Enlarging the manual - an hour well spent
 

Yesterday I got an early birthday present from my DH: a Singer Quantum Stylist 9960! He didn't wait the 2 months until my actual birthday because this machine is on sale now. Because it was mail ordered, we needed to get it out and running to make sure it was okay. So far, so good!

It comes with a very well written and illustrated manual, but my eyes are getting old, and even if they weren't, bigger is always better in manuals. Also, there are a lot of pages in French and Spanish that I don't need. I copied the English part of it with my old all-in-one HP, set to "Fit to Page" and "Fast Print", and it came out great. On standard American typing sheets it's almost twice original size. Now I can keep the original manual in good condition and I have one that I can mark up. I plan to put it into sheet protectors in a binder. The back side of the pages can be used for notes or to glue on stitch samples or whatever. I will add index tabs to help me find certain things in a hurry.

The 9960 is much more complex than any machine I've ever used before. No matter how long I use a machine, it always seems that I need to get back to the manual if I'm doing something that I don't do often. I've made enlargements of other manuals over the years, and have never regretted the time it takes. Some of my manuals got pretty mangled with use before I figured this out (or even had a way to do it). So I hope this idea is helpful to others.

very good idea, thanks!

I've done the same. Sometimes you just have to. It's also a good thing to pass on to the next generation.

May you have many happy stitching:)

Thanks for sharing this great tip.

great idea!

WOW - I would have never thought of this!

Great idea! On my last machine I took apart the manual, ditched the French/Spanish pages, and had it bound at Kinkos with a clear plastic cover.

But I really like your idea of copying the pages and then using page protectors and dividers. Super!

I recently purchased an Ellisimo 3 and found myself setting with a very thick instruction book on my lap, wedged between my knees and machine table. Not conducive to learning. I spent an hour + carefully taking off the binding and peeling off the pages one at a time. Then each page into a plastic sleeve. Well worth the time and money for the sleeves. Fortunately I had a big 3 ring binder. Now I have a treasure that will be used with ease everyday. We deserve to enjoy our time with our machines

Great idea!!! I have a bunch of old binders laying around from work, bet I can think of lots of Quilty ways to use them. I have pics on the computer, but no hard copies of all my quilts. There goes one binder, Thanx for the heads up, great choices