Sewtites vs Red Snappers

[Marci T]

I am the brand new owner of a 2023 Millie 30. I have been reading a lot of articles and one issue that I’m curious about right now is how to attach my quilt to the canvas leader bars. I’ve always heard of red snappers and now I’m seeing articles about Sewtites. Curious about both. 
 

[srichardson]

Congratulations on your new machine.  Fun is ahead!

I know that a lot of people like their Red Snappers, however I am not a fan.  I tried to replace the side clamps on my machine with Red Snappers and found that they were very difficult to open and close.  If you have any arthritis in your hands I would give them a miss.  I went back to my side clamps which I also find difficult to open.  I solved that issue by making some side leaders which I clamped to on one side and I pin the leaders to the quilt on the other side.  That way I don't have to continually open and close the clamps, I can just pin and that is much easier.

The Sewtites that I have are just small magnets about an inch long.  Do they now make them for longarm use?  The ones that I have aren't strong enough to hold things in place on a longarm.  I went to Harbor Freight and bought some 18" bar magnets that work well to hold things in place if I need to put something on the machine quickly.  I mostly use zippers and those work well for me.

I hope that someone responds to your post that has experience with both items that interest you.

Happy quilting.