You are welcome Julie - the forum is great for everybody.

Thanks Lois and Rita. I was not aware that the Horizon has a 25 year warranty. Glad you are enjoying your machine Lois and that you are finding it robust. I will take your advice and try out some jersey fabric at the dealers along with a quilt sandwich. Hope you are enjoying your time away from home Rita it was kind of you to say you would have tried out some jesey for me. Thank you so much for taking the time to answer all my questions, I really appreciate it.

Julie

loise98 wrote:
That just reminded me - I brought a couple of large quilt sandwiches and lots of different threads (including metallics) when i went to try out the Horizon. It made all the difference in the world because I could really see and feel how the machine behaved with what I would normally be throwing at it. If I was at home I would try out some jersey material to let you know how it responds, sorry.

I have the Janome Horizon and my experience is as Rita has already told you. I love, love, love it for FMQ. I have not used it for knits or jersey. Take some of that fabric to the dealer and give it a try. Do the others you are looking at have the 25 year warranty? It is made to be a workhorse. It was hard for me to find anything to measure up.

julsmalham wrote:
I have not sewn any stretch/knit/jersey fabrics on my Janome but I have sewn wool and that was good. I know there were problems with the original 1/4" foot but they changed that and I find it great. There is a huge difference between the IDT and the Acufeed system. The Acufeed system works so much better. The foot is about 3 times the size of the IDT attachment so it holds the fabric much more steadily. The Acufeed system also works much better on thick seams and heavyweight fabric.

The other feature that I really love is that the single hole plate makes such a difference for fmq. And also the choice of 3 different fmq feet is great.

Somebody else might be able to tell you about how the machine works with Jersey/stretch/knit fabric.

No not yet, each machine has things on it that appeal so it is making my choice difficult. Would you mind answering a few questions for me?

Have you sewn any knit/stretch/jersey fabrics on your machine?
How do you find it for1/4 inch seams and piecing. Some reviewers have said that it eats the fabric. I am intending to make garments as well as quilting on it.
Do you find much difference in the IDT system on you Pfaff and the Acufeed system on your Janome?
How does it perform on thick seams and heavyweight fabric?

These are questions I have asked at the dealers but of course they are going to be biased as that is the brand they sell. All three machines are at different dealerships I cannot find one that has all three brands so that I can get a direct comparrison. Hope you can help with your opions.

I absolutely love my Janome Horizon. There is no comparison between it and the Pfaff Expression 2 which I traded in for it. FMQ on the Horizon is like driving a Rolls Royce. It is so smooth and even. It is able to cope with any thread I throw at it even if I haven't got the right needle in. I am away from home at the moment and I can't wait to get back to it.

Have you made a decision yet?

How are you finding your Janome Horizon. I am looking at the same three machines that you did and i cannot decide.

"Could you find a handy engineer who could file the needle space of the 1/4" foot wider? I had an 'O' shaped free-motion foot for my Janome, but after a class with Phillipa Naylor who recommended having a 'C' shaped foot, my husband 'adjusted' it for me and it is much easier to see what I am up to."

I've thought of that many times, just haven't followed through with it. The engineers in my family are always busy. Maybe one of these days I will remember to ask one of them when they have a free moment.

Rosemary, how much do you charge for hiring out your husband???

"Could you find a handy engineer who could file the needle space of the 1/4" foot wider? I had an 'O' shaped free-motion foot for my Janome, but after a class with Phillipa Naylor who recommended having a 'C' shaped foot, my husband 'adjusted' it for me and it is much easier to see what I am up to."

Hmmm, now there's an idea. I will have to speak to 'he who must be obeyed' and see if we can do something. Thanks for the idea Rosemary.

Reetzbobeetz wrote:
Could you find a handy engineer who could file the needle space of the 1/4" foot wider? I had an 'O' shaped free-motion foot for my Janome, but after a class with Phillipa Naylor who recommended having a 'C' shaped foot, my husband 'adjusted' it for me and it is much easier to see what I am up to.

Mirelle - enjoy your new machine, I am contemplating one as well, but am currently happy with my Janone My Style 22.

Woohoo--I hope you have many happy hours playing together!

That's great Mirielle, 'Health to enjoy it' as we say here and happy stitching.