Saturday, May 21, 2011

Meet Juki, The FINISHER!


Continuing on with the subject of quilting, I thought I'd introduce you to my quilting machine. As you can see, it's a Juki TL-98Q. It's a simple machine with no computerized parts, but it's a real work horse when it comes to quilting.

When I piece, I work on a Bernina, but several years ago, my Bernina started having problems with free motion quilting, and a trip to the spa (aka repair shop) failed to completely fix the problem. So I started looking around for a solution and found the Juki.

The Juki is much too heavy and industrial feeling for me to enjoy piecing on it, although it pieces just fine--it's just my preference. When I bought the Juki, I paid around $700; now they sell for around $900, although since they aren't computerized, I think a refurbished used machine would work just as well. Still, you can probably see why a new Juki was a better option for me than a new Bernina, right?

I settled on the Juki for quilting because of a number of reasons besides the price. A Juki can be used with a quilting frame system. I really liked the idea of buying a machine that could be used that way in the future, if that's something I decide I'm interested in.


A Juki has a much larger throat opening than most machines, so I can quilt a king sized quilt without too much trouble. I took the photo above to illustrate the amount of room the Juki has--if you look closely, I think you can see the opening is 8-1/2" long . . .


. . . and 6-1/2" tall. Measure the opening of your machine to compare. I think my Bernina is about 7-1/2" long and about 4-1/2" tall.

I don't want you to think you can't quilt on a standard machine though. Before I got the Juki, I quilted a king size quilt on the Bernina. No, it wasn't easy, but it was do-able. The Juki just makes it a little easier.

A word of warning, though, if you're interested in getting a Juki: They're fast. My friend Imelda bought one and ended up selling it because she had a hard time controlling the speed; even buying a stitch regulator didn't seem to help. So if you're an "all or nothing" kind of gal who likes to drive with the pedal to the metal, . . . well, maybe you should reconsider. Or find a sewing machine store that sells Jukis and will let you try one out for an hour or two. Or, better yet, see if you can rent one! But I really do like mine and wouldn't want to give it up--except maybe if someone gave me a really nice long arm and offered to build a large room onto our house so I'd have somewhere to operate it. In the meantime, the Juki's the right fit for me.

10 comments:

  1. YES! Another Juki-lover. I adore my TL98Q - not only for quilting - but also for putting bindings on quilts. It just zooms. I love my Bernina, but I wouldn't give up the Juki. And, when the Bernina is in the shop, I don't mind at all, because piecing on the Juki is great too! I wish I had room to leave both machines out all the time!

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  2. I piece on a Viking Sapphire that is computerized and sews beautifully, but it does not FMQ as nice as my Juki, I really like to quilt with it. I love that I can stop with the needle down and leave the quilt in the machine and just start back up again. My Viking will reset when I do that, so I am happy to have 2 machines. I read your blog almost daily and have to say I like your writing style and I am learning alot from you. Thanks!!
    Cindy

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  3. I've heard that the Juki is terribly fast but everybody seems to LOVE it! Your quilt is wonderfully quilted and I agree that varigated threads can be a pain if the light is too light or the dark gets too dark. I don't like alot of variegated for this very reason.

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  4. I've never seen one here, spose they are but it's not quite a browsing thing, so i may have missed it, Tracey

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  5. Love my Juki too. Borrowed a friend's for 3 years, then bought my own and a frame too. Am buying a new longarm machine (larger), but thinking about keeping the Juki just because I love it. Love the speed, love what a workhorse it is and I do love it for piecing. You can't hurt it!

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  6. I also love my Juki and my Bernia. The Bernia I use for piecing and some samll quilting. The Juki I have on a grace frame and it is used only for quilting. Hasn't failed me yet! Always enjoy your blog. Thanks

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  7. A friend had a Juki and I used it for a number of quilts before my husband bought me a Babylock quilting machine. It is very similar to the Juki( has a built in thread cutter which the Juki didn't have) and is around the same price. I love the extended table and the bigger aperture that it has so managing a bigger quilt is easier than on a standard domestic machine. It has a walking foot and a darning foot( for free motion quilting). I am told that Brother makes exactly the same machine except that it has a different name on it. They are fast 1100 stitches a minute when you have the pedal going- which also makes free motion easier. When I do quilt on my other machine it feels really slow after using the other one.
    Happy quilting,
    Regards,
    Anna

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  8. The new Juki model, TL-2010Q has an additional sub-tension unit, and it also has a slide control so you can set it very slow, or full speed ahead, unlike th previous models. My friend just bought one, and that's what's new with Juki!

    I love my Juki too! I have a TL-98E.

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  9. I too have a Juki that I use for free-motion quilting and use my Bernina for piecing. The Juki is becoming very popular here in Pensacola, Fl.

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