New Here With A Question
09-11-2014, 04:27 AM
#22
Super Member
Join Date: Nov 2009
Posts: 2,061
A used backup machine would be helpful, however no two machines sew exactly alike and your seams may be off by just a hair and you will have a noticeable difference after you sew a lot of pieces together. I try never to use more than one machine on the same quilt, but sometimes you have to make do. Do you have a friend who would loan you a machine until you get yours back? If you have a senior center check to see if they have a machine you could use. If that machine will be gone to the repair person for so long he should provide a loaner.
09-11-2014, 05:25 AM
#23
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Central NY
Posts: 859
Craigslist usually has several (or more) used machines for under $100. Some people think vintage machines are far superior to newer ones anyway. Flat bed machines seldom sell, so are quite cheap. I refurbish old sewing machines and can never get more than $50 for one. ( I never pay more than $25.) I give many of them away.....and they work perfectly. Don't be afraid to offer less, esp. if the machine has been listed for weeks, or months.
09-11-2014, 05:36 AM
#24
Super Member
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Louisiana
Posts: 6,764
Great advice, thanks to all. I put 2 tumbler pieces together and just by looking you can't tell the difference but when i run my finger across the seam i can feel a noticeable difference. I think i will have to be patient. I don't think my serger has the option to just do the straight stitches. I see that i can do 2, 3, or 4 thread according to the manual. 2 thread includes an overlock, it's for doing a rolled hem on fine fabrics. I tried 2 thread yesterday on a dainty cape for my niece's Halloween costume and i could not get it to work for the life of me. I followed the directions but i obviously was doing something wrong as the thread just came through not linked and not through the fabric. The 3 thread worked great though and did the job nicely. I found an old project (men's shirt) that i cut and never sewed so I'm starting work on that with the serger to feed my addiction.
09-11-2014, 07:47 AM
#27
Super Member
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Pataskala, OH
Posts: 1,452
This is the reason I own 4 Vikings and 1 Singer. I'm never caught without something to sew on. I would look for a reasonably priced used machine to have as a backup. I also would not use the serger for piecing. It's so hard to wait on service and being without a machine is bad when you are raring to go on something. Do you clean your machine after every project, lint out from under the bobbin, change your needles often? Most times it's something like that when the machine starts acting up. I don't usually take mine in for service like they say to do because I am cleaning it all the time.
09-11-2014, 10:28 AM
#29
Banned
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Victorian Sweatshop Forum
Posts: 4,096
I have several vintage Brother machines that because they are all similar I can switch from one to the other and have exactly the same seams. But as a general rule, I like to do all the piecing for a project on the same machine, the quilting it depends on what I'm doing that determines which machine gets used.
I fix and maintain my own machines so I don't have repair costs except parts when I need them.
Cari
good luck
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