Scott--yes, Gammills love oil and if you leave your machine setting for too long you will get drips. Most of us "park" our machines at one end of the table and have bat or other absorbing material on the table to catch the drops. I've had my machine for 7 yrs and it was 7 years old when I bought it. The previous owner did tons of customer quilts and her husband was her maintenance tech--he also rehabs and builds cars from scratch--so very capable. It never has needed internal work. I did have to replace an electronic part in the electronic board (could not get the in-handle light to work) but Gammill tech's diagnosed on the phone, sent me the part and then walked me through the installation via phone. I've had it professionally maintained 2 times by a tech visit, but most other work I've done myself--replacing the rubber encoder wheels; replacing the actual carriage wheels, re-timing when I hit a ruler!; all the cleaning; resetting the needle bar height; flushing the grease build-up so that oil flows well; replaced motor belt--all things that are routine. I do all this on my own, using the Gammill maintenance videos.

there is a way on Gammill to check the # of use hours, but I can't remember now. If you go to their website you can access the manuals on the machines or just give them a call and ask--they are always helpful.

Thank you for that great information. And for being frank about the oil. I bet I could come up with a solution for that. Love challenges like that lol. Very good to hear you are able to self maintain. I had considered brands like Pfaff/Bernina but my presumption on them is there’s no way to do the maintenance yourself. At least it doesn’t see possible to my wife’s normal machine.

Scott-have no knowledge of Pfaff long arms but have a friend that traded in her Gammill for a Bernina solely because of the the fact that she can't do her own maintenance on the Bernina but has to take it in for service. Re: oil on the Gammill--my son, former auto mechanic, says the nice thing about the Gammill oil situation is that you know it's well lubed so not undue wear and tear on parts--think he will be the eventual owner when I get too old and must retire--but don't see that happening soon! (have an 88 yr old friend that still works on her Gammill hand guided.)

APQS is a brand that is very owner-serviceable.

Wait... did you say that backwards? She traded her Gammill in for a Bernina because she can't do the maintenance on the Bernina? Or did you mean to say she traded her Bernina in for a Gammill?

Thank you. I'm leaning toward Innova heavily but since I'm looking fora good deal on a used one, I'll definitely watch for them, too. Do you know what model is their computerized version? I'll add it to my potential list.

If you mean computerized as in "can do the quilting for you", with the motors and belts and software, that's an add-on packaged called QuiltPath or a third-party option called Intelliquilter. Any of the frame-mounted APQS machines (at least the newer ones) can accept it (not sure if the old Ultimate 1's can).

nope, you read it right--she did not like her Gammill as more self maintenance, so got her Bernina that needed to be taken off frame and to shop to repair. She had trouble getting her tension correct on the Gammill--not sure, but think that the Bernina tension settings are coordinated between bobbin and top thread--at least that is what she explained to me. Personally, I like being able to do my own maintenance as much as possible!

I want to add a very strong recommendation to try all brands you're considering first.

I had one well-regarded brand at the top of my list, but on trying several models at a respected dealer's road show, I couldn't stand the vibration in my hands and wrists (I have mild tendonitis). I actually had to stop after just a few minutes it was that bad. I was stunned and wondered if it was all longarms or just that brand (and expected it to be the former, and maybe my hand issues would prevent me from getting one). I went to an APQS road show a couple of weeks after that and felt no vibration or discomfort at all when using the machines (and I spent quite a lot of time trying out each of them). I still don't own a longarm, and unfortunately the smallest APQS machine/frame is a bit too deep for my space, but I know not to buy before I try.

I bought a Gammill in 2006. My suggestion to you is to buy the largest head you have room for and can afford. Most of the people I know have upgraded their mid arms to long arms. My machine is 26” Hand guided. I would not get larger because it would be too big for my height.