quiltstringz

Personally I would check out Brother and Pfaff. I have several friends who swear by Brother, I have a Pfaff that I love (old one and the new passport for classes) I also have a Bernina 730 which I love but the new ones are really out there in price and the lower end ones have a smaller harp space than any other brand.

reeskylr

I've had a BabyLock Pro for 20 years, never even been professionally serviced. It runs great.

purplefiend

I have 2 older Berninas: 930 is about 30 yrs old and 1031 that's 22 years old. Both machines still sew very well haven't needed any major repairs. I also have an old Pfaff 1222E that was made in the late 1970s, still works great too. Consider an older machine that has been well cared for. I'm not much for the new "plastic wonders". Most of the machines I sew with are older than I am.
Sharon

Yardbird

I have a Janome 6500 Memory Craft - 12 years old and still working fine. Computerized, fancy stitches, etc,, bobin winder, knee lifter, clear plastic door to the bobin let's you see how much thread is left on the bobin. The only thing I don't like about it is the bobbin case rattles sometimes. Very annoying. I've had it in the shop several times over the years for this problem. I have recently purchased a Juki2010Q - straight stitch only, very fast, and a beast for free motion quilting. The ONLY thing I don't like about this machine is there is no clear window/door so you cannot see the bobin/how much thread is left. That, however, did not keep me from buying it. I have absolutely no regrets about the Juki. Hope this helps.

Wanabee Quiltin

I absolutely love my Bernina Aurora. But I love sewing on my vintage Pfaff too, they are good machines. I sewed on a Baby Lock at a class and that was great too. Test all of them and see what they have that you need.

FroggyinTexas

Janome. I have a 4800 that's bout 15 years old and it is a wonderful machine. I believe the newer Janomes are just as good. froggyintexas

d.rickman

I have two Berninas the quilters edition 550, which is a workhorse, it has the Bernina Stitch Regulator (BSR) which I find very helpful. I have had it for about 2 years now, and very very happy with the performance and maintenance of this quality machine. It is very easy to use, and has many stitches if you would like to utilize those, they are very easy to access and stitch up very nice. It has a larger throat for quilting, and I have FMQ on many since I purchased sane.


There is only one problem with the bernina, if the tension goes all to heck, all you need to do is to rethread top thread and that will probably solve the issues. Easy fix for those issues, which are rare. I have a Janome as well, and I don't like it for quilting - the bobbin doesn't like to FMQ, I was told it is the bobbin laying on its side which causes those issues.

I also own the Bernina 830 LE, however I wouldn't recommend you touch this one, as it has a big learning curve and none of the other bernina bobbins will work in this machine, the bobbins are larger. Best of Luck in your search for the right one for you!!

cathyvv

Another point about Brother sewing machines - their user guides/manuals are excellent! And that is true for the less expensive models, too.

ssuzz

My favorite machine for patchwork is a 1959 singer 15-91 . It just does the best job.

chichimamma

Singer vintage is great. I have always preferred Brother machines and I also have a Juki that I am not real good friends with, but I didn't get to know it before it went on a frame.