I haven't spent much time dwelling on this but I do appreciate good advice. It's probably too early in the morning to try to put my thoughts down, but I'll try. It'll be rambl-y...
There's no doubt in my mind that the machine has been well-taken care of. I have been searching for a machine with a larger harp for several months now. I have almost exactly what I need to buy this set-up in savings just for this. I had a 9-inch harp (juki) on a Grace Frame and didn't like the experience at all and sold it. The machine I quilt on now is older and I love it but I'm afraid of what will happen when it dies. I do have a back up machine but it doesn't like to FMQ.
I really think I'd be happiest with a sit-down, but couldn't resist the pull of a long-arm. Our bedroom is 18' long and has an exterior door to the driveway, so as long as it fit through that door, it would fit in the room. I have a big sewing desk set up, but wouldn't need it if I had a long arm. Anyway, I have been obsessively scouring Craigslist and found the Nustyle
http://atlanta.craigslist.org/nat/art/3016463557.html and contacted them about it. I came to the conclusion that it would be too expensive for me to transport and thanked Debbie for her time and wished her well and thought "that's that".
A week went by, and she sent me an email that said they really needed to get it out of the way and they are flexible on price. So, my mind went into overtime, trying to make this work. I really appreciate Beverly being honest about it because that's exactly what I needed to hear.
I went ahead and pulled the trigger and my husband ordered me a new Brother 1500 a minute ago. I just never had a new sewing machine and it's scary to spend that much on one when you have a perfectly fine $50 Pfaff!! And I don't want to mess with a frame with a small machine. I can rent my fabric store's LA for $8/hour and I think that's as close as I'll get to owning one! I really didn't want this 12' monster in my bedroom!! As much as I'd like a $1600+ machine, I'm going to get the $500 machine instead. I can't find anything used, which tells me that nobody gets rid of them!
