I am trying to decide between 2 machines.. a 13inch or a 15 inch. Can, anyone tell me if there is a dramatic difference in the 2 inches, or would the 13 inch give me enough quilting space. I am a home quilter and only do as a hobby. The price difference is pretty great, so I am trying to find out if it is worth the money for the extra two inches.
Thanks, Danielle

I would get the largest throat you can afford. What brands are you looking at? I have heard that Bailey has a good 17 or 18 in. for a good price.

I think once you get a long arm (or midarm, as you are looking at), you FIND, even invent, projects to do on it! I have an Avante- 18 inch, and have discovered I love thread painting.

So, I agree, buy the most space you can afford.

Well, I am a newbie to longarm quilting, having gotten my LA in April. I got a Viking 18/8, meaning you have an 18" area under the long arm to quilt at a time and the 8" means there is 8" clearance between the quilt and the height of the throat space. If you are doing a large quilt this comes in handy when you have the quilt nearly finished and rolled up on the takeup roller (or whatever it is called). As far as I am concerned the larger the quilting area the better and faster to completion. I know that I would not have been satisfied with a midarm, which is what you are considering, I believe. When I buy a new machine, be it a sewing machine or anything else, I try to buy a step or two up from what I think I want because I know I would wish later that I had gotten something better. Cheaper is not always better. Just make sure you do lots of homework. It is a large purchase, and not one that you want to regret.

Thanks for your response. Bailey's is the one I was looking at as a matter of fact. lol The 13 or 15 are the only two I could afford though...

I have only looked at the WOW and the Baily's. Are there anymore out there that are in that price range?? I only have about 2500 to spend... which is far too little for what I really want. lol

Get the biggest a throat space that you can afford. ( for some reason this doesn't sound right ) lol
It's better than finding out your not happy with it 7 should have gone the extra.
Then you roll a good size quilt on the roller the space you can quilt in gets smaller. 2" doesn't sound like much but it does make a difference.
Good luck. I'm sure you'll enjoy whatever you get.

I agree with buying the most you can - for what you can afford - even if that means saving for a while longer to get what you want and need.

No sense spending say $1200 on something because you don't want to spend $2800 (even though you reallllly want and will use the $2800 one).

I know I'd regret it. That's why I'm still saving for the big longarm. Won't be too much longer...I hope!

Definitely the largest throat you can afford...you won't be sorry!!!

I have a bailey 15", at the end of a queen with low loft cotton batt the most i can do is an 8" pass so i would think with a 13" you may only get 5-6"
i agree with the others , get the most you can for more satisfaction

If you are going to be quilting large bed size quilts, even a mid-arm sewing machine is a big help. I agree that the larger the throat means that you will be able to quilt large projects quicker.

Wow! That is exactly what I needed to hear! Thanks.

I have the 13", and actually measured the space on the queen I just completed and can get 8 1/2" at the end, when tightly rolled completely on the take up bar. I love my 13 Bailey which I use totally for my own hobby needs (or wants), but with that being said, it's all a matter of being able to mentally justify the cost of my toys