Hello,
This is a bit different from my other posts: a sewing machine review.
The reason for it is that I bought a new sewing machine about 2 years ago and while Googling for potential new machines there were only a few posts about machines I was considering at least from people that had used the machine for a while.
So for those who are choosing a new machine to buy, I hope my thoughts will give you some additional help.
For background:
I’ve owned my old Pfaff sewing machine for about 15 years, the model is Select 1538 and the machine still works pretty well, but I sew a lot with stretchy fabric and I wanted something that had more options for sewing those. My old machine had one stitch length for stretch that worked well and sewing buttonholes to a stretchy fabric was a nightmare and I’m not even going to talk about sewing activewear or trying to use a double-needle. So I went to a sewing fair and tried as many machines as I could.
To be honest I already liked sewing with a Pfaff machine and I had bought extra (i.e. expensive) feet and other stuff for a Pfaff machine, so changing to another brand was unlikely. Why can’t everything be just compatible with other brands?
So in real life, this left me with 3-4 options (Pfaff Ambition series) and Pfaff Ambition 620 was in my price range. I bargained the price and got it a little cheaper, so that made me extra happy.
But to be sure I tried different machines just to get a feel of other brands. I liked machines from Juki and if I hadn’t bought all the extra expensive stuff for my old machine, it would’ve been on my list to consider.
All in all the machine is a good basic machine and I’ve sewn about weekly with it. I’ve used different fabrics and made easier and more difficult projects and these are my thoughts in no particular order.
- The stitch quality is normal and there are many options for stitches in stretch fabric and when hemming with a double needle, the stitches look so much better than from my old machine. This is one of my favorite things about my machine.
- The machine is simple enough to thread and threading the bobbin is quite quick IMO.
- Difficulty of setting the tension, width, and the length of the stitch varies. Sometimes the automatic settings are just right for the fabric, but other times it can various tries to get the tension and the pressure on the foot just right (this is where the user manual helps.)
- The machine is sturdy enough to sew fast and it has enough room to work with a bit larger project, like a handbag. I tried a machine from Bernina that I liked a lot, but the room between the body and the foot was much narrower.
- I also like that you can sew without a pedal and that helped a lot when sewing curtains and I really love PFAFF’s IDT-system.
- The lights are good and it helps at least here in Finland, when evenings are dark in the winter. I haven’t had to replace lights yet.
- Maybe the decorative stitching is a bit excessive, but at least it is fun.
So what I like a lot about my machine? (Besides the color 😊)
- The user manual was easy to read and understand, the pictures helped a lot and it took about two weeks to a month to learn to sew with an automatic machine instead. I read the manual a couple of times to learn how to use my machine properly. I haven’t opened the manual in a while and maybe I should, it would probably help with the settings.
- I love the automated finishing and cutting of the thread, even though I have to remember to clean it regularly.
- The buttonholes look neat even when sewn to a very stretchy and thin French terry.
- The machine can work through bulky fabric quite nicely, like my previous machine. It had trouble when sewing through four layers of thick canvas, even with a heavyduty needle, but I got my bags made.
What I don’t like?
- The pedal feels cheap, it is light and the electric cords are so thin compared to my old one. My pedal broke about a year after I bought the machine and I’m happy that I still had the warranty and I got it replaced. This time I’ve been extra careful with the pedal and it is still working.
- Buttons for reverse stitch and start/stop are located on the front of the machine and it is possible to accidentally hit those. Let’s say that accidentally reversing where you shouldn’t isn’t nice.
- Sometimes sewing a double-needle stitch to Lycra or some other stitch to slippery activewear makes the machine skip stitches. I’ve tried rethreading, super stretch needles and what has helped the most is using a stretchy thread in the bobbin.
- The feed dogs on the machine can scratch your fabric and that shows on very light fabrics or when sewing tracksuit fabric, so I learnt to be extra careful taking those projects out
- In the beginning I had trouble sewing buttonholes: the machine didn’t stop when needed and I had to redo some buttonholes on a viscose dress, that was a pain. So if I have a thin fabric or an expensive fabric, I try the buttonhole first on an extra piece, just to be sure that the buttonholes look good. I’ve had to change to my old machine two times to get the buttonholes right.
- Sometimes my machine gets cranky when after rethreading to a different color and it takes 4-6 attempts to rethread the upper thread and the bobbin thread to get the stitch right.
Hope this review helps, if you are considering a Pfaff machine.
Minttusuklaa
