Right after getting married in 1963 I bought a 1940s Necci-Elna. What a workhorse, burt only straight stitch. In my mind I thought I needed a machine with fancy stitches, so I bought a lightweight one with cams and put my old one on a garage sale. What a mistake! The old one would sew 4-5 layers of blue-drill denim while the new one would barely sew a couple layers of dress fabric. Live and learn. Traded that one in after a year on a newer model w/out cams, just a few fancy stitches. After about 10 years gave it away and bought a computerized Singer which is ok. Two years ago, sewed on my SIL old husqvarna #1 and fell in love; so I bought a used #1+ which I absolutely love. I also have two that were given to me: a Singer slant needle and a Montgomery Ward in a cabinet which is also a workhorse. I also own two sergers, one of which is new (many new features over my 20 year old one). Think I will stick with the old workhorses. I am sewing machine poor but each has its own reasons for staying here in my home...