Before I got a longarm I quilted many large quilts on my DSM. I couldn't have done it without Marti Michell's book, Machine Quilting in Sections -
https://www.amazon.com/Marti-Michell...+marti+michell. She now has a class on craftsy on this subject. In the book (and probably in the class) she shows several different methods of quilting in sections, and explains why each method would be appropriate for different styles of tops. I highly recommend the book, or the class.
I also liked to puddle my quilts.