Change Sewing Machine Needles Often

Needles don’t last forever and you need to replace them as necessary. Also, sewing over pins cannot only damage a needle but your machine as well. Bernina is asked such questions on their USA website and publishes the following advice:

How often do I need to replace my needle and why?
You should always change your needle after 4–6 hours of sewing time as the tip gets worn and burrs on the needle can damage your fabric and needle plate. Skipped stitches may occur with a worn or damaged needle. It is also important not to sew over pins, as the needle can easily hit the pin, burring or blunting the needle. The pin can also break and be pushed into the sewing machine, causing damage to the internal parts. (Article Ref. #: faq0018)

On occasion, customers bring their machines in for repair due to bad stitch quality. One example is large loops on the bobbin side of the stitches being caused simply by a needle that had struck a pin and was bent into a hook. Other problems are caused by a blunted or burred needle. Sometimes replacing the needle is all that is required. Other times you need to bring in your machine to have the timing fixed because the needle bar is out of alignment from striking a pin. So be sure to change your needle after 4–6 hours of actual sewing and please don’t sew over pins!