Originally Posted by
peaceandjoy
The constant "climb", if you will, to make Bernina's do more does nothing for me at all. I have no desire to have hundreds of decorative stitches and do not like machine embroidery. My shoulders are not going to allow machine quilting of anything large, so my quilting is done by check (taken to a long arm quilter). I wish they would make another full size, basic machine like my 153QE! I know that, given how old it is, the electronics - rudimentary as they are - will go at some point and it will not be able to be repaired. I'm not sure what I will do at that point. Possibly Pfaff, I used one at a class and liked it. Possibly Juki.
I bought my first Bernina in the 90's. It was a 1630 and I wish now I hadn't traded it in. I really liked it. I traded it for an Artista 180 and loved that machine. I used it until a few years ago when the screen went out. I found another 180 at an estate sale for $400 and bought it. It's my sew anything that the other machines might not handle machine and I still use it often. It also makes the best buttonholes of any machine I own. Even better than my newish 475. If it goes out and I can't find another at an estate/garage sale, I'll probably consider a Juki. I have one for FMQ and have been very impressed with the quality of the machine. Bernina's have gotten so expensive and, as you say, they have so many features that I'm never going to use that I will probably change brands if I need another machine.