I'm looking for a machine for my daughter's (28th) Birthday. Just told me a few weeks ago she wants to learn to quilt (after many years of me wanting to teach her to sew-now she wants to). Any info on these Brother machines will be helpful. Likes/Dislikes...problems with them. CS-6000i, CP-7500, XL-3750 or SQ-9000. I've found them on Ebay, Overstock & Amazon. Some new, used and refurbished. Any problems getting a refurbished machine ? Thanks

I have the cs6000i and love it - my mom, sister and friend have the 9000 and love them - none have had any problems- and trust me I give mine a lot of work outs. I don't think you can go wrong with a Brother :thumbup:

I personally own the Brother SQ9000. I just got it a few months ago and so far I love it. I'm still learning some of the stitches. The stippling stitch that is built in is really tiny it seems to me but then i'm not sure exactly how big one is suppose to be. I got mine on Ebay. Found a clearance warehouse that had one, new in box with all the attatchments, quilting table extension and cover for $160 + $30 S&H for a total of $190. This was $9 cheaper than Wal Mart and our walmart was sold out of this model and had been since before Christmas. When I asked how long it was going to be before they got any back in she told me they could have it in 3 weeks. Ebay took me about 8 day.

I bought a cs6000i. its cheaply made, lightweight junk in my opinion..it lasted 3 months then the tension goofed up on it. My repair guy charges $79 to service any machine, this one was only $125. so not much sense in spending the $79 to have it repaired. Another gal here on the group said her sewing group had some of these machines donated to them. They are in the shop more than they are being used to sew. She said she thought they would make good boat anchors! I had a brother I got at walmart for $139 and it lasted over 6 years without a problem. It has the extended table which I liked. I just went to Joanns on Sat and bought a Singer 2520 on sale for $85 and it sews like a charm...good luck..crafty_linda_b

I have the SQ9000 and love it. I work her a LOT in the quilts I make. Had it a little over a year and still love it.
I don't use the monogramming much that it has. You can't adjust the size of the letters, not make them anything but capital letters, but that's o.k.

I have never been a fan of brother machines, they are expensive to repair and often break down, or just decide to do their own thing. Have you considered a vintage singer, such as a 401. They are great for piecing and can even do free motion quilting. I have one and love it, you can get quilting 1/4 in foot, stitch in ditch at aprils 1930s shop. I found an original walking foot on ebay. For a more modern machine I would check viking.

If I had only $200 to spend on a machine, I'd buy a vintage Singer for less than $50 and spend the rest on notions and material. All metal, vintage machines are so much better than the plastic, lower end new machines out there. I've bought several vintage machines, a White and a Morse...yes they're tanks but will last forever.

I have 2 Brother machines....I love them both one I carry around to quilt guild and any other place I sew besides home...I use them more them any other of my machines

I have a brother and I love it. I have had it for several years and have had no problems.

I am a huge Janome fan and that is where my vote lies.

I have 4 Brothers and one serger that is baby lock...love them all...don't have the ones you listed...my fav is a Innovis 4000. Embroidery and sewing. But my 1000 is great for sewing and quilting.

I have a Brother 6000i it is 5 years old and has only been in the shop once for a minor repair (caused by me) I machine quilt and do all my piecing with this machine, I love it, got it at Walmart for 199.00 but now there are down to 169.00 it came with lots of attachments including a walking foot. I would recommend it to anyone

Brother ls-1217 a little basic machine but got a walking foot that works on it and have it up so I can have other bernina free for other projects. Works great has a little jumping but still love it .

I love my Brother machines and I have never had to have any repaired!

I have the older brother CS-6000 and I love it. I have never had her in the shop and I've been using her for 5 years! I just started quilting but i used to make cloth diapers everyday (lots of thick material) and she handled it fine!

I have the XL2600. It has never given me any problems and it has made everything from tool belts to quilts. My only complaint on it is skimpy throat space. I solved that by buying the PQ1500S. It's a straight stitch only machine but has a 9 1/2 inch throat. I use both machines regularly and love them.

Years ago when I was your age..I said when the kids grow up..I'm getting a "Viking" so I did(2000.00 worth) I hate it..lol..I have a 200.00 Brother and a 129.00 Brother and I use them all the time..cart them everywhere..never have a problem with them..also can afford to replace them..I baby the Viking..I want a new machine and will probably go with a high-end Brother when that takes place !!

You can find reviews written by people who own these machines at

http://sewing.patternreview.com/news...i-bin/index.pl

I find it really helpful.

I own an old Singer, a Brother, and a Janome. I love them all for different reasons. The Singer is great for quilting. The brother is a great machine for sewing and decorative stitches without costing too much. I got mine at Costco. A great deal! It is also lightweight and easy to carry. My Janome Horizon is an investment and I love it. All machines need to be kept in good working order and cleaned regularly.

Have the SQ-9000 - have used it for over a year now. No problems. Love it. Recently started using the fancy stitches and they were awesome. Light enough to carry to class.

I have the CS 6000i and it has been a workhorse for me. The only issue I have with it is that the throat is too narrow for me to do machine quilting on. All of the quilts I make are Queensized and there's just no room to work. But,over all it is a great machine.

I have had my Brother for 12 years and love it ----NO repairs.

I have a brother SQ-9000. I have had it a few months and I love it. Still learning the different stitches. Got mine from walmart.

Thanks everyone for the help. I ended up getting a Brother XL-7700 from Costco. It's really a CS6000i, but the Costco version. Same machine. It averaged an almost 5 star rating. No major complaints. I was going to get it onine on Overstock, E-Bay or Amazon but a lot of them didn't include the bonus accessories (walking foot, quilting foot, wide table) and the price was almost the same.And some were refurbished. I may not want to give it to my daughter. LOL

i love my brother. its a ex660 and sews great. it is a little loud. i went on and got a brother embroidery machine. and (hopefully) i will be getting a brother quilting machine tomorrow. i am very satisfied with my brother machines and would buy a brother again.