Advice on upgrade

[plally]

I've been using a Lenni for about 1-1/2 years. I've completed about 6 quilts ranging from baby to queen sized. The original reason I purchased it was that I wanted to complete my quilts from piecing to quilting. I've enjoyed my Lenni, but I'm at the point that I'm looking for more. I'd like to have the option to using computerized quilting. I'm not even sure if APQS offers that feature on any of their long-arms. I've met a PFAFF dealer nearby and she's introduced me to the PFAFF Grand Quilter 18.8 and it seems so much robust to my Lenni. I realize that I'm comparing a more sophisticated machine that what I have, but I really like some of the features: ratched quilt advancing, really nice leaders, computerized quilting, etc. Since the dealer is geographically closer than my present APQS dealer, I feel that I would get more hands-on instruction. The price for the PFAFF is comparable to what I originally paid for the Lenni.

Any thoughts from anyone? Has anyone upgraded from an APQS to another brand?

Pauline L Lally

[o2b Quilting]

You need to do what is best for you but there are several Lenni owners who have the Intelli Quilter on their Lenni to computerize it. I don't believe CompuQuilter can be put on the Lenni yet...

Good luck!

[witha'K'quilting]

I am not sure that going to a pfaff from an apqs is really upgrading. there is alot to take into consideration when you consider the stitch quality of an apqs machine and the customer service that stands behind a terrific product. i live in an area where there are no reps of any kind and apqs is only a phone call away should i need assistance.

i purchased my apqs machine sight unseen and have never looked back! i test drove a friend's hq16 and knew it wasn't for me...i wanted more out of my longarm.

i for one did not like the ratchet type advance of other systems...the automatic feed advance is so nice.

yes, apqs machines can be retrofitted to computerized systems. the lenni can easily have the intelliquilter system added. send a u2u to angela (ahuffman) as she can better tell you about the iq on a lenni.

[doodlebug]

this is my opinion, and i used to work for a LQS as a rep for HQ

going from a lenni to a pfaff is like going from a porsche to a honda .

i agree with K- i don't see it as an upgrade. look into the yahoo groups, i'm sure there's a group for the grand quilter and they would have a better perspective for your question....

i'm not being a snob, but keep in mind, you're posting to an APQS based forum, most of us will agree that you are not upgrading

[Gator]

I'm dedicated to APQS. They do not call APQS industrial machines for no reason. They are built for production and lots of wear and tear. DSM companies are attempting to enter the LA market. Most DSM companies are not building industrial systems, they have lots and lots of plastic/nylon parts, etc. Some DSM companies will not honor the warranty if you work on your own machine, nor allow you access to work on the machine (sealed parts). If their table is 18.8 inches you might get 15 inches of quilting space before you have to advance the quilt. Another point is "can the "mid-arm" machine handle all types of thread, fabrics and thicknesses. Make sure you check to see what "computerized" really means? What format does it use for designs? How many designs come with it? Where are additional designs available to purchase. Check out your options before "trading". I recommend that you check out the features of the Intelligent Quilter (IQ) or the Compuquilter (CQ) which can be added to your Lenni. Only you can make the choice that fits you best, but remember if it sounds to good to be true, it probably is. IQ and CQ both have groups on Yahoo. I don't know anything about PFAFF, where it's made, customer services etc. So my questions are general. Just be careful, computers can dazzle us, I once spent a lot of money on PC Quilter but never got the first quilt completed on it, but it worked beautifully for the dealer when she did the demo for me. Ok, ok, off my soapbox!!!!

[Corey]

Going for the other brand is a step down. If you want a more robust machine, APQS Millenium is one of the best in the market with or without computer.

Corey

[ReisingStarQuilts]

Oh my, be very, very careful!!!! An upgrade is from Pfaff to Lenni!!! computer or not!!! Lenni is an industrial machine made to take it. The stitch quality, tension and other issues you will encounter--BEWARE!!! Just my humble opinion!! and I will stick to it!!!

