Bewildered and perplexed on a new machine
07-02-2019, 06:53 PM
#23
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2019
Location: Iowa
Posts: 377
Just looked at the Baileys at QuiltnNan’s recommendation... they certainly are reasonable and it looks like they even have some refurbished models at further savings!
I have a Nolting Quilting Bee - package includes table, bobbin winder etc @ what i felt to be a reasonable price that i could live with at this stage of my life. I bought it last October and am very happy with it. It’s a basic, sitdown machine - no stitch regulator, computers, and is for freemotion work only. It has a very simple, basic manual and i needed no formal lessons to learn to use it. I have been doing fmq for a long time so i know the drill!
Like others here, i finished many, many quilts for many years on everything from a Janome Jem to a Janome 6600 - tablerunners, wall quilts, baby quilts and up to queen size quilts! Knowing how much i love fmq and not wanting to give up my creations to others to finish i finally decided that it was the right decision for me to let my 6600 go back to being the wonderful sewing machine it was intended to be and ordered my Nolting.
We are fortunate to have many reasonable options available to finish quilts these days. There is no right or wrong way - it just needs to make you happy! It seems the older we get sometimes, the stronger the inclination to want to leave nothing unfinished behind.
To my thinking it really is a personal choice (as well as a budgetary one) as to whether you take your quilt to a trusted longarmer to do her magic, finish your “baby” yourself on your domestic machine, rent time on a longarm, or investigate purchasing a dedicated machine. The goal is getting those quilt tops finished as you see them in your “mind’s eye”. A job well done no matter what road you take to get there!
I have a Nolting Quilting Bee - package includes table, bobbin winder etc @ what i felt to be a reasonable price that i could live with at this stage of my life. I bought it last October and am very happy with it. It’s a basic, sitdown machine - no stitch regulator, computers, and is for freemotion work only. It has a very simple, basic manual and i needed no formal lessons to learn to use it. I have been doing fmq for a long time so i know the drill!
Like others here, i finished many, many quilts for many years on everything from a Janome Jem to a Janome 6600 - tablerunners, wall quilts, baby quilts and up to queen size quilts! Knowing how much i love fmq and not wanting to give up my creations to others to finish i finally decided that it was the right decision for me to let my 6600 go back to being the wonderful sewing machine it was intended to be and ordered my Nolting.
We are fortunate to have many reasonable options available to finish quilts these days. There is no right or wrong way - it just needs to make you happy! It seems the older we get sometimes, the stronger the inclination to want to leave nothing unfinished behind.
To my thinking it really is a personal choice (as well as a budgetary one) as to whether you take your quilt to a trusted longarmer to do her magic, finish your “baby” yourself on your domestic machine, rent time on a longarm, or investigate purchasing a dedicated machine. The goal is getting those quilt tops finished as you see them in your “mind’s eye”. A job well done no matter what road you take to get there!
07-03-2019, 06:30 AM
#24
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Pennsylvania
Posts: 619
Please, please, don't take your life span into the equation. If you lived 1 week or 10 years after getting a machine that you would enjoy do it! I'll be 80 in a few short months, I bought the Brother Luminaire, I love every minute on it.
Go to sewing machine dealers, there are several Janome, Brother & Babylock machines that have 11 inch harps & are wonder for FMQ, no struggling with the bulk with can be very painful if you have arthritis, that I know.
Some with larger harps are the simpler models, you don't have to go to the top of the line ones. And since Brother & Babylock came out with new top of the line machines last fall there are bargains on traded in machines, a friend bought a used Brother Dream machine for under $2000, 11 inch harp, wonderful FMQ plus embroidery if you are interested in that.
But take your age out of it! No matter how old you are worth having something you would enjoy.
Go to sewing machine dealers, there are several Janome, Brother & Babylock machines that have 11 inch harps & are wonder for FMQ, no struggling with the bulk with can be very painful if you have arthritis, that I know.
Some with larger harps are the simpler models, you don't have to go to the top of the line ones. And since Brother & Babylock came out with new top of the line machines last fall there are bargains on traded in machines, a friend bought a used Brother Dream machine for under $2000, 11 inch harp, wonderful FMQ plus embroidery if you are interested in that.
But take your age out of it! No matter how old you are worth having something you would enjoy.
07-03-2019, 09:30 AM
#26
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2018
Posts: 251
Originally Posted by Maire
Please, please, don't take your life span into the equation. If you lived 1 week or 10 years after getting a machine that you would enjoy do it! I'll be 80 in a few short months, I bought the Brother Luminaire, I love every minute on it.
