Serger Recommendations
 

I have never used a serger, but would really like one. What brand do you all like.

I dont think it is much about brand as it is about what do you want to use your serger for. Try to figure out what you want to do with your serger and then look at the different sergers and see which ones have the options that you want to use.

I started with a little Juki many years ago. I trudged through the learning curve and operated it ok for lots of years. Traded up to a Viking Husky, TOL serger, loved it, free arm, easy enough to thread, etc. But I saw a demo on the Babylock with "air" threading and fell in love! Not all have that feature, so I looked around, but went home with it! THat VIking sits in a corner now! I can switch colors in less than a minute WITHOUT tying on and dragging through the tension disks, tension sets itself, NO TENSION DISKS, switches to fancy wave stitch or rolled hem with a flick of a button. If you want easy, professional results and no stress, Babylock nailed it!

I am a Bernina person. Sergers are great machines but they are a lot more complicated than a regular sewing machine. They are also not forgiving. I use mine almost daily in partnership with my regular Bernina sewing machine. Most commercially made anything is done by or in partnership with a serger. I do a lot of charity sewing. I use my serger to finish off the wrong side edges of the Linus quilts I make and it to do the basic construction on the many Princess Pillowcase dresses I make. It is fast and makes a professional looking job of the simplest projects. I learned the hard way that the more expensive ones are easier to use and do the best job.

There are lots of brands out there. I have a really old Singer that did good. A few months ago I got a great deal on Vikings Huskylock 21, its the 2nd best they have and does everything. It was a deal too good to pass up on. I had no regrets, I own several Vikings and they all are all great machines. Then I went to a serger event to gain knowlege for sergers in general and ended up buying the top of the line Brother machine. I went there with no intentions of buying a new machine because I had a new one but really loved the things this machine would do. Knowing that I can sell my Huskylock and easily recoupe my money (yes, it was that cheap from a store with warranty) I got the Brother. Love this machine as well. I'm so busy, when I'm not working then I'm watching grandkids to help when my kids are working so I need all the free time I can get and I think the Brother will require less training and there is a shop right down the road from my house. Get the best you can for your money and one that does the most you can afford so you stay challenged for a while learning. I did that with my emb machine and after a few yrs I'm still learning and interested. I think I'm good for along time for my hobbies, I have a sewing machine, a quilting machine an emb machine and now a serger and the Brother cut n scan. Lots of learning to do. At first I considered keeping the huskylock to learn on too but as you can tell, I have lots of things to still learn in my busy life. If anyone is interested in a new, serger, pm me. Good luck with your search. There are so many things you can do with a serger, including quilting. Right now I'm making a jacket and then a table runner.

I have a White serger and owned a Pfaff serger before this one. I have never had any issues with it and threading is easy though not easy as Baby Lock. The tension has also never been a problem and have sewn light weight fabric to fleece with it. I think its a 200ATS, and may no longer be available. Definitely reasonably priced.

Read reviews and if possible, try one out in the store. What someone else likes, another doesn't. Buy the one you like.

I have a Baby Lock and I never really used mine. So think twice about what you want to make. I am loaning it to someone in the church that makes those snap bags for charity.

I have a Baby Lock that I purchased around 1989, I took classes. Set it aside. Then in 2004 took refreshed classes ( I could not thread the serger). I may only use it 10 times a year, but it so great when I need it...thankfully I can now remember how to thread this machine :)

Judy in Phx, AZ

I had an old Singer serger and never used it because it was hard to thread and adjust for different types of sewing. I sold it in a yard sale and bought a new Baby Lock Evolution. It is wonderful. If you do garment sewing it is a must have. I don't however use it much for making quilts. Sometimes I have used the wave stitch to bind quilts. It looks pretty, but won't last as long as regular binding. They are expensive, so I would make sure I would use it enough to make it worth the price before buying. Mine is mostly used to make clothes for the granddaughters. It does such a nice job on dresses.

I have had cheaper one (can't remember brand) a Husky Viking (love it but hate to thread it so it sits) and finally bought a babylock. I say there is no comparison. The babylock air threading is worth the money and stress. It can use 3 to 8 threads, does a great wave stitch that I use on fleece for gifts, and the cover stitch.