slmeyer

Feline fanatic-- Thanks for the feedback on the Bernina longarm. I have 2 Innovas with AutoPilot and have a longarm quilting business. One of my customers purchased the Bernina LA for $30K and still brings me her custom quilts. The Bernina is intimidating to her and she is afraid to use it. I know nothing about it, but I have a Bernina sewing machine which doesn't give you access to the tension or the ability to do minor maintenance when needed. That would not be a good thing for a longarm. Also, being able to add various options you want is an advantage with Innova. They all have issues from time to time and unless you have a Bernina dealer that will make house calls in a reasonable time frame your going to be up the creek in no time.

sewingpup

I have an APQS Lucey which I have had for about 8 years now....and APQS makes other models....mine is on the more basic end but she still has a 26 inch throat, stitch regulator, needle up and down and was also designed so the owner can do many of the adjustments and replacement if needed themselves. I basically have had not to do anything other than regular oiling and cleaning. I was trying to decide between Innova and APQS but went with the AOQS when they had a demo sale too good to pass up. APQS also has several videos and are available by phone also. I have had a friend who had them listen to her machine over the phone and they helped her correct the problem. So you have a couple of choices here...go online, check out the service videos for both of them.

shorton

Thank you. I gather these seem to be the most popular machines, Innova and Gammill. There seem to be more used Gammill's available. As a gammil owner do you hav eany advice on Pro's of theirs vs Innova from your perspective? Anything I should watch for as minimum models to consider. Compared to a $20k Innova (used).

shorton

Thanks all for the input. There's a used Innova with Navigator that I've considered. It's a long way away and I'd have to go get it and break it down. Even though I'm very mechanical, that may be daunting, particularly away at someone else's home.

There is an Innova dealer near our home and my wife is renting time on their machines. So she's familiar with that brand, but not married to it so to speak. We don't intend to get one for business use, but being technical, I would like to get one that is computer controlled/automatic. But the Innovas have been the most expensive, used in that category. And I know less about the other brands.

I'm not clear on the difference between Innova's Navigator and their Pilot Mach 3. I do use and have built non-sewing CNC machines that are run by "Mach 3" software, I expect that's the same thing the Innova Pilot is using, at least under the hood. Anyone know a summary of what Pilot does that Navigator does not?

What are typical stitch counts that would be considered high usage, medium usage, barely used? Or maybe what's an average stitch count on a Queen quilt?

Thanks to all of you who chimed in so far. I appreciate the input on this research very much. Glad I found a friendly place to ask questions.

quiltingshorttimer

Scott, in answer to your question on comparing the used Gammill with used Innova, I think both are excellent machines, made for industrial use. My Gammill is a 2006 Classic Plus--mean 28" harp and stitch regulator, not computer guided. It's easy to maintain and I think the frame/table is the sturdiest in the field (at least from what I've seen by taking lots of LA classes at major shows on other machines). They hold their price. Classic Plus can be retrofitted with either the Gammill Elevate (tablet, predesigned programs on their Creative Studio offerings, which you can check out on their website) or their Statler--which is considered the deluxe computer set-up--you can either use the predesigned programs or create your own. If you are running a business and want high turn-over a computer driven machine is smart--you can crank out a lot of edge-to-edge pretty fast! I do almost strictly custom work (rulers and micro quilting) so my handguided works just fine for me--but I like that I could computerize on the machine I have. I know lots of Innova owners like the Lightening Stitch regulator on their machines--I don't know if that's standard or extra $$. I will say that when I've used Innovas at shows I thought the frame was not as heavy duty and I didn't like where the on/off button is--even though I'm average height I had to walk to the back of the machine to use it.

ININTZEL

Thanks everyone for all of your unfiltered opinions. I have been battling this same question. And have ultimately chosen Innova!!
I want this to be my forever 1st machine.

shorton

Thank you. re Gammil maintenance. Someone told me they had to go in for regular periodic dealer service to change some kind of internal wick. Being an old machine tool guy I can only guess that's a wick oiler for non-roller bearings. I have an antique lathe that has those. This person said that left unattended the Gammils were prone to leak this oil and some users went as far as "diapering" them.. I hadn't heard that before and wondered how big of an issue that was. Both the need for a dealer service and the leaking issue?

shorton

With any of these machines, Innova and Gammil in particular, how does one tell how much use they have had? Is there some kind of hour meter, or stitch counter? I've seen stitch counters mentioned in other brands at least. Surely there's a way to look at a used machne and know if it's had the bearings run off of it in a production or business enviroment vs some private owner who can just afford one and does their few quilts at home (low use). ?

newbee3

My advice is to try out the machines and the one you like is the best one for you.

shorton

Agree, but not so easy around here, particularly now.