Pfaff Select 4.2 Review

The Pfaff Select 4.2 is not a newly released sewing machine. Nonetheless, I did not have an opportunity to review it until a recent visit to Cynthia’s Fine Fabrics.

Pfaff Select 4.2

It is a mechanical sewing machine that has a lot of features that are often reserved for computerized sewing machines.

At A Glance

Push button stitch selection

The thing that caught my eye initially was not the plum accent color, but the push button stitch selection. I cannot remember the last time I saw a sewing machine that had each stitch assigned to a button that you merely push.

In addition to the push buttons for selecting stitches on the Pfaff Select 4.2, there are three easy to read and use purple dials on top of the machine head.

The one on the left is for adjusting the tension, the dial in the middle is used to adjust stitch width and the dial on the extreme right allows the user to adjust the needle position.

The stitch length is adjusted by a grey dial that is situated to the left of the stitch selection buttons and the reverse stitch lever is found just above that dial.

Inside the lid is a stitch selection guide. You might think that this feature is really not necessary since the stitches are clearly depicted on the stitch selection push buttons.

However, it is possible to simultaneously press two buttons at the same time, giving you more stitch options than those shown on the keys alone.

There is also an automatic needle threader, and an on board accessories tray that conveniently swings out to give the user limited access to the free arm.

Stitch selection guide inside a lid

When full access to the free arm is needed, the accessories case can be removed entirely. The drop feed control is hidden behind the door where the bobbin housing is located.

If you are at all familiar with my reviews of machines with hard to locate drop feed controls, you know this is one of my pet peeves. More on that later.

Features

• 44 decorative, utility and stretch stitch options
• 1 four step manual buttonhole
• Push button stitch selection
• Adjustable stitch length and width
• IDT (integrated dual feed) system
• Bright LED lighting
• Automatic needle threader
• Swing out on board accessories case
• Three needle positions
• Manual tension adjustment
• Reverse stitch
• Side thread cutter
• Free arm
• Push button on/off
• Large carrying handle

Working on the Pfaff Select 4.2

The Pfaff Select 4.2 is very easy to operate, starting with the threading and bobbin winding instructions in the owner’s manual. The process is so easy, even a novice will be able to accomplish the task on their own after threading the machine only once or twice.

From there, the next step is to refer to the stitch selection guide inside the lid and push the appropriate button or combination of buttons to get the desired stitch.

Adjusting the stitch length or width is literally as easy as turning the appropriate dial. The stretch stitches are all highlighted in purple.

In order to achieve these, it is necessary to turn the stitch length dial all the way to the end. The basic stitches are shown on the push buttons.

To get stitches not depicted on these buttons, refer to the stitch selection guide and depress the corresponding buttons simultaneously. While this process sounds a bit daunting, it is actually quite easy.

Having the Pfaff Select 4.2 built so that the accessories tray simply swings out to the right makes changing the bobbin and even accessing the drop feed control a little bit easier than sewing machines that require you to actually remove the accessories case from the machine altogether.

Accessories tray simply swings out to the right

The stitches produced by the Pfaff Select 4.2 are what I call passable. I am a bit hesitant to call the straight stitches ‘well defined’.

I can’t quite put my finger on it, but even after double checking to make sure the stitch width adjustment dial was set on zero, they did not seem to be exactly straight to me… close, but not what I would call perfectly straight.

The other stitches I sampled, however, were perfect. I toyed around with different stitch combinations, different length and width settings and each time, the stitches came out exactly as I expected them to.

Stitch quality

Fabrics

• Natural fibers/cotton-linen-wool
• Fine fabrics/silk-satin-taffeta/velvet
• Knits
• Synthetic fabrics/blends-rayon-polyester
• Leather/suede
• Fur
• Reptile skin
• Canvas/Twill
• Plastic/Rubber
• Extra thick fabrics or multiple layers

Accessories

• 8 snap on presser feet
  • Standard zigzag foot
  • Fancy stitch foot
  • Clear foot
  • Blindhem/overlock foot
  • Zipper foot
  • Buttonhole foot
  • Darning foot
• Edge/quilting guide
• Felt pad
• 3 spool caps (small, medium and large)
• Extra needles
• Extra spool pin
• Extra bobbins
• Seam ripper
• Lint brush
• Owner’s manual

Accessories

Maintenance

Tying Off The Loose Ends

The Pfaff Select 4.2 is a very good machine for beginners. I have no doubt that someone who has been sewing for a very long time and prefers a mechanical machine over its computerized counterparts would be pleased with it as well. I have two concerns, however.

First of all, the issue with the straight stitches. They remind me of a Singer that I bought back in the late 1980s. In the very beginning, everything worked just fine with the exception that the straight stitches appeared to be a bit wavy – like those on the Pfaff Select 4.2.

After a few years, things started going wrong. Nothing serious at first, but things continued to go awry and ten years after purchasing this machine, I was so frustrated with having to get one thing fixed or adjusted after another, I sold it at a yard sale for $5

Made of very hard plastic

Perhaps it would have lasted longer for someone who does not sew as much as I do, but for a person like me who is what some might call a heavy or constant sewer, this machine was a big disappointment.

I like the way the Pfaff Select 4.2 operates and feels. I cannot, however, help but wonder how well it will perform after a few years of operation.

My other concern is the material used to make it. Unlike every other Pfaff sewing machine I have ever used or reviewed, this one is made with a different kind of plastic housing – that very hard plastic which seems to have a tendency to crack very easily.

For a couple of years now, I have heard rumblings in the sewing community that since SVP [the company that now owns Singer, Viking and Pfaff] was formed, the quality has gradually been slipping.

I cannot help but be concerned when I see small telltale signs like a subtle change in the stitch quality or the material used for the exterior of the machine head.

It is no secret that Singer sewing machines are nothing like they were when our grandmothers and mothers were sewing. The quality that the Singer name was built on and known for since the first Singer was manufactured more than 160 years ago is long gone.

I sincerely hope this is not the case here. The Pfaff name and reputation has always been synonymous with superior quality and workmanship.

Those of us who sew depend upon legacies such as this when shopping for sewing machines and sergers that offer more up to date features. We should not have to sacrifice quality and workmanship in the meantime.

I don’t know how many if any sewing machine corporate executives read these reviews, but I hope someone brings this one to the attention of the powers that be at SVP and take appropriate measures to see that the Pfaff name and reputation do not follow Singer.