I like the Pfaff machines for anything, they are a quality machine.

I'm a big fan of Pfaff and have the 4.0 and Performance 5. I bought a Passport for class, but missed the auto-pivot so much (I do a lot of machine appliqué. Plus I'm thoroughly spoilt now, lol.) I sold it and bought the 5 and leave the 4 in class.

You should be able to get the Pfaff Passport for £399. It has the IDT and needle up/down but no auto thread cutter. You can buy an extension table which handily attaches to the hard cover for travelling.

For piecing, I nearly always use a straight-stitch plate. One of the downfalls of the new wider stitch machines is that they tend to 'eat' fabric. Happy quilting.

You lot are brilliant! Thank u x

I purchased this model about a year ago and use it nearly every day ... cost was way above my budget but it has been so worth it. The owner of the shop was so enthusiastic about this machine that I couldn't resist making the investment Thank you goes to Ian at Tanners in Westchester, CA :thumbup:

I started with a Brother and at my first quilting class quickly grew frustrated - the stitching was so uneven and would not go through thicker layers at all. Even with a walking foot. They brought out a Pfaff Ambition 1.0 for me to try and I traded in my Brother right then and there. What a difference! The Pfaff with its built in dual feed IDT system sewed through multi layers like butter - all the while keeping a beautiful, even, straight stitch. I sew with it almost every day - mostly piecing quilt tops and various projects like bags, etc. I recently upgraded to the new Pfaff Performance 5.0 but could not bear to part with my Ambition, so it's now the one I take to classes, traveling, rv'ing, etc.

Might be a good thing there is no auto thread cutter. Looks like it has a vertical bobbin just like my 2170 (2170 last of the TOL machines with vertical bobbin) The usual complaint is - thread gets cut too short to pick up for the next sequence of stitches, cutter doesn't cut, and I've even seen one interfere with embroidery. It messed with the circuitry. Turned the autocutter off, and machine was fine.

Lots of times, I don't use my auto cutter.

The machines with drop in bobbins have autocutters that work far better.

I'm on my second Pfaff. My first one got fried by a power surge. Lesson learned. I have all of my machines plugged into a voltage regulator (not a surge protector) now. Anyway. I love, love, love my Pfaff. I also have a Bernina, which is a great machine, but for piecing and other precision sewing, I love my Pfaff. It's a workhorse. Good luck.

My Pfaff is 15 years old. It made a tremendous difference in my piecing. I love my machine. My friend traded hers in when she bought her Bernina and has been sorry ever since for the Pfaff is excellent in piecing. They no longer make my model which I paid $2000 in 1999.

I would not worry about the manufacturing being moved. I also have a 30 year old Pfaff made in germany as well as my pfaff embroidery machine and performance 5 at their new manufacturing site. The new machines work as beautifully and precicely as the old one and have all kinds of modern additions. They seem to have adhered to the same standards of quality and I have no regrets on their purchase.

I have a Pfaff 7530, an older machine and I love it. The dual feed is wonderful and also it has a beautiful stitch. It has sewn many hours and I have never had any mechanical problems at all. I do routine maintenance myself. They are super machines and great 'workhorses'.