carolaug

Sadly it hard to try out many of the machines available. If not for this board I would not have heard about half of them. There are not a lot of shops that have many different types of machines. I see mostly sweet sixteen machines. I would love to see others. I have gone to quilt shows but they never have them all...they need to have a quilt machine show.

mckwilter

Sign up to receive the IQA newsletter and check out the website to see when and where the bigger quilt shows are held. That is where you'll be able to see and try many brands of machines. http://www.quilts.com/home/index.php I have sewn on the HQ Sweet 16, the Baby Lock Tiara, and the Sunshine 16 by Pennywinkle. I haven't tried the Inova or the APQS, mainly because they are oriented with the head of the machine to the side (like a DMS) instead of facing the sewist, like the HQ, Tiara and Sunshine 16 do. I prefer the open space for side-to-side motion. I have never seen or tried a Bailey, but would like to try it out just so I can give an informed opinion.

madamepurl

I have a Sweet Sixteen with the stitch regulator and I love it. I would highly suggest also signing up for both yahoo groups...the Sweet Sixteen (which also includes the Tiara) and the Sunshine group and read through the messages and ask questions. Group members will be more than willing to answer questions.

qwkslver

Not trying to influence you but I would just like to say I love my Sweet 16. I can do transferred designs but usually just do meandering. Not trying to impress with my quilting, just want to hold my quilt together. It is like a tank. Just keeps on purring. It's a little finicky about thread (translation-I choose not to spend my time fiddling with the tension to make it sew any thread). Hope you get what you want.

Rose Marie

The difference between sit down and stand up is important. Sit down is moving the quilt around. Stand up you move the machine. I prefer stand up.

kheliwud

I have been FMQ-ing for 7 years. I first learned on my basic Viking machine, then traded up to a Viking Sapphire to get the extra throat space. I used that exclusively until October of this year when I bought my Baby Lock Tiara. It is made by HQ, and is the same as the HQ Sweet Sixteen. My local dealer is a Baby Lock dealer, that is why I went that way. (She is also the Viking dealer, where I had purchased my Sapphire 6 years ago.). I had made a goal of buying a long arm machine of some kind this year. In June, I attended a quilt show in Raleigh (I am in W-S) where I could, and did, test-drive many different brands of machines. I love my Tiara! The extra space for quilting and the extra lighting is wonderful! It is a bit different going from a computerized domestic machine to a mechanical machine, but thanks to the internet, most of those questions are easy to answer. I recommend getting comfortable free-motion quilting on your DSM first, since it can be frustrating. And try every brand of machine you can, to find the machine that is right for you.
Another good place for info are the various Yahoo groups dedicated to the different brands of machines. You can get lots of opinions and answers before you spend the $$$, and have a great support system after!

funnyhunnybunny

I have a Sweet 16 and love it! They are not capable of computerized stitching. But I would not want it to. I want to be able to control the design on my quilt myself, instead of just walking away and letting it stitch merrily away.
Some people say they like being able to move the machine (stand up long are) vs. move the fabric (sit-down). We are already used to moving the fabric. I see no learning curve with that.