Snooze2978

Your best bet would be to try them both out as I found that out when I just went out to play on them with no intention of buying but realized after playing with an Innova, I'd found my dream machine. Didn't care for their AutoPilot as it takes a belt you have to remove to do freemotion or it did back when I tried it out and they were having issues releasing it so I knew then I didn't want their robotic system. Anyway, I did get the Innova with the lightening stitch though the robotics I had at the time didn't need it as their AutotPilot did but thought if ever I sold it in the future, that would be a good addition for selling. I love the fact that I can call on the phone and their customer service or Michael could walk me thru most any mistake or problem I had and believe me, I had a ton of operator errors at the beginning and Michael was patient with me. I've never regretted buying the Innova and I also added the upgraded upper tension assembly which has been a godsend as I rarely have to adjust the upper tension on any type of thread I put on it.

Still testing out the machines before you plunk your money down for it is the best advice. Take a variety of threads with you and see how they play with them too.

Katie Bock

Hi Anna, I'm not familiar with either one of the two longarm machines that you are looking at or not sure where you live in the states, but one of my quilting friends on Facebook Julia Quiltoff is an Innova dealer in Virginia. Here is a link to the contact page on her website. Julia Quiltoff Contact Page
Happy Quilting. Hugs Katie

Peckish

Innova, hands down. Excellent machine, top-notch support.

annabanana7

Sounds good. Thanks!

annabanana7

Great advice. Thank you very much.

dunster

There's no question about it, Innova is the clear choice. I've had one (no automation) for about 12 years. I did have it upgraded once when new options became available (lightning stitch, upgraded hook, etc.). Service via phone is always available and is very, very good.

quiltedsunshine

I like Berninas. But you'd get more bang for your buck with the Innova. Berninas are complicated and require a tech who knows what they're doing. Innovas, you can service yourself. But I do think you should try them both before you buy.

annabanana7

Great advice. Thank you!

annabanana7

I did try them both and I think you’re right about potential issues getting serviced. I love my Dealer and I know that he would do whatever it took to get my machine serviced, however I’d rather avoid the whole part about removing the sewing head and dragging it into a dealer two hours away if I have any issues. Because they may turn out to be simpler issues I could have handled on my own with a different machine.

I will say that with all the machines out there, the Bernina was the smoothest to sew with. It was also quieter compared to other machines. It was amazing. However it sews significantly slower than the Innova did on automation. I did love the front bobbin winding and front needle threading on the Bernina. That was a luxury.

annabanana7

Thanks to everyone for the great advice. Yesterday I put a deposit on the Innova. I felt more comfortable with the “workhorse“ feel of the machine. In the end, both the Bernina and the Innova were amazing machines, but quite different. Glad I spent time on both. I was able to get a longer throat space and what I perceived was a great deal on the Innova.

Thanks again to all.