LyndaOH

I thought you were going to trade it in, Skratchie. I love mine and couldn't be happier; wish you were too!

citruscountyquilter

I love my 8900. The large harp area makes sewing and quilting a dream. It is easy to use and understand. I too have not mastered the knack of the knee lift. I was thinking it was because either I'm short, the height of the chair or table I'm using or what but it just seems too far away for me to rest against the side of my leg to use it. I don't see that as a major detraction however.

ManiacQuilter2

Have you test drove this DSM?? If you are happy with it and have tried it out and can afford, then go for it.

Sewnoma

I have the 6600 and I love it. I looked at upgrading it not too long ago but decided there wasn't enough "bang" for the buck to upgrade. If I didn't already have a really good machine I'd have bought it though. Snap-on Accufeed feet would be WONDERFUL, ditto for snap on/off needle plate.

I can't use the knee lift on mine, either. It's just not a natural motion for me. It sits in a drawer.

Sheri.a

In high school Home Ec the sewing machines had a knee lift instead of a foot control. I have tried to use the knee lift on my Janome and my old brain keeps kicking in-- I want to use it to control the speed. So in the drawer it went.

I love my Janome!

Neesie

I have the 7700 and the angle of the knee controller can be easily adjusted. You might want to see if yours has the same adjustment option.

Sewnoma

I just bought a vintage Kenmore that has the knee speed controller too. I can actually use that easier than the lift on the Janome, I think it's because it's deeper in the cabinet so it's truly at my knee, rather than somewhere up on my thigh. Though I think I'm grateful I don't have any built-in habits from using the Janome lift bar, it's probably made it less confusing to switch between machines.

I keep that lever, though. If I ever break an arm I might need it for one-handed sewing!

jul12

I had a 6600 for 8 years, and decided to also buy the 8900 mainly for the extra harp space. I just love it. It is quiet, beautiful stitch quality, easy to use. It handles FMQ a treat. I have it set in the Janome table (it fits the table sold for the Horizon) - and after adjustment to the angle of knee lift, found it easy to use. I love the auto tension, ease of stitch selection, easy change of needle plates and Acu feet. The needle position adjustment is very fine and progresses in smaller increments than the 6600, making for exact accuracy. Only problem I had was mine will not sew well with Schmetz needles which I use in the 6600, it was skipping alot But it is fine with Organ, and Superior, which are made by Organ, which are both very slightly longer than Schmetz. At first I used a Janome purple tip 90/14 for FMQ (mostly Isacord 40). I've just (heavily) quilted a large quilt with Aurifil 50/2 using a 70/10 titanium with no problems at all.
I use both machines, but spend more time on the 8900.

Raggiemom

I have both the 6600 and the 8900. I LOVE my 8900. As others have stated, it's a dream to sew on and does beautiful FMQ. I couldn't FMQ to save my life on the 6600. The extra throat space is wonderful and makes it much easier to cram the quilt through. I don't think you'll regret getting one of these machines.

Judi in Ohio

I had a Janome tol embroidery machine, but sold it almost immediately. Machine was a nice machine just didn't do it for me. My dh bought a Janome 7700 for my birthday two years ago. I ended up selling it and buying a Babylock Crescendo. I just found the 7700 odd - I think I'm just a Babylock girl, that feels more natural to me.