Personally, I would buy a lower end Elna versus a Singer. Singer's aren't what they used to be. They are all plastic, and will not hold up. They also advertise "heavy duty school" (or something similar), definitely stay away from those.

I bought a singer, very basic, in 1977. It weighs a ton but it's a workhorse, it sews through anything. My mom is using it right now. She has a White and is that ever a piece of work......several others I know that have them say the same thing.

If it were me buying a new machine, it would be a brother or janome. I have an elna and like it alot.

Good luck and happy machine shoping.

For what it's worth... I bought a 7462... and then a couple months later, a 7430. I LOVE this unit. Yes, as with many, the lighting around the needle is poor. Bought a floor lamp which I can direct to the sewing plate and that greatly improved view of my work. The feed disengages so you can stipple. Made grandsons Christmas quilts and monogrammed their names/date/personal message. They thought that was cool. I've sewn some 7 quilts and other projects and have had no problem with this unit. For the money you spend, the features you get, I would recommend it.

I bought a Singer a year ago and it broke down in 8 months. And can't get it fixed. There went $600 down the drain. I would never buy another one. I ended up buying a Husqvarna Viking and I love it.

It's nice to hear from someone who has a Singer 7430. I sew quilt a bit. Do you think it will hold up to alot of use. I would love to have the embroidery abilities ( letters and numbers ). That would be really cool. And the price is right.

Singer doesn't make the machines anymore, that's why older ones are better than newer ones. The manufacturer is not the same and poorer quality.

I've had no problem with my 7430. My only issue is the poor lighting which I've found to be a common among all machines. I like the feature that disengages feed dogs so you can stipple. I'm working on free form quilting and this sure allows you to do that. And, you have capability of twin needles which I really like to order to embellish place mats, napkins, smaller projects. All I can tell you is my experience with the 7430. It's been great so far.

http://www.svpworldwide.com/

Interesting, don't you think?