[Quilting Heidi]

I think everybody above has given you very good points. Pfaff is probably a decent machine but it is probably not going to take a beating and keep on ticking so to speak. If you are wanting more features to include compuerized quilting I think you would be way better off looking into after the market add ons like Compuquilter or IQ. I think in the long run that will be money better spent.

[JustSewSimple]

Be careful that you are not looking at a stretch-arm machine. It might not be a true long-arm and is most likely not an industrial machine. Also, robust means different things to different people. Perhaps it felt heaver. I, for one, love the fact that Lenni is light and easy to move. Another troubling aspect may be your re-sale value. APQS machines maintain great value. I do have a Lenni and I think the stitch quality is perfect. One of my customers comes to me because of the stitch quality. I am one who thinks you would not be upgrading to go to the Pfaff. I do believe Pfaff makes a wonderful domestic machine. Good luck with your choice. (PS, I don't get paid for making this recommendation).

[PeggyB]

I remember reading that the pfaff 18 " is the same machine as the tin lizzy. I used to belong to the pfaffgrandquilter yahoo group also the tin lizzy group they were both helpful. Chris the leader of the pfaffgrandquilter group had upgraded to a pfaff 18. I don't know if many of the tin lizzy people know that it is the same machine. you might get information from either of those groups.

PeggyB

http://peggybsquilting.blogspot.com/

[srichardson]

When I was shopping for a long arm I was given a piece of advice by a long arm dealer, not incidentally APQS. I remembered her advice for the many months I looked at machines. She told me that whatever brand I decided to buy I should be sure that it was a purpose built longarm and not something made by a DSM maker to imitate a long arm. I am not familiar with the machine you have mentioned but be sure before you leap that you are heading in the right direction.

Good luck with your search.

Sue

[KathiL]

Pauline,

I had a Grand Quilter for 6 months and was so frustrated that I sold the machine and frame setup. The amount of actual quilt space is less than what you have on the Lenni. The rachet system, not my favorite...once you had more than half the quilt 'rolled' (done) it would slip easily. It could have been me or the way I rolled the quilt. I found the GQ was actually noiser than my Milli...and did not have the stitch quality that I have (now) on my Milli. I did not like the frame for the GQ used...I'm sure you can find a different set up then was available 2 years ago.

At the time I purchased the GQ, I didn't know what was out in the market...I would suggest looking at all the brands of LONG ARMS, and realize that a number of 'mid arm' and 'stretch short arm' are advertised as 'long arms'.

I would look at the options of 'after market' options to add computer software onto the Lenni, unless you really are not happy with the Lenni.

just my two cents,

Kathi L

[KarenH]

Hey Paulline here is my 2 cents worth. I have owned three Pfaff DSM, always upgrading until i got my 2140. They are great SM, and I would not trade for anyother machine. But as far as longarm quilting goes the APQS machines are far superior. I just got my Lenni about 2 weeks ago, and i have not been disappointed! I still own the first Grand Quilter that they came out with about 5 years ago, it is very limiting in what you can do with it. Pfaff is not the same company it was. I have heard customer service is not what it used to be and the new Creative Vision series has had alot of problems. Do your homework, look into adding on to Lenni via Inteliquilter or trading up to a Millie.

Good Luck

A very biased Lenni owner!

[Starrynight Quilter]

Pauline,

I still have my Grand Quilter Hobby 1200 and had to get the thread cutter fixed. Great machine but a pain in the butt to use on a frame. Not enough room. I have the superior proflex frame. I also have the Phaff Quilt expression 4. I had a problem with the thread bouncing out of it's thread path right from day one. Finally they created a new tread uptake for this machine. Thank goodness I have a good rapore with my Phaff dealer. Everything was under warranty which expires this November. I almost purchased the Phaff GrandQuilter 18.8 back in mid August at a really great price but in going to their yahoo site/ group, I found that a lot of people had problems with their tension and thread breakage as well as other problems. Some of them were not happy with their dealers. They seemed to be frustrated most of the time. This machine is basically made for personal use. They say it is industrial but my Dealer said it would not stand up to heavy use.

