Brothers

[Kittymoose]

Ok. So. My mom got me a sewing machine for my birthday/graduation present. (sucks having graduation 5 days after your birthday). It's a Brother LS-2125i. Whatever that means. I dunno, my mom got me the cheapest one from walmart. So what I'd like to know, is should I secretly save the receipt and return it in a few weeks? What's been the crafter experiance with this kind of machine? The only ones I've ever used were my gramma's 1950s Kenmore and the school's old old Singers

[cantus]

I've got the same thing. I have to fix the bobbin a lot, but that may be my inexperience with a sewing machine (somehow, I'm suspicious it isn't.)

They aren't incredible. Don't try sewing three layers of thick felt together, or any serious denim work.

I make puppets out of fur, I make costumes out of old clothes. My machine works. It's a little frustrating, but it works. If you think you can get a better one soon, and you really want to- go for it. Still, if you aren't sewing huge, thick things, it'll work okay.

[Kittymoose]

Thanks for the heads up. I had my heart set on a Singer like the ones at school but alas. Maybe I'll deal with this one for a while and eventually go to the used singer store right by my house. I make my own clothes, and i would like to do some denim (mostly hemming jeans), so I'll have to find something that works.

[gina-marie]

i had a brother that had the bobbin tucked underneath and that wrecked it for me.

[knuckstermom]

whatever machine you have be sure to change to a denim needle before you sew heavy fabric or several layers. Almost any machine will sew several(3-5) layers of denim if it has the right needle.

[craftypixie]

I recently bought a Brother machine I have the Inovis NX-450 I love it. However befor I made that purchase I bought a CS 6000i from walmart and the tension on it was horrible. I thought maybe it was just a dud so I went and exchanged it for a different one and the same thing happened it was skipping stitches on the decoratives and the tension was off on the utility stitches. Feed up I went to a local machine dealer I looked at Pfaff's, vikings, and Brothers. I ended up going with a brother it seemed like the best bang for my buck and I love it. It has sewed perfect stitches for the day I took it out of the box. I bought it in April and I sew a lot more now that I have a good machine.
My advice is if it's giving you problems already return it and go to a reputable dealer and look at their machines. They should have something in your price range, and you will get support for your machine from tham as well

[cumber1137]

I have a Brother and it's great. You have to change the needle if you want to sew that many layers of fabric. It sounds like you just don't have much experience with sewing machines. A more expensive machine is not necessarily  better and in my experience Brother is one of the best for the money. I don't like Singers. They aren't being made as well as they used to. No machine works perfectly, you need to adjust yourself for every new machine you work with. Have you tried using it? If you don't like how it works I would get a different one. Brother's are great, but you may just prefer a different style or brand of machine.

[paroper]

Some of the machines that are sold at Wal Mart are not that great.  The quality of the machines sold under the Brother name is kind of all over the place.  There are some really great inexpensive Brother machines and there are some that are just trash.  I really don't know about this one.  The 270D is pretty popular as a starting sewing/embroidery machine.  They start (I think) somewhere in the neighborhood of $369.  There is a Singer 200 that is considered to be quite similar.  The machines that are used in the schools are basic mahines BUT They are not at the bottom of the line. If I were to purchase a machine, I'd much prefer a Brother from a dealer than a Singer.  I've heard that Singer quality has improved over the past few years but they went through a really bad time and they just aren't my favorite machine.  Plus, Singer, Husky/Viking and Pfaff and (I think Elna is in that mix too?) have just consolidated into one company.  Who knows what will happen with that, whether they'll keep all three companies/machines or if they will drop machines or brand names.  My luck would be that they would not stock parts for the machine I purchased....if I were serious about one of these, I'd wait a few years and see what happens.  Right now Pfaff looks like the healthiest part of the company.   
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