kepeters7

Hello! I am relatively new to making quilts. I plan to learn how to do free motion/meandering quilting. I love the vintage Singers and am wondering if there are any vintage Singer models that can be used for the free motion quilting. I have a Singer Featherweight and a Singer 201 that I use for piecing the tops. Do any of you use a vintage Singer for the quilting and if so, which model(s) do you prefer? I look forward to your expertise! Thank you.

liking quilting

I like my Singer 301 slant needle machine; excellent visibility as you fmq, plenty of power, easy to operate vintage machine!

Caroline S

Singer 301 and Singer 15-91. The key component is a vertical bobbin case, feed dogs able to drop or cover and a darning foot to fit the sewing machine.

csharp

I'm still learning, but I agree with Caroline S....I got both of these machines to continue my experience with FMQting...My first tries please me greatly, and it is so fun to use these vintage machines.

lovelyl

I use a 15-91 and is does a beautiful job. I would think your 201 has the ability to lower feed dogs and it seems I have heard others say they FMQ on 201's. Hopefully, someone on here can verify that.

purplefiend

Singer 15-90 and 237 are 2 of my treadles that I use for FMQ. I've tried to use my 201 for FMQ and have had limited success.
Sharon

cricket_iscute

I've free motioned on a lot of machines so have a good basis for comparison, and I strongly recommend against trying to fmq on the Singer 201. I've had a very frustrating time trying to do so, as have others I know. The 201 is great for piecing, handling heavier items, and straight-line quilting. Additionally, when thread gets tangled in that bobbin area of the 201, it can be a very difficult thing to clear out sometimes.

The Singer 221 Featherweight is not great for free motion quilting, either. The 221 and 201 both have horizontal bobbins, and vertical bobbins are best for fmq because of the way the thread comes off the bobbin (the thread path).

The Singer 301 is the all-time best machine I've ever used for fmq. The Singer 15-91 is not bad, in my experience. You want that vertical bobbin for fmq. (The only horizontal bobbin machines I've found that is good at fmq are some of the new Janomes.)

Candace

My 301 and 15 are excellent FMQing machines. As are a couple of my vintage Berninas and Pfaffs. I also prefer the horizontal bobbin assemblies for FMQing. BUT, if you already own the 201, give that a shot before buying another machine. Many people like their 201's for FMQing work. If you find it isn't what you need, then buy a different machine.

Lyncat

Doesn't the 221 have a vertical bobbin or do I have them confused?

Scotlass

You are correct - the 221 & 301 have the same vertical bobbin assembly....actually many of their parts are interchangable! I think the 221 isn't favored by FMQers because of the limited space between the needle and the pillar and it is pretty lightweight.