My ancient Viking has become more trouble than it’s worth - it skips stitches in zig-zag, the tension is wonky, and it’s so old, the local Husqvarna guy said he won’t repair it - can’t get parts. So it’s time to buy a new sewing machine. I know there are people here who sew, so I’m looking for recommendations for or against.
I don’t quilt or do fancy stuff. Mostly, I sew stuff for our boat - seat covers, awnings, pouches, bedding - plus clothing and household repairs, but not so much with delicate fabrics. I need something that can handle multiple thicknesses - think hems on jeans.
As for price, I don’t mind spending a few hundred, but I’m not up for a thousand. I’d love one that has its own table extension, but I could get a cabinet.
So please, share your experiences. Help me find my new toy!
If you are lucky enough to find an old (Not computerized) Pfaff. You will find it will sew through thick and thin fabrics with out trouble. I had one for many years, I taught sewing and the machine run almost constantly. I made my children’s clothes,my husbands, and sewed zippers for a factory . It finally wore out as your Viking did. I now have a Brother and a Necchi which are both old but I do not do a lot of sewing anymore. If I could find an old Pfaff I would buy it in an instant! Some places thet sell just sewing machines may have an old Pfaff. They are hard to come by as they last so long and like mine they are kept until they wear out. Pfaff was the first company to have the built in button hole makers and decoritive stiches.
I bought a Juki HZL-e61 a year ago at this place- although I walked in, rather than ordered it over the internet. It seems to be a good machine, sewing silk and chiffon with the same dexterity as a tweed coat (with edge stitching), denim and upholstery. My only complaint has been that the automatic buttonholer really can’t handle multiple layers of tweed. It did the job but I had to rip out a couple of buttonholes. (I did the coat the “quick and easy” way instead of the “right” way of using couture techniques, so I’m not complaining too hard.) The straight stitch/zigzag foot has a button of the back for sewing hems in heavy fabrics that allows you to sew over seams.
It also has several stretch stitches; very helpful if you’re making swimsuits or dancewear. I haven’t tried the 5 built-in embroidery stitches. If you had said you wanted an embroidery machine, this isn’t the model for you.
It included a table extension.
Overall, I’ve been happy with my purchase. (I haven’t had it long enough for it to develop problems.) It doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of a more expensive machine but has everything I wanted in a comparably priced model. YMMV, of course.
I’d never heard of Juki, but I really like what I saw on the site. Thanks for the suggestion. I need to find out if anyone near me carries it so I can touch it before buying.
Well, I went to JoAnn’s looking for a new sewing machine. I bought some new one, and also a refurbished touch’n’sew because I took it for a test drive, and it had a straight stitch that was beautiful. I don’t know where that other one is, but I love my touch’n’sew. You don’t want a very early touch’n’sew, but I think mine is from 1970 and had just been refurbished. I can still get parts. I bought it about 10 years ago and it is still going strong.
