Thanks everyone for your replies. My local dealer has one on the floor to demo with and I will go back and play around in a day or two. Not sure if they have any used models, I live in a pretty small town so turn over is slim. The dealer is asking $1599.00, he said they try to stay competitive with the internet. I found one today for 1499.00 so I may go in and ask if they are willing to sell it at that price. Plus I have sales tax to consider.

I too have a Janome 6600P; and I like it;however, I HATE the foot pedal on it...it starts off slower than molasses and, according to the dealer, that's the way they're built. I've used the start-stop method too but don't care for it. Not fussing, just an honest statement about my perception of the machine.

momto5 I will pay c;use attention to that when I go and take it for a test run. Thanks for the info.

I bought my Janome 6600 when I first started quilting because my Kenmore didn't have all the bells and whistles...not even a 1/4" foot. Love my Janome. The only small problem is the pedal that tends to slide away. I put a silicone potholder underneath and it helps some. Still have to readjust once in a while. No big deal. As to the poster who said that the pedal is very slow to get started. I don't think this machine is intended for pedal to the metal. LOL. It's a quilters machine. You might want to clean the pedal once in a while. If there's lots of dust in it can get sticky.

I, too, have the 6600P (two, in fact). The one I bought new has chipped paint all along the front edge of the machine. The one I bought used has held up extremely well in the paint dept. I think maybe they changed their paint formula after the first year or so??? I don't think you can go wrong with getting a 6600P and the sooner the better so you can start having lots of fun. I have sewed hundreds of clothesline bowls (clothesline wrapped with fabric strips) and have not had any problems with either one of them.

Nita in cold Michigan