What changed my mind was reading this forum. This forum is full of great advice, tips and tricks and you can see that people from APQS such as Dawn Cavanaugh, some of there tecks, some of their reps are always monitoring this forum to see what is happening. Every one here is always so helpful and FUNNY at times. They love to share ideas/suggestions. I did not see that with any other company. Everyone on this forum are happy with their system whatever if may be. Like anything else, machines need tweeking. Now the only thing I don't know is if you can add a computer system to your lenni.

In any event, I need to tell you that because of what I have read on this forum and doing a l o t of homework, I decided to purchase the Millie system. I got excellent service from my Rep Nadia who lives in B.C. and I'm in NW Ontario. (Talk about distance) She answered all of my questions, compared systems with me and provided me with a lot of other helpful information. Heidi has kept me informed as to the status of my order. I ordered it September 9th and here we are just 7 business days later and it's on its way. That's customer service in my books!;)

I am not employed, am not a rep for APQS . I am someone who is really trully pleased with the care and concern they have for there customers. My feeling is whatever brand you choose, it doesn't matter how close you live to a dealer, are they going to have the patience and time required to help you out? I know for a fact just by my short experience with them, in reading different topics on this forum that people at APQS are always there, just a phone call away, and again, this forum is awesome for members , tecks, Dawn, to give you solutions to your problems (almost immediately) In my eyes, these people truly care about customer satisfaction. Now,,,,I must apologize for going on and on but I am very passionate and dedicated to this company. I wish you lots of luck in your decision. To me.... it's simple as pie;)

[seakitten]

Prior to getting my APQS Milli, I had the Viking Mega-Quilter, which I believe is made buy the same company that now makes the Pfaff. It was by far the worst sewing machine I have ever owned, and believe me I've had plenty. I would never go back. That said, I still love my Pfaff DSM, would not trade it for anything, so maybe Pfaff can do a little better.

[Janette]

I have a Lenni, and I love it, it is light and just right for me. However if I were looking to upgrade, I would be upgrading to an APQS Freedom or Millenium for sure !!!! If you want a computer an intelliquilter can be fitted on the Lenni from what I have read on this forum.

Although I have a Pfaff Domestic sewing machine which is great, I would not consider it to be an upgrade from a Lenni to a Pfaff.

[SKQuilts]

I would definately check out the APQS for an upgrade!!!!!!! I love my Millennuim and cannot say enough about stitch quality, customer service, the list goes on and on!!!

[meg]

if you really want to upgrade - why dont you =buy the $8800. millie that is for sale this week only. that is a steal!

[Beachside Quilter]

Pauline:

Try do a "search" on forum topics for "Lenni IQ". I believe Jessica Shick and Angela Huffman have installed IQ on their Lenni's.

Good luck with your research!

Vickie Oliver

Beachside Quilter

APQS Rep SW FL

[quiltlover03]

Grand Quilter, mega Quilter, same machine and I had the Mega Quilter. No matter what your dealer tells you, those machine are still only DSM's put on a frame. They are never meant to go in circles and will not give you the perfection you get from a machine like APQS brand, made specifically for longarm machine quilting. I live in Northern Saskatchewan, bought my first APQS used sight unseen, based on what i read in this forum for weeks before I took the plunge, and like someone said above, help is a phone call away, service with a smile anytime I need it, be it a silly question or a concern.

I agree with everything being said above and I am sure, you can add a computer to your lenni or upgrade to a bigger machine with compu or intelli quilter.

Good luck in your decision.

[IBQLTN2]

Like you I wanted to get a long arm machine to do my own quilting from start to finish. I had a short arm dsm on a frame and out grew it very quickly due to the small quilting area. I started looking at mid arm machines on frames. The Pfaff Grand quilter was not yet on the market at the time, but i looked at the Tin Lizzie and several other domestic machines on frames then I realized that I could get a commercial machine for about the same price range and got the Lenni. Recently I tried the Pfaff grand quilter and was not impressed at all. The one I used you still had to put down the presser foot lever to start quilting. I real indication that this is a domestic machine being forced into the Long arm classification. at the time that I bought my Lenni it was not upgradeable to a computer system which I didnt really care too much about at the time. Now I am happy that it is an option for the Lenni at some point. There is also another computer system that has been made to work on the Lenni, and is a cheaper alternative to the IQ and that is the Side Saddle I believe it is called. Not sure of anyone having purchased it for the Lenni yet but Jennifer Kay is the one to contact about that system. I am also of the mind that you may be upgrading in features from Lenni to the Grand quilter but definately not in quality or durability or customer service.

