FlaGirl

Hello to you Susan. I find it harder to get into quilting here. Not many quilt stores in south FL. I am more muddled than ever about these machines. Some people love the Viking and some hate it. Seems like it just depends on whether or not you get a lemon. I found a Janome dealer in town and will check it out tomorrow. Know nothing about this machine. Scary when you are talking about a few thousand dollars.

FlaGirl

Yes the feet will fit the new Bernina. You are correct about that Nammie to 7.

Sally J

I have the Viking 875Q...I have been in love with a Viking D1 for years but wanted a larger throat so I got the 875. I also have a Janome 8200..I will say the machines are really different. The auto pressure foot on the Vikings is great for piecing and especially for appliqué. The Janome sews much faster but I'm having trouble having to raise and lower the pressure foot because I'm spoiled. The Janome does have a knee lift but because the machine is so long the lift is too far to the left for me.
I have always had Vikings and never had a problem (just got the 875Q so don't know if it will be trouble free)
I think you should take a long test drive on both machines. Take you own fabric and thread you usually use. Thread the machine, wind bobbins, sew and spend at least 30 minutes on each machine. Then you MUST consider the dealer and how you feel about them. Don't make you decision until you decide which one you like. You will be happy with either, but you don't need both machines like I have. Good Luck

FlaGirl

Thanks for your response Sally J. No, one machine is fine. Actually I will keep the new one in FL and take my Bernina to my little house in Asheville. Hopefully I will do more sewing there. Also feel more crafty there and here I am always on the tennis courts. Let me know if you have any problems with your machine. Some of the older posts complain about tension issues. People also say they are made in China now. One post said to calm down as they had talked to a machine repair store and he said they were good machines no matter where they came from. I think it is all about who you buy them from. I am a little concerned because my town only has them at JoAnns Fabrics. I would prefer a private dealer.

patski

I have 3 vikings and love them all. They really hold up well

Dolphyngyrl

I love my brothers, however in your situation i would go viking, because most other brands do offer alot of nice feature for the price. I paid 1800 for my babylock espire a feature rich machine, and i went to a show where the 550QE was discounted to 3k and I sewed on it in my class and for the money i felt it lacked a lot of features that should be provided for the cost of the machine. I also felt it didn't sew as well as my babylock espire. I was just not impressed with it at all for the price, way to overpriced IMHO. I have never sewed on a saphire so I have nothing to compare it to other than my brothers and babylocks which I love but if I only could choose between the 2 I would probably go with the saphire. I love the pivoting feature on my babylock

Wintersewer

Well, I'm sure it's not the Bernina 750. I have a 710 and so far cannot even sew on it. Bernina company supposedly has the replacement parts in the making to fix the terrible tension problems most of the 700 series machines came with. I loved my 530, before I traded it in on the 710.

Wintersewer

No, they will not fit. Bernina changed the feet a few years ago, so they now sell NS (new style) and OS feet. The new ones have red print on the front.

Hulalulu

Owing a Sapphire 870 (the precursor to the 875) makes me very prejudiced....had her six years and she performs so well. Not having the presser foot lever is a BLESSING -- it doesn't catch your material when quilting. (On my serger, the presser foot lever is up and out of the way when sewing, don't understand why this isn't standard on sewing machines as well, must be a technical issue.)

Living where there are issues with getting things professionally serviced limited my choices -- and I've been very pleased with the service provided by the shop where this machine was purchased. It can be a hassle getting parts in a timely fashion if you have a machine where there is no local dealer.

Always good to try out the competition -- only you can tell which machine feels the best and suits your needs!

Wintersewer

This just goes to show, "Different strokes or different folks." I do NOT like the button presser foot lifter on my new Bernina 710. I MUCH prefer the lever as I feel I can place the fabric exactly where I want it. I guess it's a good thing we have so many choices.