Originally Posted by
Quilter in MN
Thanks for all the feedback. I am going to the dealer tomorrow morning armed with quilt sandwiches and scraps for piecing!! The dealer has been very helpful and truly passionate about his products. The warranty on the show machine is the full warranty offered on a new machine. Told me to come back whenever it was convenient for me to test drive both the 830LE and the 580. The main reason I am looking at Bernina is the BSR feature. I truly struggle with FMQ and hoped the BSR would make the job easier. I am not interested in a long arm....just don't have the room for that in my home. I guess I'll know tomorrow when I try it out if the BSR helps or not.
You might also want to think about buying the Handi Quilter Sweet Sixteen Sit-down machine. It has a huge throat to do free motion quilting and has the stitch regulator. That is what I was going to buy because I was frustrated doing quilts on my Bernina sewing machine. I wanted more throat space. If you are truly thinking about getting the Bernina just for the BSR, and you like your Janome you have, think about checking out the Handi Quilter Sit Down to use for your free motion quilting. It sits on a table and you do not need all the space that you need for a long arm on a frame. And I think the price is around $5000-$6000. I know that is what I will get someday if I ever decide to get rid of my long arm set up. I am also in MN and there are many Handi Quiter Dealers in MN. I tried the Handi Quilter Sit Down at the St. Cloud Sewing Center. They have it there. Good Luck with your choice.