mea12

I spoke with a long-time Singer technician who says they are the same..in case this comes up again, thought I'd answer my own question since I learned these are truly stellar machines made to last and last..said motors will last forever as long as no one decides to "oil the motor" (apparently many do this). I was having problems with the machine generally and so bobbin winder was tired and tire was brittle, handwheel clutch was out of whack and the foot pedal needed some TLC also.. she is absolutely perfect now and the FM is spectacular. So all is well now and no regrets . Such a gorgeous stitch and amazing, fluid FM -as well i learned my janome low-shank feet fit the machine.. including walking foot, darning foot and roller foot. I'll use it for smaller projects and my larger machine for medium sized projects. The big ones I continue to send out but there aren't so very many of those lately.