Feed dogs and seam allowances
 

As a fairly new quilter, I've had a hard time getting a consistent, accurate 1/4" seam allowance. I finally figured out that with a 1/4" seam allowance, only the left feed dog on my machine (Brother Innovis NX-650Q ) pulls the fabric. So the fabric tends to pull to the left unless I keep straightening it out, leading to pulling, stretching, etc. Has anyone else had this experience? Any tips or work-arounds? Thanks.

Do you have a walking foot? It seems to help. I had the same experience with my machine.

Can you change the needle position on that machine? On my Bernina 1230, I need to move the needle one position to the right of center in order to allow both feed dogs to be positioned under the fabric.

Edit: I just Googled and see that your machine has 14 needle positions (I think).

Aside from moving the needle, I create a physical guide for my fabric to keep my 1/4" seam consistent. Usually I use a strip of adhesive moleskin (widely available in the foot section of pharmacies). Basically I move the needle to the right, place my favorite ruler underneath the presser foot, lower the needle so it is touching just slightly to the right of the 1/4" line on the ruler, make sure the ruler is lined up straight from front to back, then lower the presser foot to keep the ruler in place. I then butt a piece of the moleskin next to the ruler's edge and stick it to the bed of the machine. This makes it easy for me to quickly sew accurate 1/4" seams without straining my eyes.

On my Babylock Quilter's Choice, I need to move the needle position every time I turn the machine on. It is very annoying. I feel like it should be set to the center but it isn't. Are you using a 1/4 inch foot? I just bought a new 1/4 inch foot with guide that is greatly improving my piecing accuracy.

It's the little things like that that we don't check out before buying our machines.