Long arm quilting lessons
 

I have been using pantographs on many of my quilts, I had to teach myself as my dealer would not show us how to do it. When we bought the machine, he told us he would teach us, then he said no after installing everything. I know I make many mistakes and would love to go to a person or school for help. Does anyone have suggestions about a person or place that has hands on teaching on using pantographs and doing FMQ. I know that I might end up at the main office of the company to learn more about tension etc which has been just horrible on this machine. Thanks ahead of time and btw, I have a HQ Avante.

I posted this a couple weeks ago. Folks recommended several you tube videos, but basically said to just load some scrap fabric and practice.
http://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f1...s-t282764.html

Also, what specific issues are you having? Many on this board have the same machine and may be able to help. This is how I set my tension:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1mRhcquZTM

My dealer also said that for some finer weight threads you may need to go around the tension dial twice.
I would send a note to HandiQuilter headquarters and tell them about your experience with the dealer. They may be able to route you to a different dealer or rep in your area.
Finally, I would contact some other long arm quilters in your area and ask if they would be willing to give you some lessons. Probably won't be available until after the holidays!

I would report this dealer to Handi Quilter! that being said, HQ has videos that really help.Before I bought my HQ16 used and had it shipped to me, I found a dealer and took the HQ long arm course she offered. this is who I take my machine to for maintenance and she is in Texas. They have been both friendly and helpful.

MQX midwest just had their annual show in Springfield IL (in October), which is only about 1 1/2 hours from St. Louis. I believe they are definitely returning next year but they usually don't make the announcement right away. They usually do midwest in the fall and east in the spring. There is no better place to take lessons on different aspects of longarming than at an MQX show. World class teachers, hands on with the longarms, lecture classes and loads of eye candy at the show. So during the year you can practice and research local sources but I highly recommend you consider MQX. Be aware most classes for hands on average well over $100 per class. You have to sign up for the classes as soon as they are announced. They fill up quickly. Here is a link to their website. http://www.mqxshow.com/MQX/Home/index.cfm

You should probably sign up for email list so you will be notified. They also have a facebook page you can follow.

Good luck!!

I bought my HQ Fusion last year and took a long arm class from Cindy Roth of Long Arm University, I had actually planned on taking a trip out for one on one classes, but lucked out when her traveling class came to my area. We had a 3 day class that covered freehand, pantos, feathers, how to run your long arm business etc....and tons of hands on time!! For what we pay for our machines, we should also invest in the proper training; that being said, I would think with what we do pay for our machines, we should be given some free training!! I too would report the dealer, it sounds to me as though you are not getting the support you need.
At the very least, YouTube has great videos as well, but I do highly recommend hands on training, remember we all start somewhere, the more you practice the easier it becomes!!

I even got my machine used from a dealer and believe me it was not expensive around $1900 and I got some free class time don't let them get away with not helping you

There should be a reason he said no lessons after saying yes. That doesn't make any sense business wise.

My friend learned how to use her LA by watching You Tube and reading LA forums. She does wonderful stitching and has branched out to custom quilting. She said the main thing is to have a balanced stitch and then you can stitch anything with ease.

I agree hands on lesson (s) are the best way to start-with the same kind of l/a as you own. So call corporate of your brand and see what assistance they can give you. Then after that, at least in my case, it was trial and error...meaning, watching, reading what/How others do it, then finding what works best for you and your equipment.

Check the Handi Quilter website for other dealers in your area to see if another dealer will give you lessons. I'm really sorry to hear that about your dealer. My HQ dealer is simply wonderful, always willing to help no matter what the issue.

Cari

Here are some videos that might help you. I don't know anything at all about long arm quilting.

https://video.search.yahoo.com/yhs/s...&hsimp=yhs-002