Sergers - starting to look for one
 

I'm starting to look at sergers and have it narrowed down to 2 different ones:

Babylock Enlighten or Brother 1034.

I know they are far apart on the pricing scale - the BL threads the loopers automatically. The brother has amazing reviews so I'm wondering if it is that important to spend more $$ on a serger.

Can you give me ideas of what you use yours for and how you can't live without it?
:)

I have the BabyLock Evolution. The threading and tension are a breeze on the BabyLocks. I can't speak about the Brothers. I had an old Singer serger that I could never get the tension right or thread it. It ended up sitting in the closet all the time. I use my BabyLock all the time. Love it!

Hi - thanks for the quick response. May I ask what you use yours for?
I've never had one and now that I have 2 little granddaughters, I find I am sewing for them a bit and making doll clothes. I'm also a quilter.
I saw the evolution yesterday and it's a lovely machine. I'm not sure I would that many of the features though. I have a Babylock Ellisimo so I have a lot of other decorative stitches and embroidery.

I had the top of the line Viking serger (my 4th over many years) and thought I loved it until I saw the Babylock Evolution! I went home with it from a Nancy Zieman show, and put the Viking on the floor...moved it to a different table, then to the floor of a closet! I use the BL all the time...I do alterations on prom and wedding dresses, sew doll clothes, and even have used it to piece the back of a quilt, which I absolutely loved doing! I am going to set the Viking up as a cover stitch machine, it is too difficult to change back and forth, and the BL's threading is so wonderful....

Babylock Evolution IMHO is the way to go! I was never interested in sergers until I saw that one on PBS TV with Nancys Notions one day so I started checking into it. The retailer in our area wanted almost $4600 for it yet it is suppose to retail for about $4300. So I instead went to Padauch last April at the quilt show and bought the Evolution and the embellisher for about $2300, free shipping and all the feet for the serger and paid cash for it. I negotiated the price down near to what I wanted to pay for it. I guess what they say about CASH TALKS is true.

I have never regretted that decision to buy it. You can do alot with this machine besides ruffles. You can sew sippers on projects, piece quilts, sew and more.

I have the Brother 1034D. I paid around $200. I am happy with it. I have made a lot of pajama pants, halloween costumes and some doll clothes. I also used it around the edges of a quilt before I put the binding on. I only did that once, just to try it out, because I don't usually have a problem with bindings. I learned how to thread it. There is also a CD with it and a video on You tube. I am happy with my choice even though I can afford one of the higher priced models.

I have had a Bernina serger for 15 years or so. IF it had been self-threading and IF it had had a coverstitch, I would have used it a ***lot*** more than I have. With two new grand-daughters, my advice is to splurge NOW on the up-market serger. You will be a lot happier in the long run, and it will make creating wonderful memories for your grandchildren a lot easier to achieve.

I have 3 sergers and the one I like the best is the Brother 1034d. It really depends on what you will be using it for. Are you going to use it to make garments? Do you need a cover stitch? Will you be using the serger for quilting, making home dec items or garments. It really isn't hard to change threads with the Brother. If your finances are unlimited, a Babylock self-threading serger might the way to go. For me,I have a Pfaff serger with the cover stitch, but I admit I use the Brother the most. It has a good manual all my Brothers have excellent manuals and it is so easy to use. If you have thousands of dollars to pay for it, the top of the line Babylock is a excellent machine. If you want a more budget friendly machine, the Brother is a great choice. Don't be afraid of threading the Brother, you simply tie the new thread onto the thread you have been using and gently pull it through the machine. Sometimes people become so afraid of a serger that they make much harder than it really is.

Have a Bernina serger with cover stitch. Although it's not self treading, it's not hard to thread and it's stitches are amazing. Plus it came with great lessons. Nothing sews like a Bernina!

I would love a newer model but that won't happen with my [what is jokingly called] budget.

I have an older Pfaff - the 4852. It has been a true workhorse and I love it even if I have to hand thread it. I rewrote the directions so I could understand them. This is something I do for almost all of my machines. Guess I think differently than the manual creators..

I have the BL Imagine and have had it for a number of years. Would replace it in a heart beat if it died. Never have had a problem with it and it is worth the price for the air threading in my opinion. Good luck with your decision.

I use the Evolution serger for a lot of things. I make clothes, doll clothes, serge fabric edges before washing, serge edge of quilts before binding, put in zippers, add beading to projects, do piping, and I have even been using the wave stitch with heavy thread to bind quilts that I back with flannel. It is a fast way to finish the lap quilts.

I love love love my BL Imagine!

I don't use my serger a lot but I wouldn't trade it. If it went to serger heaven I would probably replace it with one that self threaded (even though mine isn't that hard to thread)

The brother 1034D is a great workhorse machine.. I had one for years and never had a problem with it other than the cutting knives getting dull (totally normal, I replaced them a few times when I had the machine), then I had the chance to try one and I fell in love with the Babylock Imagine and had to have one.. it's so easy to use, there's no thinking or fiddling with tension involved, you just set it up for the stitch you want and it comes out perfect every time. I've had mine for about 7 years now and I'd absolutely buy another.

To be honest the air threading.. I could take it or leave it. Once you know how to properly thread a serger it's really not hard to do and it doesn't take much time at all. I think the people who find it so difficult just can't follow directions (the order in which the loopers are threaded matters a lot, and not all machines are the same). What really sold me on the Imagine was the auto-tension.. it's like magic :)

I also got a really good deal on a Pfaff 4874 several years ago and I've had a love/hate relationship with that machine... it serges really nicely but I mostly use it for coverstitching and there are many times I wish I had something simpler like the Janome Coverpro that only did coverstitching, so that I wouldn't be constantly re-threading the machine every time I changed my mind about what I wanted to do with it.

What it really comes down to is price and ease of use. I recommend the brother all the time without hesitation, but I admit I am a bit spoiled with my Imagine :) The Pfaff... I probably wouldn't buy another.

Thanks everyone for your replies. I'm happy to report that I purchased the BL Enlighten yesterday. Can't wait for the morning to start playing with her.

I have an older new home serge 334D it make the prettiest roll edge seam, because I can use a 600 denier thread in it. It has thread disk. <o:p></o:p>
I bought a BL imagine several years ago. I can not adjust the thread tension on it! So my next one will be self threading with tension disk also.<o:p></o:p>

Phyllis, that was one reason I opted for the Englighten over the Imagine, since the E had the auto tension.
Having never even tried a serger before, I thought it would be the best machine for me.

What thread does everyone use and where do you purchase it? If you have a 4 thread, do you find you always or most never buy 4 spools of the same color?

I have the Bernina serger and have had it for twenty years. I use it for children's clothing, knits, blind hem, etc. I would recommend the Bernina any day. They are solid and work horses.

I buy the large cone spools (they have them in Jo-Ann's). I buy mostly standard colors, such as white, natural, black and grey. They can be used on a lot of materials. On sale they only cost a couple of dollars. Once in a while I buy a special color (4spools). Sometimes I use them for standard sewing as well. Never had a problem with it.

I have the Bernina 1300MDC. It is easy to use and not hard to thread. I bought it used ( 1 1/2 years old but she only used it once in the first class from the dealer) but paid my dealer to take the classes that come with it. For 1/2 the new price it was a great deal. The stitches are wonderful! I really wanted a machine with coverstitch as I re-hem a lot of things as I am short - sleeves are always too long.

Bernina sergers are made by Juki and Juki has a similar model with the same stitches but no LCD screen.