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Permalink Reply by Laurie on October 16, 2009 at 6:00pm

I too, wanted a "long arm" for my own use and therefore didn't want to go in the hole purchasing one. I ended up getting a Magic frame by New Joy. It's entirely metal and when put together could hold the weight of a Ford truck. The machine I got to go with it is actually a mid arm with about an 18" throat so I have enough room to quilt about a 12 inch block at one time. The machine is called the Crystal Quilter and I believe it's made by the New Joy Quilting Products, Inc. out in Glendale, Az. I paid less than 6K for both. They also make a stitch regulator that you can purchase for about 500 dollars. It's a super simple machine to operate and looks just like a regular sewing machine only with a longer bed. The only drawback is no bobbin winder but I purchased a seperate one on ebay for 20 bucks; the Sidewinder, which is selling in stores brand new for 30 bucks! The bobbins are similar in size to the ones that Brother makes so I was able to go on ebay (again) and purchase extra bobbins. See if there isn't a NewJoy rep. anywhere near you. All other long arm machines I've seen have a different wheels system that won't allow you to use them with the frame you or I purchased. I believe the Crystal Quilt machine runs about 2K which isn't bad. Let me know if you have any more questions. You can go on line to several different sites and check for used long arms but then the frame you purchased may not be able to be used with alot of them due to their wheels system which rolls on tracks. To date, the Crystal Quilter is the only one I know of that has a solid base. Haven't checked out Nolting so I could be wrong.