Go to sewing machine dealers, there are several Janome, Brother & Babylock machines that have 11 inch harps & are wonder for FMQ, no struggling with the bulk with can be very painful if you have arthritis, that I know.
Some with larger harps are the simpler models, you don't have to go to the top of the line ones. And since Brother & Babylock came out with new top of the line machines last fall there are bargains on traded in machines, a friend bought a used Brother Dream machine for under $2000, 11 inch harp, wonderful FMQ plus embroidery if you are interested in that.
But take your age out of it! No matter how old you are worth having something you would enjoy.
Go to sewing machine dealers, there are several Janome, Brother & Babylock machines that have 11 inch harps & are wonder for FMQ, no struggling with the bulk with can be very painful if you have arthritis, that I know.
Some with larger harps are the simpler models, you don't have to go to the top of the line ones. And since Brother & Babylock came out with new top of the line machines last fall there are bargains on traded in machines, a friend bought a used Brother Dream machine for under $2000, 11 inch harp, wonderful FMQ plus embroidery if you are interested in that.
But take your age out of it! No matter how old you are worth having something you would enjoy.
Thank you.
07-03-2019, 09:55 AM
#27
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Springfield, MO
Posts: 661
Originally Posted by RuthiesRetreat3
Have you checked out Bailey mid-arm machines? I only know to contact them on the web (I think their business is in Maine). Don't know if they have a table top model or if only the ones needing a frame are available. But they are a lot less money and the one I had worked great.
07-04-2019, 07:30 AM
#28
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2018
Posts: 251
I want to thank everyone for their input. I have been considering all of it. But the logical side of me took over and I decided to order a Juki TL 2010. It only has a 9" harp, but it is taller as well. I watched the other night a video that Leah Day put out about her new Juki when she bought it, and she talked about the neck strain of always having to scrunch down with her other machine
to see what she was doing, and the Juki was engineered to be very slim to the lelft and higher, to give you better visability for quilting.
I really don't plan on making any quilts bigger than perhaps a full size, so it should work out ok, and I am going to try that quilt as you go method also. I should probably buy that Marti Mitchell book everyone is mentioning.
Hopefully, I'll have no regrets.
to see what she was doing, and the Juki was engineered to be very slim to the lelft and higher, to give you better visability for quilting.
I really don't plan on making any quilts bigger than perhaps a full size, so it should work out ok, and I am going to try that quilt as you go method also. I should probably buy that Marti Mitchell book everyone is mentioning.
Hopefully, I'll have no regrets.
07-04-2019, 08:53 AM
#30
Super Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Van. Island, BC
Posts: 1,416
Originally Posted by Schill93
Yes, that's the way I have been doing it. Since you have the Brother PQ 1500 machine, let me ask you a question if you don't mind. The price on those is very appealing right now on Amazon ($539) and I have been tempted, but what it doesn't have that the Juki has is speed control. I have a real pedal problem, as I have bad neropothy in my legs (due to chemo), which makes my feet numb (very little feeling), so I thought the speed control on the Juki would be helpful, especially in light of how fast these machines can go, compared to the one I'm used to using. When using a quilting foot in FMQ, how difficult do you find it to control the speed on the 1500?
For those who mentioned to me, it would probably be cheaper to send the tops out. I know your right (especially if I purchased a more expensive machine), but the thing is, I find I really enjoy the free motion quilting. I'm still lousy at it, but I'm getting better, and that makes me happy.
Lets face it. There is nothing practical about quilting these days . People don't do it to save money by using sacks or old clothes for their bedding. Quite the contrary. It is a very expensive hobby. There is something very appealing about quilts, and I enjoy making something I think is pretty.
And like the song, " a girls just gotta have some fun".
q
For those who mentioned to me, it would probably be cheaper to send the tops out. I know your right (especially if I purchased a more expensive machine), but the thing is, I find I really enjoy the free motion quilting. I'm still lousy at it, but I'm getting better, and that makes me happy.
Lets face it. There is nothing practical about quilting these days . People don't do it to save money by using sacks or old clothes for their bedding. Quite the contrary. It is a very expensive hobby. There is something very appealing about quilts, and I enjoy making something I think is pretty.
And like the song, " a girls just gotta have some fun".
q
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
xsquilter
QB Help Center
3
09-23-2012 04:44 PM
Caroline S
For Vintage & Antique Machine Enthusiasts
21
08-14-2012 05:37 AM
