RunningThreads

Sounds like needle flex could be a big part of your problem.  A larger needle and a shorter stitch length will reduce flex and should help. How old is the machine?  If it is a little old I would be checking for worn bushings in the needle bar.  I had this happen to me with one of our APQS machines years ago with a new shipment of needles, same brand and size.  The cure was to redo the timing and all was good.
 
Let us know what you find.
Nigel

Figure out how much more time it takes than doing a pantograph.  I expect it is at least triple so charge at least triple the panto rate.  If you don’t charge enough you will grow to hating doing custom quilting for customers.  It is just like any other business if a customer doesn’t like the price show them a less expensive option.
When you get a reputation as a good custom quilter no one will question your price.
 
Nigel

Barb types faster than me.
 

Occasionally they come up for sale but they are usually expensive to ship.  Maybe a local welder or machinist can take off one end cut down the length and weld the end back on.  Then you would need to make or buy new leaders.  Should be pretty cost effective. 
Nigel

I recently finished this quilt for a customer who usually does her own quilting on her domestic machine but thought that this one was too big for her to handle. Aren't the colours just beautiful? She had already drafted most of the feather design for the background, I just added the centre part as it was too much space to be left unquilted and chose the design for the circles. We are both very happy with the way it turned out.





 

Looks like Circle Lord Comos

I’ve always had to back the tension off for Glide.  Try one of these things at a time until you have success.  First check the pigtail guides for grooves.  For the three hole guide above the tension thread under the first hole and down the third hole, next I would back off the top tension one of two turns until the thread stops breaking then adjust the bobbin tension to balance.  Also slowing down a little may help.   That is what has worked for me in the past.
 
Nigel

It looks like there is only about a thousand dollars difference in price until you add some options.  Another way to look at it is what is the value of the machine you buy now going to be in five or ten years compared to the purchase price.  I suspect the APQS will cost you less over that time period.  Also there is quite often factory overhauled used APQS machines with new tables and warranty at a very good price.  Check the events calendar for a Road Show or Quilt Show because they always have special show pricing.  Having good tools always makes the job more pleasurable so buy the one you think is best for you.
APQS always encourages us to service our own machines and is very good with detailed instructions should you ever have to do a repair.
Just my 2 cents.
Nigel

It looks like there is only about a thousand dollars difference in price until you add some options.  Another way to look at it is what is the value of the machine you buy now going to be in five or ten years compared to the purchase price.  I suspect the APQS will cost you less over that time period.  Also there is quite often factory overhauled used APQS machines with new tables and warranty at a very good price.  Check the events calendar for a Road Show or Quilt Show because they always have special show pricing.  Having good tools always makes the job more pleasurable so buy the one you think is best for you.
APQS always encourages us to service our own machines and is very good with detailed instructions should you ever have to do a repair.
Just my 2 cents.
Nigel

Here is a link to the different types of UPS systems (line interactive verses double conversion);  http://www.qpsolutions.net/2015/06/line-interactive-vs-double-conversion-ups-which-ones-best/  It explains the two systems better than I did.
Cagey

This is from APQS.  I cannot attach the actual .pdf file, so here is my best rendition cutting and pasting the images.  Edited to include images from pdf file.
Cagey
 
 
 ELECTRICITY AND YOUR APQS MACHINE 
With more and more electronics being used in quilting machines, electricity supply is more important than ever! If the incoming power fluctuates, the circuit board will starve certain functions in order to keep the boards powered, and the motor can be affected as well. 
The printout below shows the incoming power here at the APQS factory. Notice how much the power dips towards the end of the printout – we are on the same power grid as Pella Windows, and at the time the power dipped in this printout, Pella had a large motor blow up. You can see how much we were affected by this, and it wasn’t even in our building!

 Even different types of power supplies can vary the incoming voltage to your home – solar, hydroelectric, wind – these types of power vary greatly, and the circuitry on your machine will suffer the consequences. 
The next printout is from a customer of ours in Colorado. He was having problems with his needle positioner acting up at times. He asked for this printout of the power supply to his home over a 4 day period, and was greatly surprised at the varying voltages and amperages that was powering his home.

