qpg89

Is anyone else having the same or similer problems with their tin lizzie 18. My mother is practically devistated. She has had her's for almost a year. Absolutley loves it, but the stitch regulator has gone out 4 times, and other minor problems, the company has given her a hard time from the beginning saying it was her house, starting out blaming it on static electricity, to now blaming it on her wiring in the house. She has put humidifiers in the house, a static pad to stand on when she quilts, touches metal before she touches the machine to discharge herself, and still no luck.

(She can do about 5 quilts and then the machine has a problem, has it fixed and the same .... it's always about 5 quilts and then something happens)

She just told me a week ago that when they were replacing the stitch regulators they were sending rebuilt ones not new ones. So makes me wonder!!!!

The company finally consent to send her a new machine to see if it was their machine and now she is blowing fuses with this new machine. So the company continues to blame the wiring in the house. She has had the power company check the lines to the house from the outside pole and an electrician check the house and even run a special wire specifically from the braker box to the room she is long arm quilting in.

My mother has 4 other Baby loc sewing machines and has had no other problems in the home with TV's or other electronic equipment. Anyone having the same troubles with Tin Lizzy? She loves the machine and is wanting this as a hobby and not wanting to give it up she really loves it, but she is sick over the troubles she is having.

Tricia

I do not have a long arm machine (I would love to have one) but it sounds to me like she may be getting racked over the coals. I hope she has better luck because quilting as a hobby should not turn into a job you despise because of a machine giving you problems. I will be sure to stay away from that brand if and when I start hunting for a long arm machine.

thimblebug6000

I'm sorry for her problems, wonder where it was purchased? I saw this company at a recent quilt show http://secretworkshop.com/home.php?xid=dc4cb8659634370c880e3fb6a68e91c1 It looks like they may be having a forum on their site soon. Is there any tin lizzy18 discussion forums that you've found?

Bev

8) I'm sure glad you wrote in about this. I had thoughts about the
Tin Lizzie, but will steer clear of them now. Life is too short to even take a chance on a machine like this. There are lots of other brands out there.

Karla D

HI, I just joined this list, been looking at the news letter for a few weeks. I got a Tin Lizzie in March. I have had very few problems, have quilted 7 tops and so far I have been thrilled. I have been using the stitch regulator for all of them. What can I say? I wish things were better for your mom. Is she working directly with the factory or a specific dealer?

butterflywing

i also have the tin lizzie and have never had a problem. when i had some questions in the beginning regarding thread, i called them directly on the phone and they walked me right through it. later i had a problem with the stitching (not the regulator) and again they solved it over the phone. that was 5 - 6 quilts quilts ago. no problems since then. i'm really sorry about your mom. this was a machine i recommended but now i'll think twice. what did her own repairman have to say?

kanoelani

I also have a Tin Lizzie....the old cast iron one and I have never had the kind of problems your mother has. In my case, I am constantly tinkering with the thread tension. I have always found the Tin Lizzie people to be very accomodating when I have called them with a problem.

Hope your mom gets this straightened out.

MaryStoaks

Hi, I have a Tin Lizzie 18, the older, heavy one, purchased second hand about a year ago. The machine had been back to the company for service before I bought it. I've quilted at least 25 quilts since I've had the machine. I used the stitch length regulator for a while and it worked fine. Then the little tiny plug-in under the top layer of the carraige kept coming unpluged. When this happens , in stitch-regulated mode, the machine goes crazy! This is not an easy thing to remedy, the machine has to be taken off the carraige- it weighs 95 pounds and I'm old.
I was all ready to call the company but thought I'd try to finish the quilt I was working on without the regulator. I did fine without it, I don't need it! Maybe I will call and order new encoders/plugs after the holidays but it isn't a big thing to me.
I hope you get your Lizzie up and running soon.
Mary

crashnquilt

On another forum one Tin Lizzie owner does have several problems with his machine.

Regarding it being the electricity in the house, the easiest way to know if you do indeed have an electric problem is do you blow a lot of lightbulbs? If you turn on a light and it blows out right at that moment, that is usually an indication of a grounding problem because the bulb has gotten a surge causing it to blow. Now if the bulb just goes out while it's on, then the bulb just up and died.

Now, if you really want to shut up the techs at Tin Lizzie, put the machine on a battery back up unit. These can cost between $60 to $150 or more, but a battery back up will take care of any electrical problems coming from the wall.

If you have your machine on a surge protector, plug the machine into the plug nearest the source of power. Do not plug in any other power hungry appliance to the same surge protector or wall outlet, i.e. iron, sewing machine, fan, etc. I have my HQ16 on a surge protector and the only other thing plugged into that protector is a 60 watt lamp and I have nothing else plugged into that wall outlet.

Have you had the electric company check the meter? Over time the meter can actually work loose and cause the house to have a "Low Amp Draw" even tho the electric company will tell you that does not exist. After replacing two freezers, refridgerator, and water heater it was found that my meter was loose on the pole. That is equivilent to being half plugged in. Not a good thing.

You may want to check the outlet for consistent power. Go to Radio Shack and get a cheap ($10) volt meter to check the outlet. Plug in the volt meter, and watch it for a few minutes to see if you get flucuation in power flow. It should read a constant 115, if it don't then you need to get an electrician that knows what they are doing.

Sorry for being so long winded and coming off as a "know it all" but I have a masters in electronics and bachelors in computer science and repair. Also had my own computer company for 15 years, kinda ticks me off when techs try to throw blame when they don't know what the situation is.

Good luck and keep me posted on your progress.

Moonpi

Here in Florida, the power supply is so crappy that things like tvs and electronics blow out all the time, but the light bulbs are just fine. If your electrician and power company both tested and cleared that circuit, it has got to be the equipment.


Sounds like something else on that machine is making the stitch regulator go out.