Every shop has a needle drawer. Most have one drawer with everything in it — DBx1 mixed with DPx5, leftover packs from old projects, sizes that may or may not match the machine. The needle is the smallest part of the seam, but it decides how the stitch lays, whether the thread breaks, and whether the fabric puckers. Here's how to read a pack, and how to match a system to a machine class without guessing.
Reading a needle pack
Three things are printed on it, and each one answers a different question.
1. The system — DBx1, DPx5, 135x17, UY128GAS. Needle length, shank diameter and blade geometry. This is what decides whether the needle physically works in your machine. Set by the machine, never by the fabric.
2. The size — Nm 65, 80, 100, 140. The blade diameter in hundredths of a millimetre: Nm 80 is 0.80 mm. Set by the fabric and the thread.
3. The point — R, FFG, LR, RG. How the tip enters the material. Set by the material type. This is the one most shops ignore, and it's the one behind half the skipped-stitch complaints on knits.
Sizes
Nm and the old US numbers
Our packs are labelled in metric (Nm), which is what Groz-Beckert prints. If you learned needles in US numbers, this is the same scale:
| Nm | US | Typical work |
|---|---|---|
| 65–75 | 9–11 | Silk, fine shirting, lingerie, light knits |
| 80–90 | 12–14 | Shirts, dresses, jersey, light pants — the everyday sizes |
| 100–110 | 16–18 | Denim, twill, workwear, light canvas |
| 120–140 | 19–22 | Upholstery, leather, heavy canvas, webbing |
| 160–180 | 23–24 | Harness, saddlery, heavy strap and thick multi-layer work |
Rule of thumb on size: the thread has to slide freely in the long groove. If you can see the thread standing proud of the groove, go one size up. If the needle is leaving visible holes, go one down and check the point style before you blame the size.
Match by machine class
Five systems cover a production floor
This is the table to keep on the wall. Find your machine class on the left; the system on the right is what the machine was built around. When in doubt, the system is stamped on the machine's throat plate area or printed in the manual — that beats any chart.
| Machine class | System |
|---|---|
|
Single-needle lockstitch JACK A4/A5E-B/F6, JUKI DDL-8700 and DDL-8100e, Speedway Ai4, SIRUBA DL-7200 |
DBx1 also sold as 1738, 16x231, 16x257, 71x1 |
|
Zigzag, bartack, buttonhole, button, programmable pattern sewers, double-needle lockstitch JACK 20U53, JK-T1900/T2210/T3020, JK-T781G/T783G, JK-58720B |
DPx5 also sold as 134, 135x5, DPx7, SY 1955 |
|
Walking foot and unison feed JUKI DNU-1541 and DU-1181N, CONSEW 206RB-5, JACK H2 and H7-C, JACK 2060GHC-4Q, Speedway SW-1510 and SW-4400 |
135x17 also sold as DPx17, SY 3355. On leather and vinyl, the same needle with a cutting point: 135x16 LR / NW / RTW |
|
Heavy cylinder-bed unison feed PFAFF 335-6/01 and 335-17/01, JACK Z7 |
134-35 also sold as DPx35. Reinforced blade for thick, dense assemblies |
|
Coverstitch and chainstitch on knits JACK K5/K6/K7 and W4, JUKI MF-7523, KANSAI NR-9803 and NW-8803, SIRUBA F007/C007, Speedway SW 562/662 |
UY128GAS also sold as UY128GBS, TVx3, 149x3 |
The mistake we correct most often on the phone
A walking foot machine does not take DPx5. DPx5 (134 / 135x5) and 135x17 (DPx17) look almost identical in the drawer, but the 135x17 blade is longer. Put a DPx5 in a DNU-1541, a 206RB-5 or a JACK H2 and the hook arrives at the wrong place relative to the eye — you get skipped stitches that no tension adjustment will fix. If your machine says "walking foot", "top and bottom feed", "unison feed" or "compound feed", start at 135x17.
Point style
R, FFG, LR — what the letters after the size mean
- R — round point. The default. Wovens: shirting, denim, twill, canvas.
- FFG (same as SES) — light ball point. Pushes between the loops instead of cutting them. Jersey, rib, interlock, anything knitted. Running R on knits is the classic cause of laddered, damaged hems.
- RG — the round point used on the UY coverstitch needles. Slightly rounded tip, sized for knit and stretch work on coverstitch and chainstitch machines.
- LR — cutting point for leather. A small blade that slices a clean angled slit instead of punching a round hole, so the stitch line lays down straight and the leather doesn't tear along the seam. Vinyl and coated fabrics too.
You'll also see SD, SAN, TRI, NW and other suffixes on specialty packs — those are material-specific tips for dense wovens, high-speed operations or particular leathers. If you're looking at one and aren't sure, ask us rather than guessing: the wrong point does more visible damage than the wrong size.
GEBEDUR: when needles are wearing out too fast
GEBEDUR is Groz-Beckert's titanium-nitride coated version — the gold-coloured ones. Same system, same size, same point, a harder surface. On abrasive material (denim, canvas, glass-fibre reinforced fabric, heavily dyed goods) and on long automated runs they hold their point several times longer than an uncoated needle, which is what makes the higher pack price pay for itself. We stock GEBEDUR in DBx1, 135x17 and UY128GAS.
How often to change the needle
Sooner than most shops do. The industry rule of thumb for a standard uncoated needle is 4 to 8 hours of actual sewing, and several times that for titanium-nitride coated. But the schedule is only the backstop — change it immediately if the needle hit a pin or a zipper, if it's bent, if it's been in a jam, or if you start seeing skipped stitches or a ticking sound. A blunted needle doesn't just make bad seams: it wears the hook point and the feed dog, and those cost real money.
Change on a schedule and throw the old one away. Keeping used needles "for testing" is how they end up back in a production machine.
The systems in the store
- Groz-Beckert DBx1 — single-needle lockstitch. R and FFG points, Nm 65–110, 10-pack.
- Groz-Beckert DPx5 — zigzag, bartack, buttonhole, pattern sewers, double-needle. R, FFG and SD points, Nm 70–140, 10-pack.
- Groz-Beckert 135x17 — walking foot and unison feed. R point, Nm 90–180, 10-pack.
- Groz-Beckert 134-35 — heavy cylinder-bed compound feed, 10-pack.
- Groz-Beckert UY128GAS — coverstitch and chainstitch on knits. FFG and RG points, Nm 65–130, 10-pack.
Current pricing for each pack is on the product page.
Choosing by fabric weight rather than machine class? Our earlier guide on needles for heavy-duty fabrics approaches the same drawer from the other side.
Talk to a specialist
Tell us your machine model and the fabric you're sewing. We'll give you the system, the size and the point — and if you're not sure what class your machine is, a photo of the head is enough.