I would definitely do it. Please move to Houston and start your business here!!

If I knew how to use the machine, I would LOVE to have a place nearby. I hear about people sending theirs through the mail and it downright frightens me. I always wonder if the thing will get lost and is never seen again.

I would jump at the chance to be able to rent a long arm! As long as the price was less than having it done!

I think you have a viable business idea. At a minimum the person using the machines would need 3-4 hours of instruction and time would have to be reserved for the long arm. You might do a survey of some of your quilting friends to ask their opinion. If I had this option and it was close enough for it to be a solution to my many quilts, I would consider it.

I have a LAM. What I want is a traveling quilter to come and quilt the thirty tops I don't have time to do!:D How much would that cost!

This can be a profitable part of a quilting business. I don't think renting machine time alone would generate enough income to pay for itself, but as part of a a whole package of stuff, would be great.
peace

Talked to an owner of a quilt shop at a quilt show about starting a quilt store. She said she was in business 5 years before she coulkd realize a profit...but then it got better. I suppose growing your customer base is the hard part. She, also said shipping expenses are exorbitant. It has been said to me that just retail sales will not be enough. That a diverse plan such as classes, teaching off site, advertisement and kits, patterns, etc., are helpful in realizing gains. Of course, labor would be a major factor plus a bricks and mortar business is demanding of your time. The idea sounds great, have you canvassed your area for potential clients? Check if there are quilt guilds, quilt club, quilt shows in your area. Is there a strong representation at your county, state fair entrees. These may give you good sources of potential customers. Whatever you do, I wish you every success.

think it would depend on the demand in your area--- I took classes on a longarm in my area, I was soooo excited!!! & I absolutely hated it! it's a shame, she was a really good teacher, & it wasn't that expensive, but it felt too much like work-- it wasn't as enjoyable to me as the design/sewing process. unfortunately, the shop closed--I think due to the rural area---but it was a great experience DO your research & go from there--good luck! with your choices!

We winter in TX and they is a quilt shop near us that does that and it seems to be popular. I believe they have the quilting boards that you use a stylus to follow. And she did make the quilters do a hour or so training. I do believe that it would work. The only problem I could see is that everyone does not handle a machine the same and some folks can be pretty rough on something that they did not realize the cost of, kind of like renters.. that is just my opinion. I have my own quilting machine so I would not use it, but before I bought the machine I would of rented a machine if possible.

Wow, that's a good rate. The shop near me charges $20/hr. (when I inquired a couple of years ago).

When I lived in NC there was a shop that rented the LA. I took the class and quilted one quilt. I don't remember what the costs were but I do remember that I felt rushed..... I didn't want to go over the time that I had expected to rent the machine. I just did an overall design. I'd like to be able to do some free-motion quilting but that would take a lot more time. I moved. The shop closed. Short story..... I wish I have access to a LA again.

There is a quilt store near me that does rent their long arm. I am signed up to take the mandatory class in early Sept. I think it would be a good option for people who would like to learn to use a long arm and do their own quilts but do not have the money or the space to purchase one of their own. And for some, they may find they don't enjoy it and will be glad they did not have a huge cash outlay involved. As for me...I want to learn how to do it but, at the moment, I simply do not have the extra money to purchase my own. I'm the person who wants to get my quilt finished and I hate having to wait 3-6 months for another person to get to my quilt. I think taking the class and renting time on the machine will be a good option for me until I can afford one of my own.

I wish you nothing but success on your venture, nothing lost nothing gained, I say go for it & have fun having your machines within your reach when you need them and helping people learn how to work the machines & then buying them from you. I truly hope you get this idea up and running! :thumbup:

Sounds like a plan.....I'm too far away to be any use....but I would love something like this where I live.

