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Thread: WHY??

  1. #1
    sewsoft's Avatar sewsoft is offline Senior Member
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    Default WHY??

    In the past when I was shopping for a sewing machine I looked at Pfaff quilting machine hubby laughed at the price. I thought it was good because it had the made on walking foot. So I looked lower at Singer and said no because they did not seem to run as well as the older singers did. A sewing machine distributor did not advise me to purchase one. So I tried Brother and went with a fast little zippy portable sewing/ embroidery machine. I started sewing a quilt together the other day and about pulled my hair out.... I had all of the layers pinned really good then I started sewing and got to the other end of the quilt I had to take pins out to finish sewing because the layers weren't sewing together at the same rate. How awful !! I don't know much about Janome machines. I like the look but not price tag of Bernina. hmmmm. Do I get another machine or work with what I have? Also the arm is very short and not much room to roll the quilt on the machine to sew it, I did a small lap quilt. My mom a wonderful sewer says it's not worth paying a big price tag for all that stuff on the machine that's not really necessary to her. I know but it's nice for the machine to cut the thread,tell me when the bobbin is low or my needle is no longer threaded,or thread the needle for me
    Last edited by sewsoft; June 27th, 2011 at 02:57 AM.

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    Blondie's Avatar Blondie is offline Senior Member
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    Default Re: WHY??

    I don't understand the layers not sewing at the same rate here, sweetie. Is it the tension?
    Machines. Well, I would love a new one. I have an older babylock and a brother. Both are very basic machines with the babyloc being the higher priced. I purchased the Brother as a back up at a Hancocks a few years back for like $100. Believe it or not, I love this machine. Now it is supposed to self thread but I have never been able to get it lined up and the Hancocks around this area all closed up and moved away.
    I am certain some here will give you much better advice. I tend to agree with your Moms. However I would love a fancy one and keep my others for the basic stuff. i think that is what you mean and most likely need. LOL. Big hugs, Kena.
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    lilmouse's Avatar lilmouse is offline Senior Member
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    Smile Re: WHY??

    I have the Janome Quilt Pro and I love it....got it on sale with a trade in....if your machine has an up/down button; push it a couple of times and the needle threader should line up.....layers not feeding together....are you using an evenfeed foot? Have you checked the troubleshooting guide in your manual to see if someone else has had a similar problem...hope these suggestions help.

  4. #4
    Patrice's Avatar Patrice is offline Senior Member
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    Default Re: WHY??

    were you using a walking foot on it? Did you start in the middle of your quilt? How much pinning did you do. When I pin I pin the about the width of my hand balled up. I hate it but the more you pin the better off you will be. I have a king size right now im doing in 3 sections. I don't feel comfortably enough to free motion so even though I have it in sections that quilt is everywhere. But I will tell you I have been quilting forever and have learned that the slower I go and not get in a hurry the better it looks and comes out. What stitch length did you use? when quilting I use either 3.0 or 3.5

  5. #5
    Susan M's Avatar Susan M is offline Senior Member
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    Default Re: WHY??

    I have an inexpensive Singer that is now permanently in its case because of the tension. I've had it serviced but 5 min of sewing and the tension is a mess again. So I finally invested in a Bernina about 6 years ago. I upgraded the original Bernina for a model with more stitches and couldn't be happier. The Janome 1600DP that I bought for my quilt frame seems to have problems with the tension but only when I try FMQ. So now the Janome is used for straight stitching. I am interested in everyone's comments here as well.
    Susan

  6. #6
    jrchapman's Avatar jrchapman is offline Senior Member
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    Default Re: WHY??

    I have a really basic pfaff. It isn't electronic, doesn't have any bells or whistles (just a straight or a zig-zag stitch) but it does have dual feed which brings the top and bottom through evenly. They're also really reliable, my mum still uses the one she got as a 21st birthday present 40 years later!

    You can usually get the dual feed effect on any machine with a walking foot. That should solve the problem with the layers not coming through evenly, otherwise you might want to try basting it with a spray to keep the layers together a bit more than just pins.

    I wouldn't bother with anything more fancy, it's really not necessary for quilting. As long as you can adjust your stitch length you should be good to go
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  7. #7
    GrammaBabs's Avatar GrammaBabs is online now Senior Member
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    Default Re: WHY??

    I can't say enough about Janome... but having a wonderful dealer here is a plus... questions answered when needed... NO service needed on a little Janome Jem i bought 8 years ago.. no UP DOWN... the the thing weighs 12 lbs. and is a workhorse... The ONE thing i will say is GET A WALKING FOOT... I sewed mostly clothing for years.. then got into quilting and used to laugh at my friends saying... You don't need to spend that money"... well, i got a universal foot at Clotilde.. you can get other places, or get the one made for your machine... WHAT A DIFFERENCE... it's the "feed of the fabric"... just give it a shot... you'll see the difference...
    Now as extra info.... i bought a Singer Commercial Grade machine (i like to sew fast in long strips..... not quiet, but this thing sews thru anything.. wonderful even stitching..basic... and "drummroll please"... delivered for 189.00!!!(i bought on ebay for the lower cost, but there's a video at this link, to show you this thing in action) here's the link below...
    i have 7 machines... my old Elna is "down", i broke a needle and it jammed and the timing is off, in the bobbin, so that's gonna take some time,,, so i bought this Singer... check it out...sorry to babble, but this machine is amazing for the money...http://www.sewinginusa.com/products....id=2574&gcat=1
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  8. #8
    sewsoft's Avatar sewsoft is offline Senior Member
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    Default Re: WHY??

    I normally sew clothing etc. and I never had this problem. I'm new to quilting and just discovered this issue trying to sew a quilt.
    I had my stitches on 2.5 they were to tight so I put them up to 5.0., I'm stitching in the ditch slowly.
    my machine does embroidery also and I think personally when they add these extra things to a machine it takes power from the machine, ie the motor which the machine probably would sew faster
    if it did not have to perform all these extra tasks. The distributor said not true but sewing on this machine for 3 years now i don't believe her after learning to sew on a workhorse of a Singer 30 yrs ago.

  9. #9
    Applique Angel

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    Default Re: WHY??

    Small machines make quilting difficult.

    I would recommend using your little Brother for piecing/applique/embroidery and maybe using your workhorse vintage Singer for quilting. I love my Singer 201-2 for quilting! Slap a walking foot on her and she does beautiful, even straight stitches and the free motion is even better.

    If you can't afford a namebrand machine with a LARGE (9+ inch) throat area it isn't worth the grief to try and force a large quilt through a tiny machine. Vintage Singers have so much throat space and will stitch through all kinds of stuff without an issue.

    That's what I did on my limited budget until I could afford my Viking Sapphire.
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    Bubby's Avatar Bubby is online now Senior Member
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    Default Re: WHY??

    How frustrating for you...so sorry. Before I had a walking foot my granny taught me that if you have a little fabric to ease into a seam, put the slightly larger piece on the bottom and stitch on the other fabric. The feed dogs will help ease in the little extra bit of fullness. If you are using a walking foot (and they are wonderful), your fabric should feed through evenly. I sew on older machines (Singer Featherweight and an older New Home electronic machine), so I'm not really familiar with the newer machines and their features. I'm sure you will get good advice through our forum......Barb

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