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Thread: HELP...looking for longarm quilt machine

  1. #11
    Jean Sewing Machine's Avatar Jean Sewing Machine is offline Senior Member
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    Default Re: HELP...looking for longarm quilt machine

    I went to the Machine Quilters Expo in Portland in October. I got to try out a lot of machines while I was there. Going to something like that is a great way to help in decision making.

  2. #12
    madampolo's Avatar madampolo is offline Senior Member
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    Default Re: HELP...looking for longarm quilt machine

    If I were 20 years younger, I'd consider a long arm. It is not feasible at this point though. Years ago, I could have sold my quilting services, but not now.
    Joyce "She who dies with the most fabric wins!!"

  3. #13
    Quiltfreestyle's Avatar Quiltfreestyle is online now Senior Member
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    Default Re: HELP...looking for longarm quilt machine

    Hi
    I have a Babylock Crown Jewel & I love it. Saw it at a local quilt show & tried it out. It's made by Handiquilter as someone else mentioned. There were several dealers of various brands at the show so I got a chance to play with a few. My husband (bless him) talked me into buying it when he found out how much it costs to send out a top to be quilted.. He said I'd save money in the long run.. I had a lot of tops done but not quilted. Haha. Never could get the hang of quilting big quilts on my regular machine,,,
    The advice here is right on, try as many as you can before you decide, like buying a car LOL
    My best advice is to really look at the frame too. Mine came with a Grace Majestic but I've since seen the Grace Pinnacle. It looks a little more sturdy in the gears and the thing I like the best is that all the rails are set higher so you don't have to sit on the floor to load the top.
    Good luck & if you decide to buy one it will change your world. Soo wonderful to FINISH a quilt!!!
    May the road rise up to meet you...
    May the wind be always at your back...
    May you be in Heaven a half hour before the Devil knows you're dead...
    Patt

  4. #14
    Racing Nana is offline Senior Member
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    Default Re: HELP...looking for longarm quilt machine

    Well here's a question.
    I don't anticipate ever ever quilting a bolt of fabric. Biggest would be a King quilt.

    How big do I really need the throat space to be? 12" 14" 16" 18" ??

  5. #15
    Jean Sewing Machine's Avatar Jean Sewing Machine is offline Senior Member
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    Default Re: HELP...looking for longarm quilt machine

    Quote Originally Posted by Racing Nana View Post
    Well here's a question.
    I don't anticipate ever ever quilting a bolt of fabric. Biggest would be a King quilt.

    How big do I really need the throat space to be? 12" 14" 16" 18" ??
    I would definitely vote for not less than 18". with that throat space, you really only have 12-14" space to quilt, because your take up reel takes up a big chunk of the space. If you had a 14" throat, you would functionally probably have 8-10" of quilting space. The biggest issue with king quilts is the width. I personally won't quilt king quilts because I don't want to take up that much space in my quilting room. The take up reel will get quite fat, reducing the quilting space significantly. Some quilt frames have what they call a dead bar, which gives you the same amount of space for quilting, but then the take up reel is above it, so you need the vertical clearance space in your throat. All things to consider when buying.

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