Our LQS used to do that, but the only technique they allowed was edge to edge With a pantograph. And there was a lady assigned to be your resource person who would help you when needed. So you would end up doing it for 3 straight hours in the morning, have a bag lunch, and then back at it in the afternoon. It really wasn't much cheaper than getting someone to do an edge to edge, but it was easier to have it done by a certain date, and you knew "I did it all myself". But when the resource person retired, they stopped doing it, so I'm not sure if it was financially a good thing for them or not.

For all those reasons, I think you are going to enjoy using the shop's long arm. I did a total of about 5 or 6 before my LQS stopped doing it.

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh, I would love having that option here. Good Luck, hope you get it up and running and it's a huge success.

i have seen seen that offered in several shops in Oklahoma. One issue is the ability to finish in one setting or the need to remove the quilt so others can use the machine. One shop required a zipper type attachment to load and unload the quilt more easily. I think it was the shop in Blanchard, OK. Sorry I cannot remember the name but you could call and see the pitfalls from someone else who has tried it in their quilt shop.

I personally love the idea

One reason I like renting time on the long arm is so I can say I made the whole quilt myself. The other, it's much cheaper to do it myself than send it out, at least in my area.

I pay $25.00 an hour, and the machine is a computerized (panto patterns) Gammill. The initial "training" was $150.00, and $29.95 for the zipper. They open at 10:00 a.m. and close at 3:00. They only book one person on each machine, per day. If your quilt is extra large (CA King) and can't finish by the time they close, they stay until you are done, which is nice. There's no pressure to finish. They don't make you take it off the frame and come back. There's a 3 hour minimum, and the price includes thread. She has batting available for purchase, on the roll, if you don't bring your own. It's lots of fun and I've met wonderful people there to socialize while I am quilting. I really like it. I can get a 78 x 88 done in 3 hours.

Hope this helps. I say you should go for it.

Can you survey the quilters in your specific area? Maybe through your guild. You need to know if that is a doable plan in your area. A lot of us out here would use it, but you need to know about the quilters in your area.

I have a few places around me where I can rent the machines for about $30 per hour after investing in supplies and a class. I haven't done it because I can have it done for me for the same or less money. I haven't asked many questions, but I've noticed that they encourage pantographs. If I'm going to rent a machine, I would prefer to make my quilting more personal.

WOW!! I sure would. I have 8 tops right now that need quilted and no funds to have them quilted. TOO expensive around here. I might even be able to quilt the charity baby quilts fancy

i'm not able to buy a la I would love to do that but I wouldn't be able to sit there all the hours it would take.

There is a shop here that rents the machines for $25. an hour. I've not used it but know many who like doing it

One thing I would suggest is that you get machines that rarely have problems and when they do have problems, that the company offers 24/7/365 free tech service so they can walk you through the fix. I bought my Innova 9 months after piecing my first quilt and love that I can call their tech service, any time, any day. I don't have to call them often because my machine rarely has any problems. Another cost to consider is thread...I use Superior Threads, expensive but so worth it! I would suggest selling pre-wound bobbins for a price that includes the cost of the top thread - it is easier to count the number of bobbins purchased then to try to figure out how many yards of thread have been used and you don't have to worry about winding bobbins. Superior sells pre-wound bobbins at a decent price, especially when you have a business account. Oh, when you are considering which brand of longarm to buy, I would definitely suggest one that uses the M bobbins...when you have the L size, you are constantly needing to change the bobbins.

The LQS near me rents out an Avante and a Sweet 16. To rent the Avante you take a $50.00 class. Their hourly rates are very reasonable, $75 for 4 hours or $125 for 7 hours. You provide leaders, batting, and any marking equipment (pounce, rulers, etc.). They provide thread (they will order any colors you need ahead of time), and have a selection of pantographs and groovy boards. The Sweet 16 is even cheaper—I believe a $30 class and $15.00 per hour rental.
They are a full service LQS and machine dealer, so my guess is that they are making money by getting people in the door. I’m sure a lot of people renting the machine end up buying fabric, supplies, etc. while they are there. I am going to take the class in the winter this year.

In a heartbeat!