Groove - slotted indentation along the shaft of the needle opposite of the scarf that accommodates the thread, can extend past the eye of the needle

• Scarf - concave section of the needle above the tip and the eye that allows the hook to capture the thread to make a stitch

• Eye - place where the thread passes through

• Tip - end of the needle that first goes through the fabric, it can be pointy, blunt or even ball tipped

• How to Select Needle and Thread Size

Sewing machine needles are classified by their needle system, the size of the needle, the the type of needle point.

Needle Size Chart

Needle size is the diameter of the needle and is often listed in Metric and US sizes. Metric needle size numbers represent hundredths of a millimeter. Size 80 = .8 mm and size 125 = 1.25 mm in diameter. Unless you are using a specialty machine you will rarely encounter needle sizes 120/19 and above.