Question for hobbyist longarmers
 

Hello All! I have been seriously considering buying a used longarm, probably no bigger than an 18" throat on a 10' frame. I would only be quilting for myself, not commercially. Space is limited in my sewing studio. (Isn't everyone's?)

Here's my question: Is it practical to set up and take down a true longarm setup? My idea would be to quilt 5 or 6 quilts and then take it down and sew another 5 or 6 tops, and start quilting again. Is this do-able or would it be more trouble than it's worth?

Thank you!

Unless you have sit down machine no! It is no easy task to assemble and disassemble a long arm and then level it.

Looking at my friends' set-ups and the various adjustments they constantly seem to be making, I think it would not be a feasible option. I also know that their set-ups are heavy! And that at least two of them had the manufacturer's rep on hand when they initially put the units together. One unit was moved and it was a significant operation.

But I know that there are a lot of longarmers here so you will get great advice.

Some people have put their longarm on rollers so they can push it against the wall when not using. Still have to make sure it is level and I would not recommend moving it after loading the quilt. I did and got a nice big wrinkle in the backing. It is easy to get the table and setup a bit out of square while moving it and can be tricky to level it. Mine came with a little short level, the tech who set it up brought a long one.

Thank you all for the very helpful comments! Leveling was a big concern for me as well. I know the frame has to be perfectly level for the machine to move smoothly. Not looking good for me. :(

I agree with Lisa - it is not at all easy to disassemble and reassemble at will. You really do need a dedicated space for a longarm.

I don't necessarily agree with this statement. This might be true if you have robotics. I do not. My machine isn't always level and it has never been a problem for me. I do mostly FMQ and pantos. I do have hydraulics to raise and lower the frame, and casters on the feet so I can move it out from the wall and get behind it to work with pantos, and I can tell when it's not level because the head moves on its own. But because I am entirely hand-guided, leveling isn't an issue for me. I have an Innova on their really sturdy, tight frame, it doesn't warp or twist out of square at all.

The charge for disassembling a longarm and moving it and reassembling was $350 (last I heard). No, it is not easy. I've set up many longarms. We partially assemble them at the store, then move the partially assembled pieces to the home to finish the assembly.

I can tell when my longarm isn't level when the carriage moves by itself. But it isn't that big of a deal because it's not computerized. I do have the tool to level it with, but it does take two people -- one to check the level as the other turns the adjustment under the foot.

Getting casters is a good idea. Just move it back to the same spot, and it should still be level. You could even mark the floor so you know where to move it back to.

I'm basically a hobbiest quilted with a 12ft/26" machine. I quilt mostly for myself but occasionally for a friend if they bend my arm. True, my sewing room is getting crowded but I have no where to store the system if I did take it down plus it has robotics so I don't want to mess with those wires. I've put all my cables/cords strung up on the rafters so I won't trip over them as I have all my threads on the wall behind the frame. Plus I've got a lot of tubs and rolling carts under the frame as that's a great place to store stuff.

Taking down and putting back up a quilt system is harder than you can imagine with all the cords, wires, etc. Better to find a good spot for it and leave it there. If you're short on space, you might think about putting it on locking wheels so you could push it up against a wall when not in use. The locking wheels is because you don't want it moving on you as you quilt and keeping the frame/machine level is a must in most cases.

Have you looked into the Q-Zone Hoop Frame by Grace?

https://graceframe.com/en/machine-fr...one-hoop-frame

I have a sit-down longarm so I have no experience with this product. Maybe if you search the Quilting Board someone may have posted comments about their experinece with the Q-Zone frame.

No, nope, can't do that. Get a table top quilting machine, HQ has a nice one.