I own the Bernina 1300 MDC serger/coverstitch machine. The machine came with 3 needles dedicated for the coverstitch, JLX2:
I have found that these needles help produce a very nice quality coverstitch but they are hard to find. I could not find them at my local JoAnn's nor could I find them in the NYC garment district. My Bernina dealer does not carry them either! Even though Schmetz manufactures the JLX2 needle, they do not have them available on their website! Of course, you can find just about anything online if you look long enough so I found 3 online sources for the JLX2 needles: Sew4Less; they carry the Organ brand and The Colorful World of Sewing; they carry the Schmetz brand. CTSUSA carries the Organ brand as well but only in a box of 100 needles.
Since I felt a burr on the needle that produces the left row of needle stitches, I decided to replace it with one of the Schmetz JLX2 needles I purchased online and got this result:
Upon comparing the needles, I discovered that the JLX2 needles I purchased online were just a tad bit shorter than the JLX2 needles that came with my serger. See the photo below. The JLX2 needle I purchased online is the 3rd to the right in the photo below. The eye is just a bit smaller too.
![]() |
In order from left to right: Stretch needle, JLX2 needle that came with machine, Schmetz JLX2 needle purchased online |
I compared the needle that came with my serger to other needles in my stash and was happy to discover that the stretch needle (much easier to find) is identical in length to the ones that came with my serger and the eye is the same size. The stretch needle is the first one in the photo. I replaced the left needle with the stretch needle and got a beautiful coverstitch! Hurray!
Hoping I had not wasted my money on the Schmetz JLX2 needles I purchased online, I tried replacing both the left and right needles with the online JLX2s and also got a nice coverstitch - double hurray!
So the key takeaways for me:
1. Compare the new needle with the old needle that has worked well to see whether there are any major differences.
2. The stretch needle produces a nice coverstitch for the Bernina 1300 MDC.
3. I can use the JLX2 needles I purchased online as long as all of the needles for the coverstitch I am working on are the same length.
Of course, the fabric can also make a difference so always test on swatches before working on your project.
Happy sewing!