My brother is making a sewing cabinet for me. I bought the lift and the insert will be on its way soon. One question I have is how far back should the insert be from the front of the table? Or, how far from the front of the table does the needle sit? I don't know which to ask because I am sure all of the inserts are different. I don't want to place it wrong and have to live with it forever.

I was reading a book recently by Philippa Naylor and she suggested to put your machine a little farther into the table so that your forearms can rest while sewing. It made sense to me. She suggested 10 inches between the needle and the edge of the table. My table has only 4 inches and when I sew a lot I do feel it.

If you have a knee lift, it will determine where you place your machine, unless you are going to make a slot for the lift to work through.

I have 8 inches from the edge of the desk to the needle. The desk part is 3" the rest is the insert.

thanks for all of your replies, I really appreciate it!