What is it called ...
 

when you want to take your machine in and have it cleaned , oiled and serviced ?!? What does this run price wise ?!

I have a babylock quilters choice ... the dealer is local to take it in to have it done ..... has an automatic needle threader that doesnt work right .... anybody have this repaired ?? I am trying to get an idea of cost.....guessing $100

that's a routine service "call", plus the threader examination and possible repair.

does the threader move down to the needle and back up when you push a button, or do you push it down yourself to engage the needle and thread?

what exactly is it not doing correctly?

my bernina 1530 was 150 i know its not a babylock , you might call and inquire

talk to dealer ask for an estimate the cost for all you want done.

I just paid $140 to have my babylock tuned up. They also cleaned and oiled it. I thought it was a little high, but welcome to land where everything will cost more then you think it should.

Oh dear. It *IS* so expensive to get a machine serviced! I would think the cost would be at least $100 now.

That's why I love my ancient industrial Singers - a 95-80 and a 95-40. I was just online Thursday night looking for the service manuals so that I could repair the upper tension system. With just a little help from DH ("Well, that's the set-screw, right there!) I was able to get it going again. Let's see... it's only the second time I've had to fix anything in... probably five years... this was the 95-40. I really like the 95-80 better, I have only broken it once in 25 years.

These machines don't do any tricks - they only sew straight, forwards, but that's the majority of what I do anyway; I have an infrequently-used Bernina for everything else.

For *serious* sewers, if you have the room for it, do yourself a favor and get an old industrial. Buy it from a reputable dealer, someone who's even willing to adjust the table for YOUR height... It'll pay for itself in just a few years, in the repair bills you won't be paying. And, as I was told when I bought my first one, "Lady, you WON'T be able to wear this out in your lifetime!" Music to my ears...!

I don't see the reasoning to give up a built in walking foot, blanket stitch, extra wide satin stitch, numerous other stitches, needle up-down, auto lock stitch, wide throat area, good lighting, etc, etc, etc just to save a few bucks on maintenance costs.

Be careful where you take your machine. Get some references. I took mine to a "group" that has store fronts all around the area. they charged $120 for an service job. Since I was a new customer they gave me $10. off. About a week later I took it back. the bobbin was winding so tight the plastic bobbins would blow off the end the that plastic disc became a flying missile. There was thread under the post of the bobbin winder. The gal that runs the store told me it was my fault that I did not wind the bobbin correctly. Another trip back - the top section of the machine where the feet are stored, is also the thread path to the needle. It was not put back correctly, part of it was sticking up and the thread got caught. On still another trip the bobbin would stop winding and she told me it was the automatic shut off. I told her a bobbin would not shut off before it was half full. And not only was this not full, the machine was too old to have an automatic shut off. I guess she got to thinking I was a know-it-all because I kept telling her what was wrong with the machine. They extended the coverage on the service job from 3 months to 1 year, but I got tired of taking it back. If they have factory trained technicians, why was it messed up? Were they letting someone practice on some of the older machines?

I took another machine to Hancock Fabrics where they have a service person pick up and return the machines. I had a serious problem. There was a piece of metal (pin or needle) in the cogs and it would not stitch. This man did a great job of getting this older machine to run, and also gave me a light bulb. He charged me $69.95. I could not believe it.
I bought a light bulb from the first service shop and paid $17. for it. I could not find the kind I needed at any fabric store, including Jo-Ann and Hancock.

So beware....ask what kind of guarantee goes with their work.

June in Cincinnati

I just took my baby lock in today. I had to leave a $20 deposit and I think last time I was charged about $75 but I may be wrong on that . I KNOW it was not $100. There is a spring that came off and it's having a "little" problem with the feed dogs, so I'm expecting it to be a bit more this time.
It is the place I bought it from and the guy who owns the place with his wife repairs them.
Always ask (call first) and ask what it might run; nothing wrong with that.
Good luck.

I agree to check out the reputation of the technicians before taking it in. Years ago (maybe 10+?), when I took my Bernina into an authorized Bernina dealership for an annual check-up and tuning, the cost was over $100 and there was nothing wrong with the machine! I stopped doing this when I realized that the technician had not even changed the upper tension back to 5 (normal factory setting) for the "tune-up". (I had inadvertently left it on a lower setting for a specific project I was working on.) I figured that he had either (1) skipped the tune-up because the machine didn't need it but charged me anyway, or (2) tuned it up with the wrong tension setting.

I do think a professional cleaning and tune-up every once in awhile is a good idea, but most machines that aren't being used 8 hours a day every day simply do not need them every year.