When I bought my business in 2006 it came with an Amaya 16-needle machine which is completely adequate for my retail shop. I have paid several thousand dollars in repair over the past two years and am ready to look at alternatives, namely trading my (2004) Amaya on a different machine. Service after the sale is very important to me, as is the ease of maintenance and versatility of the machine. Does anybody know if there might be a side-by-side comparison of machines that might help me make an informed decision?
I was trying to see if a trade show might be near you in the near future, but can't seem to find one. This is the best place to find out all about the different machines. There was one in Schaumburg, IL about a week or so ago. I have a Tajima Neo-2 and it is a workhorse. I did over 3 million stitches on it this weekend alone and it is a single head, 15 needle machine.
Best thing is to attend a trade show.
ISS Atlanta is in September and ISS Ft. Worth is October.
If you can make the trip to either show you will see most all of the brands.
Well worth the time and money to attend.
I strongly suggest the trade shows. I wish I would have attended even one before I purchased my used Big Red Amaya from Beacon Funding off of usedequipment.com. I would not suggest that route to anyone. I was promised a lot of things that did not transpire. Although my machine has been working well so far, there is a lot of training and maintenance that I could have received with my machine had I bought it from Melco. I wanted to purchase a machine that was portable, and I was told the machine I have was portable, I still laugh about that, because the only thing you could honestly say would be portable are the wheels on the base.
Hi Betty,
I bought my first embroidery machine about 18 months ago. In addition to attending trade shows, I googled "embroidery machine reviews" and similar wording to help in the decision-making process. I would recommend prioritizing your criteria (price, durability, reliability, quality of embroidery, sewing field, nearest service availability, etc.). Since I am in a fairly isolated area, reliability was at the top of my priority list. I was willing to pay more for a top-rated machine in that area. I ended up with a Barudan single head machine, and due to workload bought a 6 head Barudan after being in business 3 months. Thus far, the only time I've had the service guy at my shop is to set up the machines when new. I've made some adjustments myself when necessary, with very prompt help over the phone. I'm very happy with my choice. Good luck.
Give Alex Alarcon a call. He sells Happy equipment out of Maple Grove, MN. Website is Alarcon & Co., Inc.
He's a crabby guy, but he seriously knows his embroidery machines and I've yet to meet a better technician.
Also you might want to check out the DAX show held every March in/near Minneapolis. I personally enjoy messing with the stiffs manning the Tajima booth.
Embroidery Machine Comparison 
