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This Machine is now sold.

 

 

The Long and Short of It (no pun intended)

 

I got this millennium in 2005 and opened my business shortly afterward. This machine has served me well for 9 years.  I’ve met some great quilters and great quilt teachers. I’d like to say I’ve quilted many beautiful quilts on it, but I’ll leave that for you to decide. (See my gallery at www.heartsdelightquilting.com) I’ve loved the creative and technical challenge of custom quilting on a hand-guided machine.  But after 9 years, I was feeling like I was on the flat part of the learning curve, and also feeling like my machine deserved some professional servicing. But taking it off line for two weeks minimum and investing another $1500 for APQS to service it always stopped me.

 

What happened?  I learned that a friend of a friend wanted to get rid of her 2009 Millenium with Intellistitcher. Privacy and expediency were paramount. But such a deal!  Well, how could I pass that up?  Whatever its condition, I could sell one of the machines and service the other.  And maybe I could learn Intellistitcher.  At this price, I wouldn’t have to master it and use it all the time to justify its cost. My husband’s only concern was, “We don’t have room for two machines.”  So I jumped.  A friend with an SUV helped me transport for the promise of a very nice dinner. (I’m thinking Chez Panisse?) My husband helped me off-load my 2005 and on-load the 2009.  Did I mention it has the Bliss Track System? Oh, and Automatic Lift and Automatic Quilt Advance System.  It made it a challenge for Charlie and me to disassemble as I was unfamiliar with them. And Marcel (hubby) and I needed to offload the old rails and put on the new.  Forget the lift and auto advance systems for now. 

 

Anyway, there I was with a new strange machine with a tablet thing on top sitting on my frame in my studio.  It was new, it was different. There were no manuals for it. There were indications that the former owner had tension problems with it.  (A towa gauge and top tension gauges were included, she later gave me a huge bag of prewound bobbins and the magic cone of thread that was “the key to the tension.”) It would run on when I paused.  I sat on it for a long while.  Was this new one really better?  Do I really want to sell “old reliable?” 

 

Time passed while I fretted.  I finally hunkered down and did a sampler quilt.  I figured out the tension.  I figured out the little switch that turns off the run-on quilting (didn’t you know, that’s a “feature!”) I did another customer quilt, a queen size. The Bliss Tracking System really is easy on the arms. I can quilt longer without noticing.  Wow, this new machine is nice. But is that disloyal to “old faithful?”  No, I decided. All the APQS machines are wonderful.  And they all deserve to be put in use and not mothballed.

 

So I was sharing with my “Zen Friend” my journey.  Her response?  Wow, good karma.  Yes, and I’m honored to be the recipient of it.  And I need to pass that karma on.  First, by moving the dismantled machine out from behind the couch in my living room to honor Marcel (DH) and his incredible patience and support. (He hasn’t complained once, and now it’s like I don’t even see it there, but I think he does.) Second, by offering a really good deal to someone else.

 

So here it is: her practically new leaders with zippers and measuring tapes galore go to the buyer. (Whatever smudges and pinholes I put in my leaders, I’m willing to keep.) Her feather light clamps go with the machine. (My pinning system learned from Dawn Cavanaugh works just fine for me.) Her Microdrive Handles, Hartley Base Expander with 2 guides, and Hartley Spool Holder are duplicates and go to the buyer.  The Hydraulic Lift ($1500 value), and Automatic Quilt Advance System ($1350 value) are luxuries that I don’t need.  But neither does the buyer.  So I’m separating them out from the purchase price.  Give me a good offer on them and they’re yours, with or without the machine. 

 

Here’s the skinny on the machine:  It quilts like a dream, but after quilting a while, it sometimes stutters on stitch regulation in the horizontal direction.  It doesn’t stitch a bad stitch, it just hesitates.  So I stop quilting, go around to the back, jiggle the connections, check the wheels, and start up again, and it works just fine.  I’ve talked to Amy, and have been told that a servicing will take care of that, give it new boards, and give a one-year warranty on it. That costs $1500. I would do it in advance of selling it, but then the new buyer wouldn’t have the warranty (it’s non-transferrable, I asked.) So I’ll credit the cost of getting it serviced. And now that I’ve sewn on the Bliss Rails, I highly recommend them.  You can upgrade this machine to Bliss for $1000, so I’ll credit that, too. (You should have as nice a machine as I now have.) I’m not sure of the location or condition of the box to ship it back to Iowa for servicing, so I’ll credit the cost for them to ship a new box to you.  That’s $100.  I have a bunch of templates and books that I’ve outgrown, so I’ll include those.  You can have the towa and top tension gauges, though I don’t think you’ll need them.  You can even have that big bag of pre-wound bobbins. I don’t use them, but you might want to.  APQS is selling this era machine for $8700.  That brings my offer to $6100 ($8700-1500-1000-100).  Hydraulic Lift optional at $750 OBO. If you have a truck or SUV, I will help you transport it and set it up.  Either that or we can ask Charlie to transport again for the price of a nice dinner.  (Who are we kidding, he’d rather have Giants tickets.) Now that I think of it, if you want to buy the Intelliquilter and the StiQ, I’ll give you a good deal on that as well.  You have to do the research, though.  I don’t have manuals and I don’t know how to set it up yet.  Let’s say, $6000.  No OBO as I might still get it in gear and learn it myself.

 

Here’s the short of it:

 

2005 Millenium with 10 foot table*:  $6100

Intelliquilter with StiQ: $6000

Hydraulic Lift: $750 OBO

 

 

All available together or separately. 

 

*stitch regulator, automatic needle positioner, bobbin thread cutter, Smart bobbin (L), laser light, bobbin winder, power advance, Hartley base expander and two guides, Quick Zip leaders with spare zippers and measuring tapes attached, Hartley Micro-Drive, Hartley Spool Holder

 

Call or write,

Marty Provencher

408 396-0396

martyprovencher@yahoo.com

HeartsDelightQuilting.com

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  • 3 weeks later...

I'm in Santa Clara, California, near San Jose, Zeke.  Thanks, Sue for jumping in.

 

Wanda, I'm trying to figure out how to confirm whether it's panto or .  I assume that it is higher end, judging from everything else and from a training booklet I read talking about setting up blocks.  I need to figure out how to charge up the thing and confirm though.

 

Wanda, I don't know how to find personal messages, but regarding the lift:  It came off a 10 foot table, but the lift is 4 legs joined by cables to the electronic unit, and I see extra length on the cables.

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In answer to a question asked off line, the machine runs well as is, and I'm happy with the help of a second pair of hands to reload the rails and machine that's for sale for anybody to test drive. That would even give you the confidence to be able to put the table together yourself. The cables on the lift are definitely long enough for a 14 foot table.  The lift cylinders are 18".

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Duh, I took a look at the auto advance, and it's the same one I got standard with mine, not some higher end model (I'd wondered what more you could want in a quilt advance??? Head thump.)  So, of course it's included.  I edited the top message to reflect that.  

 

Meanwhile I have takers for the Hydraulic lift and IQ, so they're off the market.

 

Thanks, Marty

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  • 2 months later...

Zeke's right.  A lovely lady from Sacramento picked it up yesterday.  Zeke, thanks for your help evaluating the machine for her.  

 

Meanwhile, Zeke helped me assure the Intelliquilter is loaded right, so the next step is for me to get educated on it and try it out for myself so I can decide whether to keep it or sell it.  I'll keep you posted.

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