I was wondering if your hubby ever made you the frame?

I have a little Gracie and juki machine. I have done, 10, king size quilts. The biggest problem that I have is getting it rolled tight enough to be able to make it through to the end. I have a 5 inch tall pattern that I use, and by the time I get to the end, I can just barely fit the pattern. So my advice is: to roll it very very tight on the take up rod. I also keep a flashlight and mirror hand so I can check the underside as xI go along. I have already gotten to the end and found that the thread was a mess and had to tear out an entire row of stitching.

I can only go about 1 and 1/4 rows on one bobbin, so have started just changing the bobbin at the end of each row. It wastes some thread but saves a lot of time. I need about 30 bobbins to do one king size quilt, so I plan to get more bobbins because stopping halfway through to wind bobbins is a real pain.

I would like to hear of other's experiences and helpful hints also.

Perhaps you could make a deal with the lady who said she has hers in storage.

I suggest getting a speed control, so the speed stays constant.

Good Morning, This is my first time on the site although I have been a member since July of 12. Can we say I don't have much time? I have a question. How do you go about cutting your thread or refilling the bobbin? I have been contemplating a short arm quilt frame since I don't have enough time to make enough quilts to make a long arm a wise move. Also, any ideas of where I should go to buy a short arm set up?

About 4 years ago, my DH bought a Bernina frame for my for Christmas. I put my 430 with the BSR on it and machine quilted over 30 quilts on it. I became frustrated by the small space at the end of the quilt, but could not justify a long arm and loved the Bernina frame, but the platform was had limited space. After d several months of thinking and l saving, I decided to upgrade to a Bernina 820 with a 12 inch throat. My rationale was when I do decide to go with a long arm, I will still have a very nice sewing machine to use, instead of trying to sell a mid arm like a Bailey 13 that would have fit my frame. I am very happy and feel like I have more space. I have seen these posts before, and am not sure where I fit, Short arm or Long arm quilter. LOL

my [machine has an auto thread cutter on it, otherwise, you would have to reach under and snip it. For changing the bobbin, i do it after each row when I am advancing the quilt. You move the machine to the end of the row and loosen the quilt so you can work around it. I waste some thread but saves me a lot of time by doing it that way.

Good morning to you, I wind enough bobbins before I start, saves the hassle of winding mid quilt. As for cutting I pull the bobbin thead to the top and leave about a 5 inch peice. After the quilt is done those I sew them into the batting layer with a hand needle. I have a Juki and a Handiquilter frame on an 8 foot table. It takes up space but it works for me.

I've had the same problem with my Mega Quilter. It was frustrating. I rethreaded, cleaned, etc only to have it continue to break thread. Someone posted that having the bobbin in the wrong direction can cause thread to break. I took out the instruction book and the bobbin case and held it up as in the manual....lo and behold, the bobbin was in backwards. I switched it and no more problem!!! Hope it works for you too!!

I just got a viking mega quilter and inspira frame. I already had a wooden grace frame that I used with my sewing machine but my husband got me a quilting and it came with the frame. I am excited about getting to uses it and could uses any advise on how to begin. The machine has a laser to uses with patterns and if you have any advise on where to find some pattern it would help. I should beable to get to really play with this new toy tonight. I know with the wooden grace frame and sewing machine it took awhile to get the tension just right and the right thread and lots of practice.