tenngal

Wish you were in my neck of the woods. I have several that are in good working order (I use them and they have some attachments). I just don't want to mail them out. As our old friend Billy used to say, "They'll probably get dropped off of a 30" shelf at the Post Office".

twinkie

I love my featherweight and would not trade it. IMHO they are the best and most durable little machine I have ever sewn on. I use mine every day and do all my piecing on it. To me there is no substitute. I also do FMQ on smaller projects on my Featherweight. You can find good quality ones on E-Bay which is where we have bought several. Just be sure to ask a lot of questions before you bid. Good Luck

valleyquiltermo

Loved mine so much I bought several more for my great nieces and my 2 darling g-daughters.

DonnaMiller

I saw one at a pawn shop in Franklin, TN. They wanted $200 for it. I can't remember the name of the shop though.

quiltcatt

Hi! I have a white/pale green FW, probably 1950's-1960's, which I love!!!!! I bought it at a flea market for $200.00 but it was missing the bobbin case. I took it to a repairman for servicing and the bobbin case-all that was only $30.00. A bargain I know! I just saw some older, black FW's at the Paducah Quilt show and they were asking $400 to $450. I have seen FW's at auctions, Antique shops and yard sales. Try to sew on one-it is a treat! quiltcatt

Janis

One place that no one else has suggested is a sewing machine repair shop. I got my first one from the OSMG, and paid a reasonable price for it. Of course it was cleaned and checked over before I got it. The second one I bought from a QB member. Good luck in finding what you want. And as Miriam says, there are a lot of other good machines out there too.

miriam

Another fairly light weight machine is one of those little Kenmore machines - I forget the number - they look like they are in a hair dryer case with flowers embossed in the sides. They go for $50 - $100 around here - well if you can find one. They do zig zag and a hem stitch and one or two more besides straight stitch. They are a well made little machine.

Some people like the Singer Genie and other old mechanical zz machines. They are light weight but do have stamped metal parts - the tension is tricky to figure out. Elna is a good machine and there are some older models that are light weight. I'm thinking the European machines that are small and light weight are good - remember if someone says it is a good machine doesn't mean you shouldn't test the machine out yourself when you buy it. Look it over good - is it clean? Test sew. You see a lot that way. Take some time - you see a lot that way, too. I have been fooled a time or two. I've gotten 'good' machines home and on the bench only to find they had problems. Again, look them over well.

melodyr

I've bought 2 at estate auctions for about $200 each, complete with cases and attachments. Sewing machines go for nearly nothing at auctions...I happened to be bidding against folks who knew that quilters liked them, but didn't know how much they were worth. Both of mine were early 1940's by the serial numbers.

Jeanette Frantz

Well, my FW doesn't have a case -- it's a white (1954) and it is in mint condition. My son found this one at a GW store for $50. There were no attachments with it, either. The only thing we had to do was, of course, cleaning and lubricating the machine (it wasn't really terribly dirty) and replace the belt. It was in such good condition that it still has the original factory inspection sticker on the front of the machine!

Jeanette Frantz