Not knowing what I was doing at all I purchased a "mid arm" Mine is a Juki Tl 2000. For the first year I used it for all my quilting. I found room in my fairly small sewing room 10' x 10' also was big enough for a folding craft table and kaloa sewing table and my 10' grace quilting frame. The sewing table had to have the back fold out taken out but I don't feel claustrophobic in the least. I bought all of this 2nd hand and did it over a one year period. i would never have been able to continue quilting without the machine quilting frame, just to hard on a 66 year old. Hope that helps