[Carol Halstead]

Here is the link to the thread for Lenni IQ http://www.apqs.com/quiltboard/viewthread.php?tid=20065

[plally]

WOW.

Thanks for all your advice. Based on what I've read, I have options. I think I'll hold off on the PFAFF for now.

Pauline L Lally

[epprog]

Going from a Lenni to a Pfaff is NOT an upgrade. I have personally tried the Pfaff Grand Quilter but there are many issues with it. First, it is not a true stitch regulated machine which was important to me. The most frustrating thing was small throat space and remember that the larger your quilt the less room you have at the end because your roll gets larger and larger and that means you have less throat space to quilt in. I have several customers who have frames with Pfaff Grand Quilters. All of them have huge stitch quality and tension issues. I get all of their queen and larger quilts as they cannot handle them unless they unload and then start quilting from the opposite end and then try to match up when you get to the center, which doesn't work because you always get bunch of extra material bunching up. My Pfaff dealer told me that everyone complained about the rollers bending and therefore you get uneven tension on the quilt. I did lots and lots of research on different machines and decided that an APQS Millenium was the machine for me. At a local quilter's conference/weekend the APQS dealer would not give me the time of day and continually focused on other people so I never even got my hands on an APQS machine. At the end of the show I told her, in passing, that I was serious about buying an APQS machine and she waved me in but by then I was disgusted and passed by. When I was ready I phoned APQS directly and they were great, still are. This company is the best, best, best! Because I was so far away from the factory I decided that I needed to buy new, knowing what I know now I would certainly consider buying a used machine or one that has been used for shows and things. They are sooooooo well built and easy to work on and Amy has helped me patiently through several fixes (most of them I caused myself!) Can you tell I love my machine? I do at least five quilts per week and it is still going strong! I have also since looked at lots of other machines like Gamills and other smaller machines like Pfaff has but just to see how they work and what features they have. I am more convinced than ever that I made the best choice. Sorry this is so long but I really very seldom post and was just concerned that you might make a choice that I KNOW you would not like. Even seeing that you are considering to trade to another machine makes me think that perhaps you have outgrown your Lenni. I think you would love the larger throat space that the Millenium has as well as other features that you would love and you would certainly LOVE an IQ attached to it! Distance from a rep is not a problem at all. I have one other APQS machine user close to me (Monika who posted earlier but I didn't know her when I bought my machine) so we sometimes trade ideas or solve stuff like tension issues with certain threads or batting ideas but for the most part this forum can help you with ANYTHING and APQS know EVERYTHING about quilting with these machines. You wouldn't be sorry. Let us know what you decides to do?

Having said all of this, I realize that some may think I just don't like Pfaff machines. Not so, I LOVE my Pfaff embroidery machine and have sewed almost exclusively on Pfaff for the past 20 years (though I just purchased a speedy Juki for piecing) but I just don't think they are a great longarm machine. You need something that you can just go to and it works and does what you need it to do without having to fool around with and be frustrated.

Cher

[IQ'd]

Pfaff and Viking are owned by the same company and I know that most if not all the Viking machines are now made in the far east. I used to sell the Viking machines and I wouldn't buy one now given where they are produced.

I have the APQS Millennium and have recently purchased the IQ. I couldn't think that whatever machine is on this frame is all that great. The iq would so be a much better upgrade to your current setup. I agree with all who have posted that going from Lenni to a Grand quilter is not an upgrade, and we wouldn't say that just because we won APQS machines. Computerized quilting is possible with Lenni!