I have only Brother machines. The XL-5700, the Lock 1034D, the PQ 1500, an my very first sewing machine ever bought in 1984 and still runs as good as new but looks like heck because it yellowed so much (and I am not a smoker).

I have had NO problems with any of them. Just clean and oil regularly...

I am not 100% certain, but I believe the Jewel is made by Handiquilter. A Brother rep told me this at one of the Quilt Festivals. That same person told me that Babylock has no factory. All the machines are made by Brother.

I have a baby Brother, Project Runway, from WalMart that is a little workhorse. It's lightweight, easy to take to class and has a reasonably good stitch. And, I have a Brother Innovis 4000D, which, I believe, was the first embroidery/sewing combination that cut the jump stitches when doing embroidery. That machine is about 7 years old and has been in the shop a couple of times. All the computerization makes it a bit more temperamental, but I do love that machine. It was the top of the line when I bought it. Now the new Dream Machine is calling my name. I really want the ability to do embroidery in the bigger hoops. They are good machines.

Love Pocono Sew and Vac. :)

I've had several of the low end Brother machines over the years. They've given me very good service with little problem.
I would definitely recommend one to anyone who wants an good basic inexpensive machine.

My personal preference however is for the vintage/antique straight stitch only machines for day to day piecing. My Featherweight is absolute favorite and is the one I use all the time.

I'm pretty fond of Brother machines. I've bought and used lower end ones and passed them along when I upgraded and those "cheap" machines are still going strong. One of them was a CS6000i, I paid about $140 for it, used it for about a year, decided it was too small and now my nice and nephew (9 & 13 years old) have it and use it for their sewing and it's trouble free for them as well, despite yanking the fabric, breaking needles, sewing things that shouldn't be sewn, etc. (My sister tells me that they've sewn decorative stitches onto cardboard with the thing...and it still goes...)

My embroidery-only machine is also a Brother, and was not very expensive. I don't use it often, but it functions flawlessly when I do use it. (As long as *I* don't screw up the stabilizer or something)

I have also been told by a Babylock dealer that Babylock machines are made in the Brother factories. And just from looking at them...I can see how many pieces they have in common, at least on the exterior.

I've never sewn on a Babylock but if you're looking for an inexpensive sewing machine and you want something modern, a Brother is a good choice in my opinion.

Vintage machines are pretty awesome, though, if you can survive without some of the modern conveniences. You can spend less on a machine that will last your whole lifetime. For me the bad part is that they're like potato chips, I can't have just one; there are too many COOL old machines out there...

Comparing a Brother and a Babylock is like comparing a Chevrolet to a Cadillac. They're made by the same company. One(Babylock-Cadillac) has machines catering to a higher spending market and the other(Brother-Chevy)) has many machines that cater to the other end of the market. From lower mid range on up, if you compare similarly featured machines, the Brothers will cost significantly less.

Cari

I have the smallest Babylock, the Audrey. It is a great little machine, worth every penny I paid---about $350 on sale 5 years ago. I have quilted a twin size on it, but don't think you could do anything bigger on it. My Babylock dealer gives good service.

I have the babylock, i want to love it but have had problems since i bought it and babylock customer support has been no help. The automatic thread worker stopped working right away, took to repair and got home, worked once and not again. When i tried to free motion quilt, 1 st time, it made a noise the needle came down strange and now it makes a sound over the slightest seams while sewing. I took it in for repair and as soon as i got it home, the sound over seams is still there. So now i have a new, expensive machine that cant needle thread and sounds terrible and doesnt sew smoothly. This is not due to lack of how to use a machine either, it just feels very breakable to me. Also when i took it in for repair, the repairman , authorized babylock repair, dented my brand new machine! So upset.

I bought a Brother Dreamweaver a little over a month ago. It has laser guidelines and a sonic pen I can use to determine the exact end point of a line of stitching among many other fabulous features. I am absolutely in love with this machine. It's incredibly accurate and makes beautiful stitches. I just don't have a single bad thing to say about it. When I went shopping for a new machine I thought I wanted a Babylock Aria until I tried the Dreamweaver. They are definitely made by the same company - there is hardly any difference between the two machines but the Dreamweaver had more features and cost less. They sound and sew exactly the same. It was a pretty easy decision :)

Cari is right on. Cadillac vs Chevy! Babylock! It was the dealer that sold me (M&R Madison), they are the best. I looked at the Brothers, but the dealer was not very forthright on their "apparent" features.