quiltingshorttimer

I bought a 2006 used Gammill Classic Plus 5 yrs ago and love it. I especially like the sturdy frame and ease with which I can do so much of the maintenance. Their tech support has been very good. It is a heavy machine,but I can run it with one finger too. And older Gammill's are oil hogs--but since it lays down so many stitches so quickly I think that can be expected.
I agree with others that it would be worth your time to go to a large show and try out different machines--they all have their own "feel". I also highly recommend one that is designed for industrial use (Gammill, Innova, Nolting) especially if you plan to quilt for others.

kristakz

I live in Ottawa, Ontario. APQS has a dealer in Oshawa, so not 4 provinces away. And their on-line & phone support is absolutely FANTASTIC! I have not actually spoken to my dealer since the machine arrived - all my issues have been resolved with the online service.

I own both APQS (Millie) and HQ (Avante). Love them both, but APQS service is better in my opinion (certainly more receptive to self-service, which is important when the dealer is hours away).

Joset

if you have 15k to spend i would definitely go with Gamerill. my budget didn't let me do that

Shelbie

Take a good look at the APQS Lenni and your dealer Tracey Gardner Russell who is an expert long arm quilter extraordinaire has her studio in Oshawa Ontario. Contact her and check into her studio for a longarm learning session or one of pop up APQS road tours (Ottawa) which wouldn’t be that far for you. I love my Lenni.

Snooze2978

As others have mentioned, add Innova to your list though you don't have a dealer near you. I also don't have one here in Iowa but I find calling their Customer Service rep (Michael) has helped me thru most of my problems. I started out with a Viking MegaQuilter 9", moved up to a Juki stretched 18" and now the Innova 26". Your best bet is to try them yourself to see how it feels under your own hands. It does make a difference, believe me. I wasn't even in the market for a new machine when I tried the Innova at a quilt show and I fell in love with it right off. It also depends on what you're looking for on the machine you want, how easy it is to fix yourself, how's their customer service, etc. If you can check out these machines you've listed, take various threads that you like to use as each machine seems to prefer certain threads. As you stated you FM, check to see how the machine moved under your hand...................is it sluggish to move in circles, left to right, right to left, diagonally, etc. What can you get for the money compared to other machines? I have the APQS right here in my little town but I went with the Innova cause I could get more for my money but that's me and what all I wanted extra to go with my machine. Your best bet is to try as many machines as you can, even used machines if they've been taken good care of.

NoraB

I am another Innova owner. I can't say enough good things about the product and their customer service. I have not had any problems with my Innova. I did have one occasion to call them on a Sunday. Within 2 minutes, I was talking to a service rep! That's customer service! I would not buy any other brand...good quality, fair pricing and excellent product! Good luck with your search.

Dolphyngyrl

I can yell you I almost got the brother version of the qnique until I tried the avante which was much smoother imho. I don't know how the larger qnique compares but for me I love my avante but also make sure you have a good dealer. Having a bad dealer can ruin everything I have seen. Good dealer support is as important as the machine you choose.

Jroussel

Thank you to everyone for all your reply's! I have added Innova as an option to my comparison list (and removed the Q'nique 21).

Lyric Girl, I am only just starting the search and only plan on investing in 5 or so years. Many other things have to happen in life before I am anywhere near ready to invest in something this large.

cathyvv

Not sure why the Q'nique was panned. I just got one with Quilt Motion, and, so far, it works fine. However, I don't quilt for $, just for my own enjoyment.

The Q'nique replaced my HQ16 with PC Quilter, but only because the PC Quilter software would not allow me to change the size of the print in its screens - my eyes aren't as wonderful as they used to be.

The HQ16 is a work horse; any problems I had were attributed to 'operator error'. I bought the HQ16 used in 2010, and my husband serviced it for me about every 18 months. All it ever needed was cleaning in the needle/bobbin area. The rest was always clean. I would have purchased a stitch regulator for it and a different computerized software, but the cost of doing that was almost as much as buying the Q'nique.

If all HQ quilting machines are as good as the HQ16 was for me, I can recommend that you take a look at a HQ machine.

One piece of advice - since you are tall, make sure the frame can be adjusted high enough for you. Bending over a
low-for-you frame is no fun.

Jroussel

The only reason I removed the Q'nique was that the only dealer near me has not gotten very good reviews from other sewers I have spoken with in my area (ie bad service, not very knowledgeable about their products etc). Height adjustable frames are going to be a must-have when I finally start narrowing the race.