630 or 440?

[Barbara B.]

Okay, I'm buying, probably this week, and need to decide between the 630 or 440--both are at good prices right now with a Holiday special.

I have no interest in embroidery and have used Bernina for 25 years, currently working with my beloved 1230. I want the BSR which is why I'm buying a new machine, and keeping the 1230 as a backup. 99% of my sewing is quiltmaking/piecing and making the occasional wearable art garment. I want to improve my machine quilting--my Achilles' heel at the moment.

So, pitch me--if you have either of these machines or made a similar decision what is your recommendation? And which feet can't you live without, besides the Patchwork and Walking feet, of course.

Thanks for your advice in advance.

Barbara

[Sherry B.]

Barb, there is a Yahoo group for people who own Berninas, from the 430 through the 730 and now 820/830. Anyway, that would be a great place to ask this question because it is a group for just Bernina owners. Here's the link: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/430_440_630_640_730/
I have a 170 and a 730 and love them both. I love the computerized screens. But is the 440 a 9mm or 5.5mm? I would choose the wider stitch because the decorative stitches are so much prettier. I always regretted that my 170 was a 5.5 mm. The other option would be a 640 and you would get the computerized screen and the wider stitch.

[Sherry B.]

Barb --
I was in basically the same predicament when I was ready to buy a Bernina. The machines are great, but I'm a firm believer in buying what you need, and Bernina seems to be making machines to create wants and not fulfill needs.

I'm not at all interested in embroidery with all those features or in a lot of decorative stitches. A few years back I ended up buying a 430 because it had the stitich regulator and quality I wanted, but not all the features I had no interest in. It was exactly what I needed for my sewing needs. I'm not sure whether or not the 430 is available, but the 440 is the next step up for quilters.

I think that you need to determine exactly how you intend to use the machine, then find the model that comes closest to fulfilling what you need in a machine. With the price of these machines in the stratosphere, it's important to understand what your sewing needs are rather than getting caught up in all the hype about the latest models. If money is no object, go for the moon. If it is an important consideration, set priorities. Bernina is a good investment, but you need to choose wisely.

[Sherry B.]

If you are not going for embroidery, then the only real difference between the two would be the number of decorative stitches, basically. Why not just buy the 430?

Post your question at BerninaCentral.com; another forum all about Bernina machines.

[Diana U.]

I can't speak to either of those models but only to the 5.5 vs 9.0 width. I have loved my 153 (5.5). My friend purchased the 180 (9.0) and even with the single hole throat plate hasn't felt that she got a good straight quilting stitch. This is mostly due to the 1/4" seam being pulled to one side by the feed dogs. Yes it has been to the shop. Be sure that you like the straight stitch with whichever model that you buy.
Diana

[Jo H.]

I have a 450 which is the 9mm model. It looks just like the 430 and 440 as far as the screen, but has the 9 mm stitch width.

It took me months to make a decision. Originally, I was going to get the 440 but the owner of the shop felt that I should be sure that the 5.5 mm would make me happy. She showed me the 640 which had a wonderful screen.

I had read about all of the folks that mentioned that the straight stitch wasn't a true straight stitch and frankly I was nervous that I was making a bad decision in getting a 9 mm even though the 9 mm stitches were beautiful.

Without me watching samples of the straight stitch was stitched on both machines and then given to me to compare. I could not tell the difference. Truly, I could not.

I ended up with the 450 because it gave me the 9 mm stitches, had a beautiful straight stitch AND (this is going to sound strange), but it was quieter when stitching. The 640 and the 630 that I tried didn't sound as nice as the 450.

It could be that I just bonded with that machine right off the bat. Whatever it was I love my machine and would never sell it. It is the best machine I have ever owned and I've owned a lot of different brands.

I hope you find the machine that is perfect for you.

JoJo

[Sherry B.]

JoJo, that was a great recommendation. I use the decorative stitches a lot for quilting (stitch over the ditch rather than in it) and I love the wider decorative stitches.

[Sherry B.]

It could be that I just bonded with that machine right off the bat. Whatever it was I love my machine and would never sell it. It is the best machine I have ever owned and I've owned a lot of different brands.

I hope you find the machine that is perfect for you.

JoJo

I don't think that's as daft as it sounds either. I know the feeling!

[Sherry B.]

I have the 440QE and have had a new lap top since the end of September. I finally have the Bernina software on BUT I cannot embroidery with it. The EC onPC with not work. I had someone work on my lap top yesterday for 2hours to try to get the connection from the lap top to the sewing machine. On the EC on PC the red comes on the picture of the laptop and is not connceted to the machine. Can not get to choose the hoop size.
And by the way I found out that the hoop 155x400 fits the 440EQ.
I was told where I bought my machine there was not one that large. Maybe its new? I don't know, I found a 25% off on the site and went to another dealer to order it.
(and I think the problem it with Vista with the EC on PC.) Not fixed yet, so much waisted time....Norina

[Sherry B.]

I had problems with my embroidery software and the Bernina 440QE using Vista. I have now solved the problem , if you go to the Bernina site there is a patch you can download that stopped my machine crashing part way through the embroidery. Hope this helps as I know how frustrating it can be when you are eager to start. By the way if for some reason your machine thinks its connection is not correct you need to turn off sewing machine and computer and start again. Good luck .

[Sherry B.]

Ok I don't want to sound stupid, but is the patch the same as the
"Installation EConPC Perfomance Fix"? I have tried this and it did not work.
I will go on the web and see if I can find a patch.....thanks.

[Liberata T.]

I absolutely loved my 630. I sat "loved" because I went for the 830, but that's another story. I went from the 170 to the 630 with the embroidery module even though, like you, I said I didn't want to do embroidery. I was torn between the 5.5mm & the 9mm for the deocorative stitch possibilities but did not like the wide feed for general quilting.

As to the embroidery module--I loved to do hand embroidery, cross stitch, and applique. But nature and getting older and years of computer usage at work made hand work painful. I started to use the embroidery module more and more. So I say to you, the 630 or 640 or 730 give you the option of adding the embroidery module in the future if not now. I say the same between the 820 and 830.

[Barbara B.]

Update--I bought the 630 and will pick it up in the next few days--it had to be ordered. The Holiday sales special was free BSR so the cost for the 630 was the same as what I had intended to pay for the 440--of course, the 440 is also on sale. And there is a 25% off coupon on the Bernina website--good for up to $400 worth of accessories--that is what my dealer is doing. There is also a $100 off coupon that she applied to the machine too. I got the walking foot, patchwork foot, #10 edgestitching foot, and the #32 7-groove pintuck foot to do Ricky's binding method.

The deciding factor was the comment that I would be able to save custom settings permanently--I lked that idea. And the buttonhole thing--the screen "reads" the size of the button and sets the buttonhole size--now that's too cool for words--I'm making a jacket soon so I'll test that out.

Thanks for the posts everyone--I love TQS!

BTW, I bought a rolling sewing machine trolley at Hancock's for easy transport--Friday morning they are at a great price, $24.99--I bought for 50% off yesterday, still a good price.

Happy Thanksgiving to all.

Barbara

[Barbara B.]

Wow Barbara! That sounds an impressive bunch of deals there!

I wish you all the best with your bonding, I'm sure you'll love it.

[Sherry B.]

Congrats, Barbara. I am so happy that you got such a good deal! I know you're going to love it!