I just bought a Babylock Audrey from a local dealer. I had a Brother 3500i and it just wasn't sewing correctly (leaving loops, knots etc on the underside of the fabric). The advice I had received from various people was a possible tension problem or needed cleaning. I took the Brother this dealer and showed them a sample of what the machine was doing and immediately they said it was a timing issue (which the cheaper models are prone to do to the plastic parts). The cost to repair was $89 but I had a local coupon so that brought it down to $69. I looked around the store and curious to see what the Babylock was all about (the Audrey was on sale for $259) I only do piecing so I don't need a larger fancier machine.
On display was a cut-away version of a Janome which had a steel frame vs a Brother which was made entirely of plastic. That is one of the differences between models sold from a dealer (Babylock is made by Brother and only sold by dealers) and a big box store. My husband was present and has a background in sales and he agreed the dealer was not telling me a line of bologna.
I asked about a trade in but due to the already low price they couldn't do that but gave me an extra year's warranty with free cleanings etc in addition to lessons.
I am not an experienced quilter so I hope the Audrey does her job! Now I can get back to sewing after almost a year of hesitation due to the machine's problem.
Last edited by pseudoquilter; 07-25-2014 at 03:24 PM.