I guess this is a product you need to borrow and try for yourself. My machine is large enough to take full advantage of the martelli gripping hoops.
I have carpel tunnel issues, and have found gloves the best for quilting up to now. With the hoops, I look at the whole quilt and plan ahead, placing the hoop to even out areas to be quilted next. I find the process of quilting to be much more predictable. When I use gloves, I can't always preserve the fullness or flatness that I need in certain areas.
Using the hoops has also eliminated hand cramp for me, probably because the hoop has eliminated unexpected drag. When I feel any resistance, it's time to stop and rearrange where the edges of the quilt have dropped off my sewing table. I'm also able to quilt much larger areas at a time, stopping only to move on to a new area - not due to tired hands. Depending on what I'm doing, I can use just finger pressure on the hoop, or put my hands flat on the hoop edges. For me, they are wonderful, and I can use hand pressure anywhere on the hoop without needing to hold on only with the two handles. I'm still in the middle of the project using the hoops, but it has exceeded my expectations.
I have a sew slip, and might need to use that with the hoops in a future project, but my current quilt is moving very nicely on my table (perhaps partly because I keep it polished.) I have used regular embroidery hoops for thread painting, and am looking forward to finishing that unfinished project with the smaller Martelli gripping hoop. I'm curious as to how it will work out.
It was a very accomplished quilter on my yahoo Janome Horizon group who recommended these, so I didn't stop to look at the other gripping hoops available (at, I'm sure, a cheaper cost). I looked and looked for several months, hoping the cost would go down. Yes, the substantial cost was the only negative for me. I found a few dollars off on a website that had a general 20% reduction on notions, so that helped a bit. But now that I have the hoop set, I am thrilled.
Tecla
Janome 8900
Tecla