Thread: Inovva, Juki, George, or sweet 16 (want to purchase)

Some sit downs don't have feed dogs or feet for the needle so that it is easy to get a finger under the needle. Will the fabric move nicely over the table? Is where the the machine sits in the table in the direction you want it to...is it on the end, or the middle of a side? Where does the extra fabric lay while you are quilting? Is there a shop nearby that can give you some support? Does the manual have clear instructions?

I have a regular Juki TL98QE and it is wonderful. I use a BabyLock Jane to fill the bobbin. It gets fuller than on the Juki. I have used it for 8 years and quilted lots and lots of quilts on both machines.
I would love a machine with a larger throat if I had more space.

I have an Innova, but it is a stand-up. One of the best things I found about my Innova is that I have free, 24/7/365 tech support because ABM (makers of Innova) started out with industrial quilting machines and when those go out, they need tech service now and Innova owners benefit from that. You really don't want a thread cutter on a longarm...things you may look for in a sewing machine are definitely not what you want in a quilting machine. The Innovas all take the larger M bobbins and you will quickly become adept at popping that bobbin case in without seeing the bobbin race. I have never seen any longarm that had an auto-thread option (I thought only some of the surgers had that option). Go and try as many longarm machines as you can and don't let them hurry you - and if you are physically able to use a stand-up longarm, try those out as well (I think they are much easier to use!). I know that Innova will customize their frames to fit your needs.