Karamarie

I recently purchased a new sewing machine but it is very heavy to take to retreats, classes, and am looking to purchase a good mechanical machine for just my straight stitch quilting - any suggestions?

dakotamaid

There are several mechanical janome jems on ebay right row for a low price. They are light weight and easy to sew on. I have a silver anniversary one and it is still going after many years.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trks...at=0&_from=R40

dunster

Lots of quilters use the vintage featherweights for that purpose. They're cute, lightweight, and they sew beautifully. Plus they get a lot of attention everywhere they go.

tessagin

I would check with my local quilt shop and see what they've got. I checked with mine awhile back and they had one for about 140.00. Can't remember if it was a Janome or Brother. Only weighed about 13 pounds if I remember correctly. I don't think my own machine weighs much more than that. I'll have to check. HMMM. ANyway check with your local quilt shop.

Mariposa

I use my Featherweight--weighing about 11 lbs. The 301A is another idea. Weighs 16 lbs. and has a carrying handle built in the machine. It is a slant shank.
Both machines are mechanical, and you can do servicing yourself.

Maureen NJ

I bought a Pfaff. Passport for quilting classes and love it. Weighs 13 lbs. I find I use it at home too for piecing and my Bernina for quilting. Very happy with it.

0tis

I have a cheapo Walmart Singer Simple machine - I use it when my good machine is in the shop - it works great and I think it was under $ 100.00.

Nammie to 7

I sew with Berninas so I picked the 350 as my backup machine. Cheap? No, but that is the brand I want to sew with -- and I'm worth it

cathyvv

Look at Brother mechanicals in Walmart. I have one that I keep in my NJ home for when I'm visiting there, and it works like a champ. It's a pretty basic machine, but the straight stitch is true and it's easy to use. It doesn't weigh too much either. The other benefit is that if you should drop it or, as we used to say, "it picks up feet and walks away", you're out less than $100.

A lot of people will suggest that you stay clear of the Walmart Brothers, but this is my 4th Brother. Three of the machines are still in service after about 3 years. The other one was used for about 6 years before it fell to it's untimely end while we were traveling. I had used and truly abused that machine for 6 years before it fell, and, before it fell, it was still working like new. Please note that when I bought it I didn't even know that it had to be cleaned, that's how abused it was!

I also invested in an inexpensive wheeled sewing machine/crafter bag from Walmart. Works very well for my needs, and makes it really easy to transport any one of my machines.

Having said that, I don't usually cart my sewing machine to guild because I found that I yak so much that I don't get much sewing done! In fact, the last time I did bring it with me, I sewed only 4 stitches (Yes, "4"!) and then it was time to leave. I guess I'm easily distracted...

Sewnoma

I had a Brother CS6000i that was my portable & free-arm machine but I recently gave it away and decided I wanted a nicer machine - I settled on a Janome 3160QDC. I picked that machine MOSTLY because it has the scissor cut button, which I have come to regard as a NECESSARY feature. It wasn't cheap, but it was totally worth it.

I love it, it sews like a dream. I took it on vacation recently and it was absolutely marvelous. Plus my main machine is a Janome so now my machines can share bobbins and some of the feet.

It's a full-size machine but only weighs 12 pounds.