Purchasing a battery back-up or UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) for your APQS machine is a great ”insurance policy”. APQS has done extensive testing on battery back-ups and found one type that is capable of running both the motor and supplying the needed power for the circuit boards as well. 
Most battery back-ups or UPS’s output is a square wave. This wave type will not keep both the electric motor and the circuit boards running in a voltage drop situation. It will keep the circuit boards powered, so it is fine for other electronic equipment.

The UPS systems that are recommended for our machines are able to output a pure sine wave, which is capable of keeping the electric motor running and keep the circuit board powered at the same time.

With these UPS devices, you are able to even unplug the cord from the wall outlet, and run the machine for a period of time – which can be very handy during power outages!! 
Technical information from the UPS devices we tested is on the next page. There are several companies on the web that sell these specific devices, and prices vary from site to site. The models listed on the next page show a variety of options; however, one is NOT pure sine wave so it is not recommended. The others are Dual Conversion backup systems, which are slightly different than the standard ‘Standby UPS’ battery backup systems. 
Dual Conversion On-Line UPS is the same as the standby UPS, except that the primary power path is the inverter battery instead of the wall outlet. The incoming power from the wall outlet is stored in the battery, and the battery supplies the power to the machine – this keeps the incoming power consistent, without having the delay that is caused by normal battery backup systems when they ‘kick in’ to supply power. The Dual Conversion On-Line UPS provides nearly ideal electrical output performance.

Be aware that UPS units can look very similar so it can be easy to select the wrong one. Look for a unit that is a PURE SINE WAVE output. For added advantages, choose one that is DUAL CONVERSION.
The CyperPower CP1500AVRLCD unit above left does NOT have a pure sine wave output and would not be a good choice. Lower priced units typically are not pure sine wave units. Read the product descriptions carefully before buying.
 
End APQS pure sine wave pdf.
 
I spoke with SYCOM, and they told me that they do not have any Dual Conversion / Double Conversion units that would meet the price points above.  Theirs would be more in the $1000 range.  They did review all three items above, and suggested the Tripp Lite as  having the best power factor.  That is to say that how much power does the unit use to provide electricity to the quilting machine.  The Tripp Lite is 0.8, the Minuteman is 0.7, and the CyberPower is 0.6.  To clarify what I just wrote, the Trip Lite uses about 20% of the power to provide the pure sine wave coming into the unit.  The Minuteman would use 30% of the power to produce the same sine wave, and the CyberPower would use approximately 40% of the incoming power to produce the pure sine wave output.  Their units run in the 0.9+ power factor range, which increases the cost.
They did go on that by using the device you would hypothetically extend the life of anything plugged into the device by 50%.  This is because unlike with most surge protectors with battery backup, there is a lag time for a surge or lag to be experienced before the unit switches to battery power.  With a pure sine wave generator, the item plugged into the device is somewhat always being run off the battery.  The unit is constantly soothing out the highs and lows of the electricity coming out of the wall plug, and providing a very pure power source to the output plug and the quilting machine/anything plugged into the unit. The battery backup run time is to allow you time to shut the item plugged in, without damaging the device.  
 

We have the Tripp Lite SU1000XLA as recommended by APQS a few years ago.It is a little pricey but works excellent.  If I understand correctly it constantly filters the power and gives pure sine wave output.  I have unplugged the unit while the Millie was running and the machine didn't skip a beat, we couldn't do that with the cheap UPS we had before.
It looks like they are still available but make sure you are sitting down when you see the price.  On the other hand you don't want the power going out while you are merrily quilting along and tear a quilt because you can't stop as fast as the machine does.
Maybe call the factory and see if this is still the current model they recommend.
Nigel

Janice
Click on her screen name and you will see a button for send me a message click that and send her a message. It will show up in her email. Since she has posted only once I suspect she may not be on here regularly.
Nigel