My sewing machine is going for a service on Monday

[nickelbabe]

:(
I think the belt's fucked, so I'm taking it in to be serviced.
They said their backlog is 7-10 days, so I'll be without a machine for over a week! :(

I can't sew with it how it is, because the belt is slack and carries on sewing after I've taken the foot off the pedal. And it's making the most ear-bursting whining noise (yes, the machine, not DD!)

so annoyed.
annoyed with the machine in general at the moment - little bits are going wrong here and there. It was last serviced in 2005, so it's time for a professional service

But I wonder if it might be worth me buying another machine for "spares", for when I get annoyed with this one, for more fancy stitches (mine's a 1960s Jones and only does straight and zigzag (okay ,the manual says you can do almost anything with that zigzag, but I'm not that clever)
what do you think?
I always said that if I ever get another machine, it would be a proper clever expensive and heavy duty machine, which would set me back about £300 to be worth replacing this one. (no point replacing it with something that's just the modern version of it)

A back up is a good idea if you do a lot of sewing but would you really use a lot of decorative stitches after the first novelty has worn off?

I have two sewing machines. I find it really useful. Not just as having a back up but, for example, if I'm quilting I can leave that machine set up for it and do other sewing on the second one.

starfish - no, i wouldn't use the fancy stitches at all probably

it was the only thing i could think of to set my machine apart from one of an equivalent standard in a modern machine.
i would love a back up, but i don't know if "back up" is a good enough reason.

how much do you think i should spend on a back up?

crafty - good point, actually, quite often i have to switch between thread and it gets annoying to keep switching it over and then back again.

and switching between styles and weights of fabric.

ooh, and knitted and woven. (swapping needles then having to get a new needle because i'm not sure how old it was, when i could get another 3 or 4 garments out of a needle if i didn't swap it)

My 'normal' machine is a Janome 8077 and was about £250 when I bought it.

My second machine is a Janome one, can't remember the model number but it's more aimed at quilters. It was £349 iirc but it was a refurb one so was worth more. I really bought it to use as my main machine (I do more quilting than dressmaking/general crafts) but then I found it was useful to use it at quilting class and in between, while taking the other one to sewing class.

my normal machine was about £20 new

my overlocker's a janome, so it might be worth looking at those.

i could have a look in the shop when i take mine in...

Hi all, if you are in or near North East London I have a friend who services sewing machines, she doesn't charge very much, she also sells and buys second hand machines. PM me for details!

i'm in Kent :)

i'm bidding on this on ebay

didn't win :(

i found this though

it's my exact machine! (with the original wooden cover on the drawer on the right - mum lostthat years ago!)

different case though

update

I took the machine in, and the belt problem was fixed in about 3 minutes by the lady at the Maidstone Sewing Centre (on Union Street) - she moved the bracket that holds the engine, which also holds the little wheel that joins the belt to the big wheel.
Amazing stuff! (that wasn't in the manual)
and then she played around with it for a minute and announced that the bobbin case was knackered, and needed to be replaced (the little screw that tightens the thread was just gone completely - thread or something - (the screw was there just knackered))
we chatted about machines for a bit, and she said if I did want a second machine that the Brother A10 was the best one for my requirements.

£9 that cost me (and she only charged for the part - the bobbin case)
then I wandered round and bought a marking pen, some needles and a ham

I was desperate for a ham, but didn't want to because I didn't know whether I should (naughty naughty) but I really, really wanted one.
So I bought it,.
Final bill after that was £29.