Jingle

I have two straight stitch only machines with 9" throats and I can quilt large quilts with ease on either one of them. I have quilted 79 quilts by machine quilting. Some were done on machines with smaller throats. Practice is the key to doing anything.

texas8823

Well, I posted a reply earlier but guess I didn't hit the right button. I really appreciate all the suggestions. I'm definitely keeping an eye on craigslist and will for sure check out the books mentioned. I've learned so much here already and can't tell you how much I appreciate everyone's help.

xxxxxxxxxx

I gave up on doing teh long lines with a home machine, and bought used industrails 11 1/2" x 6". I now have 4 of these machines, There prices was 100$ , 125 $ 50 $ and 55$, The newest is a 1940, the oldest is a 1922 walking foot...

These machines are showing up on C/L, often cheaper than a home machine, because so many are afriad of using them..

P.S. my average time doing 12 straight 8 foot sew line and 12 @ 7 foot was 8 hrs, now it's 2 hrs and no hurting back, no cusing the machine

peaceandjoy

If you have a good sewing machine sales/repair shop within a reasonable drive, I'd contact them. You might be able to get a used machine for a good price. For the last machine I bought, I knew what I wanted (a Bernina model that had been discontinued) so called the local dealer. Although they said that model didn't come in for trade often, they added my name to a list. They called back within a couple of months.

momto5

Or you might also check at JoAnn's for a SInger Confidence Quilter...they're often on sale for about $300 and they do a good job. (Yes, I know Singer has had a lot of bad press lately, much of it deserved.) I have one among my herd, but I don't often FMQ on any of them as I have a LA.

jitkaau

The Brother 1500s has a 9" throat. It is a straight stitch only and makes a very nice quilting stitch.The presser foot is adjustable for pressure and it is easy to adjust the depth of the feed dogs. I think Juki made these for Brother. They are not computerised and are very heavy. I like mine very much and think you can get one for around $500 in the States.

Steady Stiching

Juki makes a comperable machine to the Brother 1500 for near the same price. These two are the only two on the market with the larger throat at this low of a price....I'm saving up for either one of these. I just don't understand why it is so much more expensive to have a larger throat space...its something we ALL want (hello manufacturers)

texas8823

After my post yesterday, I went home and checked out an older Singer I had purchased through Craigslist last year hoping it was a model 201. It's a Model 15-91 BUT it has a wider and taller throat than the machine I'm using now. So I'm going to clean it up and get it running (hopefully) and use it until I can afford one of the newer machines. Have to admit that I'm pretty excited about sewing on one of these again. My Mom had something similar to it that I learned to sew on. This will be fun!!!

Blackberry

I have to agree here. I have a Singer 201 and I just love it. The harp area is nice and big and by puddling the quilt it is fairly easy. Of course if I were quilting anything larger than a twin size I would quilt in quadrants.

ShirlinAZ

I recommend you look for a vintage machine, possibly a Singer model 15. The harp was not necessarily a lot wider, but the open area was taller than the new machines by quite a bit, which also allows more quilt to fit in the space. Computer or cam controls in the head caused it to become much bigger around, resulting in less space between the head and the base.