More and more quilters are now using rulers for quilting their projects and those rulers require an Open Toe Ruler Foot that runs along the edge of the ruler itself.
These rulers and feet are made for two types of domestic sewing machines, those with a high shank and those with a low shank. The shank is the metal rod that the presser foot holder attaches to.
How to determine a high shank vs a low shank
Why does this matter? Well, the higher the shank the more bulk you can get under your machine.
To determine how high your shank is measure from the center of the screw hole to the needle bed of the machine with the machine in the foot down position.
The majority of low-end sewing machines have a low shank and the more expensive machines mostly have a high shank. There are also slant shank machines (Singer) and there might be a slant shank open toe foot available somewhere if you look for one.
Baby Lock Shanks and Rulers
ABQ Sewing Studio is a Baby Lock dealership. Our own Baby Lock Rulers for low shank machines use a ruler that is 3/16″ thick. Our Baby Lock high shank rulers are ¼” thick.
You can use a low shank ruler on a high shank machine if using Baby Lock rulers but don’t try that with a Westalee ruler because their low shank rulers are very thin and there’s a good chance the ruler might slide under the foot. That’s because the foot does hop a little bit while stitching.
A high shank ruler will not work with a low shank machine no matter what brand ruler you are using.
If sometime in the future you graduate to a long arm machine your high shank rulers can be used on your new machine. The ¼” depth is the standard for long arm machines.
The rules for rulers are simple
High shank rulers for high shank and long arm machines.
Low shank rulers for low shank machines.
If you use Baby Lock brand rulers your low shank rulers, which are thicker than the Westalee rulers, can also be used on a high shank machine or a long arm machine. Talk about a value-added bonus!
ABQ Sewing Studio carries Baby Lock sewing machines and accessories. Drop by or call today. Here’s how you can find us.
Thanks for this article.
My pleasure Gail.
Where could I buy the 3/16″ ruler set? I feel like I’ve looked everywhere…
I as well Tennille!! I am a COMPLETE Novice when it comes to sewing and purchased a Brothers cs6000i. I began looking around and began to notice something was not right. I wanted ALL the feet but none worked. I’m about to return it and get me one I can play with!!
It’s a high shank machine. There is also an adaptor you might want to check out. https://babylock.com/accessories/sewing-feet/master-shank. Sorry about the delay with the questions. There was some kind of glitch in the system and I was not receiving them. 🙁
Go here Tennile: https://shop.amongbrendasquilts.com/search?q=quilting+ruler
Is the Babylock Accimplish a high or low shank? Thanks
It’s a high shank machine. There is also an adaptor you might want to check out. https://babylock.com/accessories/sewing-feet/master-shank. Sorry about the delay with the questions. There was some kind of glitch in the system and I was not receiving them. 🙁
Would the adapter you are speaking about work on my Babylock Jane for ruler quilting? I so badly want to do Ruler quilting on Jane but haven’t found a foot that fits.
Thank you!
Hi Joan that adapter will not work on the Jane but the West a Lee High Shank Soecial Foot will fit it. If you would like to contact the store we can order one for you.
Thanks For Sharing this helpful Information
No problem Isabella! Thanks for your comment.
Is the Babylock Solaris Vision a low shank or a high shank machine for ruler quilting?
It’s a high shank machine Martha.
What if the distance between the screw hole and the bed of the machine is 3/4 inch?
That would be a medium shank. If the presser foot is down and your ankle is off
and you measure from the center of the screw hole to the stitch plate and the measurement is 1/2″ it’s low and if it’s 1″ it’s high
There are some machines that fall somewhere in between high and low. Westalee (the company that makes rulers) calls this category medium shank machines. These are usually Pfaff brand machines, but not all Pfaffs are medium shanks. Before declaring your machine as a medium shank, make sure you double checks the measurements. Make sure your presser foot lever is in the down position. If you measure 3/4″ it’s a medium shank machine.