AlienQuilter

The main selling point for the Brother, in my opinion, is that the specialty feet should work on the Babylock also. In other words, you would not have to buy so many different feet.

retiredteacher09

Latrina, what a great buy! I only saw the Quantum for 349. I am glad you are enjoying it.

mlt150

I love my 12lb Janome 3160 I take to classes... love the needle up/down, thread cutter and comes with the acrylic table. I free motion, quilt and it sews like a dream!

Wonnie

I had a Kenmore at one time but every time it needed serviced it was a 2-3 month wait for its return!

charhend

I believe that the Brother machines are the most user friendly on the market today! I own a 4500D combo. sewing and embroidery machine. I also have a lower priced model for back up that I also love. Believe me I checked out about every machine on the market and the majority are not that user friendly/

Lady Diana

I would suggest the Janome 3160 if this is a machine for travel or back up. It has the auto thread cutter, which I use for all my piecing and for classes. It weighs only 11 lbs. if weight is in an issue. If weight is not an issue, I would look for a Janome 6600. It is wonderful, with the AccuFeed foot and a lot of other nice amenities. For the Cadillac of quilting machines, I just got the 8900. Of course the budget keeps going up from the 3160 to the 6600 to the 8900. Janomes are great machines that last for a long long time....

Best wishes in your hunt.

Diana

Anyone have an opinion on what has worked well for a back up? I am seriously confused at this point and just want some honest opinions. thanks![/QUOTE]

LadyElisabeth

THANK YOU for this thread. I have 3 large Pfaff's but I too, need to get a smaller machine with which to travel, and I need one for my granddaughter when she is not sewing/quilting at my home.

Mimiqwerty

I'd go with the Brother. I have a Babylock Crescendo with an inexpensive Brother Project Runway machine as a backup. I love them both, but especially love that the feet are interchangeable, as are the bobbins. I love the similarity of the machines.

tjk829

LOL... its seems like everyone narrowed it down to the Janome or the Brother. I think I will have to ask around and find a way to see them in person at this point. I thought I had this solved when I got the Singer 160 fell in love with it's Looks but II really don't care for it. Not enough features and the noise is unbearable for long sewing sessions. Thanks everyone for the input so far, it has given me a lot to think about!

My time

Both my daughter and I have a Brother CS6000i. It has everything you need for for quilting including a walking foot and an extension table. 60 built in stitches, plus the feed dogs drop easily. It weighs the same as a featherweight and cost us less than $150. We bought one at London Drugs in Canada, and the second one at Walmart in Phoenix Arizona. They stitch really well. We love them.