I, too, was a fairly new quilter when I purchased my HQ-16 long arm. Like you, I was having trouble doing FMQ on my standard sewing machine. I would never have put out that amount of cash into a quilting machine, but my Mom had just died and left me some inheritance money. Convinced that Mom would have wanted me to "enjoy" some of her gift, I purcheased the H-Q on an impulse. I ended up selling it 2 years later and I don't regret that decision. The long arm took up so much space and it just wasn't getting used enough to justify keeping it. Also, I found that learning to long arm quilt did not come naturally to me ...... it looks easy, but it takes ALOT of time & practice to become good at it. Just wasn't for me. I ended up taking the $$$ I got from the resale of the HQ-16 and I bought a Bernina QE with stitch regulator. I took to it like a fish in water. I love it!!! I can manage a lap quilt with it;For anything larger, I take it to a local gal who does long arm quilting. Since most of my quilts are lap sized or smaller, this works for me ...