Thursday, December 10, 2009

Sewing Machines

A few weeks ago, I started looking at a new sewing machine. We had around $150 for me to spend on a new machine, but it had to come from Walmart, as $100 of that was on a gift card. I did my research, I looked at the models, the reviews, and asked for advice.

I finally settled on the Brother CS-6000i model, which did have several bad reviews, but had almost 300 5 star reviews. It looked like the best machine for the money I had to spend. I ordered it last week, and it arrived finally last night.

I spent the night setting it up, and looking at the manual, then finally sewed with it for the first time today. I made an adorable Santa hat, similar to the one Tim Allen wears in Santa Clause, where the hat is gathered on one side. It turned out great!

Then, I started an apron for Gillian for Christmas to go with her Easy Bake oven. It stitched beautifully, including some decorative stitches. I added a ruffle, and one side did not want to stay down, so I sewed a straight line down it, to keep it down.

That's when it happened. A grinding sound, followed by a locked up machine, and a flashing E6 error message. I looked in the manual, and found it just meant tangled thread. Ok, no problem. I cut away the threads, cleared the tangles, and tried again. Again, a grinding sound and a locked up machine, this time with a severely bent needle.

I changed the needle, the thread, and the bobbin. I tried again. Over and over I tried. I switched materials. I just kept getting that horrible sound, and a mass of tangled thread.

It took me almost 10 minutes to locate a phone number on Brother's web site (by the way, if you miss read the first 3 digits as 866 instead of 877, you'll get a very nasty porn phone center, just so you know). I got a guy who simply referred me to another part of the manual, and brushed me off the phone in under 2 minutes. Poor customer service- he should have waited while I did that, and assisted me further. My husband is tech support, I know how they SHOULD respond.

Anyway, I did what the manual showed, which was cleaning out the bobbin casing, and removing parts to clean further in case any tangles were in there. I tried it- it still did locked up.

I had to leave and get Gillian off the bus, and when I came back, I called again. I was told the only answer now is to take a BRAND NEW sewing machine in to be fixed. I was assured it would be free. Luckily, there is a service center in Lansing.

I called the service center, got their hours, and asked how long it would take. 2 weeks, minimum. I started crying. Here I am with a brand new sewing machine, and I can't use it. I can return it, and try another model, but we can't afford to pay for a better model, and it's useless to buy a cheaper one. Out of the 3 Walmart.com had in the $150 range, this one had the best reviews, by far. Besides, they don't carry anything decent in the store, so I would have to order it- taking at least a week to arrive.

I really do not want to be without a machine for 2 weeks. I have sewing I've been putting off for Christmas because my old machine is horrible, and has issues all the time. I get fed up with it.

So, here I sit, extremely unhappy with my brand new sewing machine, and I have nothing I can do about it.

6 comments:

Turtles In Northern Florida said...

Ugh I am SO sorry this happened! If you lived closer I would let you borrow one of mine. (((((((Hugs))))))))

The Sheppard Bunch said...

Can you return it and then buy another one of the exact same model? That way you don't have to wait 2 weeks for it to be fixed and you get the same one? Not sure if this is doable but it might be worth a try!

Expressions by Heather said...

I've decided to return it outright, and go to JoAnn's, which has a much bigger selection in stock. That way, I can pick it up outright.

Returning it for the same model means ordering it, and at this point, I'm not sure I -want- the same model, if it was so easily broken.

On the plus side, after letting it set, it let me sew again tonight. Still don't wanna keep it, though.

JoAnn's has some Singer's on sale, down from $180 to $145, and so far, it has good reviews (fingers crossed- so did this one!)

Heather

Rhonda said...

I am sorry and I do feel your pain.
Sewing machines just don't seem to made too well right now.
I needed a new and hubby ordered me a $300 Singer from HSN. Just likes yours, it worked great for a week, then goofed up. I've been sewing for 40+ years and know how to do all the minor things to get a machine to work right but I could not get that Singer to work. So, it had a money back 30 guarantee so I boxed it up and sent it back.

At a small local store in my town, I just got a Necchi - not a brand you hear of much. The owner is a very sweet trustworthy lady and she highly recommended it . They were not high priced and I got the top of the line one, $450 - so far, it is working great.

My Necchi is all metal parts and no computer. I think the old - ones are better than than the new plastic computerized ones.

Have you put out a request on freecyle or Craigs list? You never know, someone just might have a machine they need to get rid of.

Rhonda said...

PS I agree with Heather - I think you should just return that machine for a refund and look into a different make/model

Donna said...

I have a Janome- the quilter's machine- just simple- under 200 and it runs like a Cadillac and has for several years.

I had a White Jeans Machine (gift)- horrible, bad reviews too. Traded it in for this Janome at Hancock's and I discovered how much I could REALLY sew! lol Well, before that, I thought it was just me, but it was all the bad machines that I had sewed on.

Best wishes! -and happy sewing!!