ccthomas

Excellent points. If you don't buy from a dealer, you must have a working machine knowledge and have a good ability to train yourself--even manuals are a challenge when self learning a new machine. If not, you risk damage to the machine which will be more costly in the long run and possibly harmful to yourself. Have you used either of these machines before? Do you have someone (friend or family member that will be able to assist you?

Katy

Janome!!!!!

Joanne9of12

Oh what the heck, why not get both? :-) Seriously, if possible test drive both machines and be sure to spend a fair amount of time on each doing the things you like best. If you free motion quilt, make sure you do that with both machines and don't just work with a very small "sandwich." You can do that just to get the feel, but take along a large project so you can get a feel for how it will be to work with a large quilt. Play with some of the feet to make sure you understand how they work, how they are attached, etc.

I'd be sure to ask for any service records on the machines and do a little research to find out what came with the machine when originally purchased. (A friend bought a 1 year old machine and it seemed like it had everything it should have only to find out later that a walking foot was part of the original purchase. The previous owner decided to keep that and another foot because they fit her new machine and didn't come in that "package." She didn't want to have to buy them, so she kept the other ones.)

Also ask about the manual and any additional training materials. I know when I bought a new machine, I had a "Get to Know Your Machine" class that included some helpful handouts that were not included in the manual.

Good luck and let us know what you decided!

KyKaren1949

I just bought the Janome 6600 brand new from my dealer. His price was $1700 with a trade in for my old machine of $600, which made it $1100 final price. It comes with his two year warranty for free service though. I have several postings on here from others who say their dealers are selling this model for the $1100 with no trade. I know my dealer is high, but he's the only one within about 40 miles, so it's worth it to me to have the support and service.

SandyQuilter

I have used various Pfaffs since 1981. They are wonderful. Never had a problem with any of them. Go for it.

SandyQuilter

maryb119

I love my Pfaff!!!!! I have a Pfaff 7550 and a 2144 with the updates. I love the duel feed feature. i won't have anything else but a Pfaff. My quilting buddy was looking for a machine. I took her to my Pfaff dealer and she purchased the machine you are thinking about. She loves hers! No problems at all. You can't go wrong with a Pfaff.

nanbue

I would not buy either one. The Janome is too old. I have the Pfaff Ex. 4.0
Its a great machine, But my dealer has had to tweek the tension and the auto thread cutter. Now it working great.
So I dont know if I would buy it unless I could really try it out and make sure it sews without problems.
Esp. FMQ. That is were you will see things like skipped stitches and thread shreading. The thread shredding with this machine could be atiny burr, as that seems to have been a problem on the ones produced early on. But as I said mine is sewing great now. If you want to ask more questions, email me.

mummadee

I agree with Candace, to check out a dealer first. There might not be much difference in price, but the support and tech help would be worth it, plus the guarantee. Just a thought. It would also put you in a more knowlegable bargaining and decisioning position.

Micha

Mine also can with the table and many extra feet. Plus the maintenance and the usual lifetime lessons. You are fortunate to find such a deal, that would be difficult where I live. Enjoy!

Shorebird

PFAFF - IMHO - I think they are absolutely WONDERFUL machines..........especially if you have a PFAFF dealer close where you can take classes, etc.