What am I doing wrong? I have been sewing on & off for about 40 years. I never had a problem making automatic buttonholes. I now own a Pfaff 2042. I just finished making a flannel nightshirt. The buttonholes work fine a scrap of the same fabric, but as soon as I put the garment in, it just won't complete the buttonhole. I have tried every combo of Nos. for length, width, etc. It just won't make a perfect buttonhole on my garment. What am I doing wrong?

Hello, Suzanne -

The buttonhole opening needs to be 3/4". That means the actual button hole stitching needs to be 7/8" - 1/8" larger than the button..

Read the information here:
https://itch-to-stitch.com/proper-placements-buttons-buttonholes/

Best wishes.

It could be that 8mm is the limit for the buttonhole foot. You can try making buttonholes manually with the sewing machine. Not really difficult. Just need to be careful marking the buttonhole and stitching. Recommend practicing on scrap fabric before trying it on the project.

How to Make Buttonhole on Your Sewing Machine Sew4Home (several methods)

Creating Buttonhole Using Sewing Machine

how to sew buttonhole without buttonhole foot Google Search

...

The method will depend on your make & model machine, although the vintage sewing machine buttonhole method will work on all zig-zag machines (just requires manually measuring and adjusting the stitch length & width during the process):

How to Use an Automatic Buttonhole Foot

Sew Buttonhole in 4 Steps on your Singer Sewing Machine

Sewing Buttonholes Without Buttonhole Foot

How to Sew Buttonholes with Regular Foot Sewing Tutorial with Alison Smith

How to sew buttonhole with an old machine

How to Sew Button hole tutorial

Sew Buttonhole without Buttonhole Foot by Create Kids Couture

Be sure there is a stabilizer between the fabric where the buttonhole is located so the fabric will not stretch or tear.

You will need an engineer to adjust the feed from the inside of the machine

SKIPPED STITCHES
1.the needle is not inserted correctly
2.the needle is damaged
3.the wrong size needle is being used
4.the foot is not attached correctly

try changing the needle
make sure the button hole lever is pulled down, it should be on the left
hand side of the needle, if your machine has one
it's also possible that the machine needs to be checked to see if
there is something wrong with a gear or just needs some type of
adjust inside of the machine

Go to the following site regarding timing your machine. Are you placing a button in the buttonhole foot so the machine "knows" how long to make the buttonhole? If you have a button stop lever to the left of your needle bar, are you pulling it down and putting it in FRONT of the button stop so it can complete the rotation?
Try www.fixsewingmachine.com
Try http://www.manualowl.com

Instructions are on page 132 of the manual. Use either foot 5A or No.10 (which is more complicated). Select stitch No.40 then enter the length of the buttonhole you want to make using the number keys. If you want to define where the second bartack goes manually, press key 6 (under "Man") and you will have to press the Reverse key when the second row is where you want to finish the buttonhole. You will not be able to repeat this same size buttonhole automatically if you chose Manual bartack. By pressing OK after setting the length of the buttonhole you will be presented with a screen where you can adjust the width of the buttonhole (wider for heavy fabrics, narrower for finer fabrics) if you want.

Hi, did you buy the machine from a dealer - if so, I would take it back and ask them to show you how to do buttonholes again. It is also possible that, although the test buttonholes sewed out correctly, the automatic button sensor needs professional adjustment.

Before going back to the dealer, find the section in your manual that discusses buttonholes and read thru it very carefully. Pfaff machines are not intuitive, and the manual might describe a way to adjust the automatic buttonhole settings so they sew out correctly.

If you need more help, please repost and I'll try to help or put you in touch with a dealer who can help

Good luck, Ginny
Good luck, Ginny

Here ya go! For 1 Step Automatic Buttonholes: 1. Place button into the buttonhole attachment. 2. Push slider to hold button securely in the slot. The button goes to the back! 3. Put button foot onto needle bar--just attach it securely. 4. Place needle thread and bobbin thread UNDER buttonhole attachment and let 4"-5" of thread trail behind it. 5. There's a lever called a Button Stop to the left of the needle bar. Give it a gentle tug and pull it down. Pull forward. Hear a click? Now the machine knows what length to STOP sewing! 6. Put foot on pedal and machine will sew barrack closest to you first. It will continue all around until it makes complete rotation of each side. 7. You must do these steps for each of your buttonholes! IMPORTANT: Make sure you set your dial for making buttonhole pattern because that "tells" machine to zig zag, and use appropriate size needle for the particular weight of your fabric. A new needle before you begin is recommended. Turn screw on needlebar to loosen screw. Hold it so it does not slip down into the feed dog area! New needle is inserted flat shank toward back of needlebar as far as it will go. Tighten screw. Did this help? Hope so!
Jimmy