I have an old New Home machine and I just finished a baby quilt. This was my first FMQ. I read alot of posts from this quilt site. The one that helped me the most was from Colleen53. She and her husband purchased a "plug in" dimmer switch that would allow her to go at her own speed. I don't have a speed control on my machine. I bought a table lamp dimmer switch that is on page 5 & 6 of the following post:
http://www.quiltingboard.com/t-142428-1.htm
Some said they wouldn't use it on a computerized machine. But it worked great for me and you may want to check it out.