I have a dear friend that 'had to have' the BSR Bernina, ended up not liking it at all....I use my simple Bernina 840 for all my free motion...and am very happy....recently got a Flynn frame and for the large pieces I do I am very happy. May I suggest you make something small, a banner, wall quilt, table runner....and then try FMQ on it with your standard machine, just drop your feedogs....and away you go....it is a eye/hand/foot issue...so it will take some time, just do some simple stippleing.....I have found that you want the machine to go pretty fast and your hand medium to medium slow.....may I also suggest to go to the John Flynn website www.flynnquilt.com and watch him with his frame....just because you can afford a new machine does not mean you need a new machine....If I had the space and money I would consider a long arm machine....but I would have to think about 'how much will I really use it' as compared to even renting time on a machine at a quilt shop.
Just my two cents for the day