PunkQuilter

I have 7 Singer 301's and a Viking, which is collecting dust. If you don't have alot of money, this machine is a workhorse! The feed dogs drop, it's portable, it's very easy to maintain. It has a slant shank which means the throat plate is very close to the edge of the machine, so you can see very clearly what you are doing. If you are a taller person, the slant shank is a must. You can get one in great condition with attachments for under 100.00

patsyo56721

I have the babylock elure plus (embroidery machine) This is my second one, I upgraded & gave the other to my daughter. I am real pleased with Babylock.

Donna Hall

I have 2 Babylocks and have had no trouble. They have not been tempermental at all. I have the Espire and the Ellure Plus. I also have a Singer Freatherweight (black). I will take anyone of them to classes depending on what I am doing.

purplefiend

Not all Vikings are expensive. The Emerald 116 and 118 are mechanical machines and are great for beginners as well as more experienced sewists. I like the Pfaffs with the IDT(full time walking foot); I have an old Pfaff 1222E and it has the IDT, if it weren't so danged heavy it would be a take to class machine.
I also like the Singer Featherweight, but not the new Singers(not living up to the
Singer name IMHO). I also have 2 older Berninas, the 930 and 1031. The only new machine I have is the Husqvarna Viking Sapphire 875. Its got a nearly 10" throat and does free motion quilting and walking foot quilting great. I love it! Its also great for garment sewing and makes fabulous buttonholes.
You really need to take your fabrics and threads and go test drive several different brands. A good machine dealer is great to have so you can learn your new machine and answer any questions.
Sharon W.

lab fairy

I think sometimes my opinion of a machine is colored by the dealer so to speak. It is good to hear about some of these machines. When I went in to test drives machines for my daughter, I had to teach a dealer how to use their own machine (they couldn't make it do a buttonhole and thought the machine was broken). Needless to say, I decided to quit looking at that particular brand because the person who was going to do warranty/repair didn't know how the machine worked. I might have excused it if the machine had been a new model, but it wasn't.

purplefiend

My Mom had a Singer touch and throw. OMG I hated that machine!!! I'm suprised I'm still sewing after that.

purplefiend

A great place to test drive lots of different brands of machines is a larger quilt show. I am lucky enough to attend the International Quilt Festival in Houston,Texas every year.
All the major machine dealers are there and you can test drive any or all of them.
Sharon W.

varacefan

That is the machine I have and I love it! Price-wise it was a really good deal!

lab fairy

Oh! That was my first machine too. I love the "Touch and Throw" description. It was enough to lose your religion over. When I got married and my mother-in-law saw that machine almost run, she told me that I needed a new one ASAP. I can still see her look of horror as I cut the fabric off the plate.

I learned a lot from that experience. Never, ever let someone else pick your machine for you. Someone told my parents that this would be a good one because of brand reputation. This is one of those "should never have happened" piece of engineering as far as I am concerned.

Try to always test the exact machine you are walking away with because there is the occassional blooper in any brand.

purplefiend

A friend of mine had a Touch and Throw, that flung its cams out on a regular basis. She said that sewing shouldn't be that exciting. rofl
Sharon