Originally Posted by
Prism99
Have you considered adding a suspension system for the quilt? Suspension systems keep most of the quilt off the sewing surface so it doesn't add drag. It also helps your shoulders and arms, because you don't have to move the entire quilt around as you work. Here is a link to a commercially available system, but there are also DIY instructions online. Some quilters, such as Leah Day, suspend their quilts from the ceiling.
http://www.jennoop.com/suspenders.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJGph8am6BE
There is also the "Weightless Quilter", which suspends the quilt on three sides while the fourth side is under the machine. It is a rack of small PVC pipe which sits behind and to the side of your sewing table. Flexible arms of different weights hold the rest of the quilt up in the air.
This was at Nancy Ziemen's Madison Quilt Expo last fall.