Chris-s

Hello any longarm/midarm quilters!
Long time reader, first time poster. I'm doing some research on longarm quilting features and need to know how to really use some of these and what your opinions on them are. (These would be used on a stand-up frame).

1. Needle Stop Position: Do you like this better with the needle stopping up or down? Are there situations that you change it, or do you pick one and leave it there always? (seems like this could take some getting used to coming from a sit down machine. Would you like an optional third choice, where the needle just stops wherever it is when you stop?)

2. Minimum Cruise (Idle speed): I understand that in this regulated mode, this is the speed the needle continues to stitch at when you're not moving the machine. What do you normally have this set to? and do you find yourself changing it in different situations, or can this be set and left alone?

I'd love to hear what your opinions are on these, and would really appreciate any help!
Thanks
-Chris

dunster

I have my longarm set to stop with needle down. I set it that way when I first bought the machine and haven't ever changed it. I have to change my DSM's setting to needle down every time I turn it on, but the longarm remembers.

I started out with minimum cruise set to 0, but I've changed it a couple of times to continue stitching. I don't remember what the setting is, but I found something that works for me and I'm happy with it for now. I like having the ability to change the setting.

feline fanatic

Hi Chris,

Always happy to see a long time lurker come out.

99% of the time I like my machine to stop in the needle down position so I have my machine set to always stop needle down and I rarely ever change that. But I have an up/down button on my handles so it only takes a quick press of the button to raise the needle. I am pretty sure most LA are equipped with that.

99% of the time I have my idle speed set to zero and I can count on one hand the number of times I have changed it. When I stop, my needle stops. I occasionally get a long stitch when starting out if I am too quick to "jump out of the gate" from a dead stop but they aren't toe catchers so I am ok with that. I rarely quilt without my stitch regulator on but that is probably because I learned to longarm with a stitch regulator. The more responsive stitch regulators, like the Innova lightening stitch, you should not need to have your idle speed set to anything but zero.

I was never any good at quilting on my domestic so I rarely did it. I pretty much went from hand quilting to longarming with very little sitdown machine quilting in between.

Chris-s

Thanks for replying! I really appreciate your responses.

luvspaper

I have a midarm sitdown and I keep mine on needle down all the time -- mostly because my quilt sandwich isn't on a frame and much more likely to move if the needle isn't down. On a regular long arm, I would do the same in case I accidentally bumped it.

I also have a speed setting and pretty much always leave it on the same speed. I don't have a regulator, so it helps me stay a bit more consistent in how I push the pedal vs how I move the fabric

BluegrassGurl

1. I vary setting needle up and needle down ---- depending on what I am doing. The important thing is, you can easily change to your preference.

2. To clarify ---- the "manual" setting (aka not using stitch regulator) is the only setting that continues to stitch when I am not moving the machine. Both the "manual" and "stitch regulator" modes can be adjusted for speed. Again, a must have option (IMHO).

3. One thing that you did not mention ... and one that I love on my LA..... is the ability of a "tie off" feature. Once I bring up my bobbin thread, I can push 1 button and it will take 3 stitches in place which secures the threads. I have come to LOVE this feature. This is particularly handy when quilting demands frequent starts and stops.

Hope this helps.

Good luck!

Chris-s

Thanks again for all of your input!
To clarify my second question, I'm asking about the "cruise" regulated mode. In some longarms there's a "cruise" regulated, and a "precise" regulated. (In Bernina regulation, BSR 1 is cruise, BSR 2 is precise).

In the cruise regulated mode, the machine continues to stitch at a slower speed after you've stopped moving (this is supposed to make it easier to start moving again from a dead stop). On the most longarms with this feature you can set this minimum speed. I'm curious as to how fast or slow this should be, and if it is better to change it for certain types of stitching (stippling or small stitching, vs lager sweeping free motion movements).

Chris-s

That tie-off feature sounds great by the way!

Macybaby

I set needle up/down based on what I'm working on - most often down. For Cruise, I think I have mine set at 9%, but again, it depends on what I'm working on.

When I'm doing serious stippling, I like to set it to regulated, but don't recall what speed. As I've gotten more experience, I've moved it up a bit so don't get too big a stitch.


My favorite feature is a deadbar. My first setup did not have one and each advance required adjusting the height of the back bar - so I really love not having to do that anymore!

Prism99

I think it's ultimately more important which brand of longarmer setup you purchase. My dream machine is an Innova with lightning stitch. Second choice for me would probably be a HandiQuilter. If you don't have a brand you can bond with (and that will keep good tension with a variety of threads), the features you are asking about may be largely irrelevant. Especially for quilting systems, I think that quality is more important than features.