Brother SA161 Adjustable Zipper/Piping Foot

My Brother machine came with a Zipper Foot. It was one of those interchangeable things that are very convenient with the shank on the machine. However I had problems with the foot catching on the stops at either end of a zipper. And trying to do one of those bulky molded sport zippers was almost impossible because the very low clearance at the back of the foot where it attached to the interchangeable shank meant I could not get the foot close enough to the zipper. And piping was also impossible, again because of the clearance. I was at a loss as to what to do. Then I took some classes at a local community college. When we were working on zippers the instructor had us use an adjustable foot like this one. The college's sewing lab has Janome machines that also use interchangeable feet but the instructor would not let us use the interchangeable zipper foot. The instructor's reasoning for using the adjustable zipper foot, as apposed to the interchangeable zipper foot, was the clearance problem. It was too narrow a space for the zipper stops to pass through. Also the leading edge of the interchangeable zipper foot didn't allow it to get close enough to allow proper stitching. She also had us use this type of foot for applying invisible zippers, which it does very well. So I went looking for an adjustable zipper foot like this one. I was Thrilled to bits to discover that Brother had one specifically for their machines. I love working with it. It makes inserting zippers so much easier. No more having to lift the foot to get it over the zipper stops. And it works wonderfully on invisible zippers. I know there are specific feet for doing invisibles, but this works so well. Haven't tried it for piping yet, but I'm expecting the same wonderful results. And here's a hint for using this foot when sewing an invisible zipper. First of all, it helps if you sew the invisible's tape to the seam allowance first before stitching close to the invisible's teeth. Sew down the center of the tape. This anchor's the tape in place so that when you sew next to the teeth the tape won't slip around, especially on satins and such. First one side, then the other. Then leaving the Zipper foot on the machine, sew part of the rest of the seam from about 2 inches below the zipper to where you want the zipper to stop when unzipping. Why leave the zipper foot on? So you can get the seam stitching really close to the zipper so it looks like there is no zipper in the seam. That's the point of invisible zippers. So Why only about 2 inches below the zipper to start the seam? My instructor suggested only stitching the first 2 inches of the seam below the zipper at first, especially if it will be a long seam like on a gown. This way you can check to make sure you've sewn the seam correctly. Then you can sew the rest of the seam. That way, if you've messed it up you only have just a few inches of stitches to remove and not the whole length of the garment.

I purchased this for my Brother XL 3750 sewing machine and it works perfectly. Just unscrew the regular presser foot and slip this one in. I used it yesterday to sew in a zipper and it was the best job I've ever done on a zipper. Very narrow and easy to get close to where you want to be.

I should start by saying I own two other Brother feet for zipper installation - the invisible zipper foot (SA128) and the standard zipper foot that comes with most Brother machines. I am kicking myself for not buying this particular foot much sooner! This foot hands down beats the other two for zipper installation (both kinds) and also you can use it for piping which I haven't done yet. This makes getting around the zipper so easy, and I install a lot of zippers so I appreciate this. I'm anxious to use this on narrow seams too, because it would be great for that. The guide foot is adjustable so you can move it where you want the needle to hit. One note, this fits most Brother machines however on my machine (SQ-9000), I had to remove the pressure foot holder to install it. Not a big deal, however just be aware it requires removal of this (or an adapter on other machines, see Brother's website for details) to work.

If you're using a regular zipper foot, you owe it to yourself to give this a try. I got it because of a sewing teacher online who demonstrated inserting a perfect invisible zipper using one of these, and I have been able to duplicate it beautifully using this zipper foot. It's cheap --just buy it!

I love this this foot for piping. The regular zipper foot has a big piece that allows the foot to quick-connect with the machine. This piece pushes a large piping (as used in pillows) out of line making it hard to sew straight. This foot does not have that wide piece and it is much easier to sew accurately. It is not as convenient as a quick-connect foot but that is a small price to pay for great results.

Finally, I was able to adjust the position of my stitches so I could sew tightly against piping. I used one setting to baste the cording in place, then brought the stitches closer to finish the seam with all the layers. There is not a lot of room for adjustment because you still have to clear the needle, but this foot gave me just the little extra nudge I needed to get my stitches tight against the cording. The product is well made and the adjustment screw is easy to use. The foot itself is narrower than most of the zipper feet that come with the newer machines, so it will probably also be my preferred foot for zippers. It also does not have that back end that newer zipper feet have that gets in the way of moving your foot closer to the zippers. I give it 4 stars and not 5 because the unit has a wide adjustment area, but only a portion is usable because you can only adjust it slightly before the needle will hit the foot. Still, I found it very helpful.

I have a Brother JX2517 that previously belonged to my mother-in-law. It only had one foot (the standard? one) when I got it from her, so I purchased this one for zippers. It was easy to install and worked really well when sewing the zipper. UPDATE (1-3-21): Still using this foot, and it works well on my Singer machine as well.

use this foot daily in my sewing. Very easy to install and take off. Highly recommend.

Very happy to find this adjustable zipper foot as my older machine doesn't have option of adjusting the needle side to side, and the standard zipper foot didn't allow my needle to get right up against my work when sewing piping. Good quality, came with instruction sheet for installation and use. Although this is a Brother part, I think it would fit any standard low-shank machine. Mine is a 30 year-old White Model 1477. Pics 1 & 2 are of the Brother adjustable foot, which is installed with the shank removed. Pics 3 & 4 are of my shank & regular foot on the machine, to show what kind of machine this should fit.

Works well, product is as described. Would buy again.

Perfect it is heavy duty no plastic works great

Worked great,for piping of pillows,etc.