The Sewing Place

Babylock or Juki

BenJM

Babylock or Juki
« on: January 27, 2018, 10:05:57 AM »
Hello ladies and maybe gentlemen?

I need some guidance, I learnt how as a kid with my mum who used to make clothes for a living anything from wedding dresses, to suits and everything down to underwear. I used to help and am really the only one in our family besides my grandmother who ever had interest in sewing.

I’ve been going on and off sewing for years I’ve a decent husky mechanical sewing machine that does the job from light weight to medium weight fabrics but is getting on now and I do want to replace at some point.

But the thing I’ve constantly hated is sewing knits on a standard sewing machine I want an over locker/top stitch machine, mum had one when I was a kid and I used to help get it ready by threading and adjusting tension on a terrifying industrial overlocker and I am finally in a position to actually plunk down the money for a machine (or machines) that can do what I want

I’ve narrowed it down to two a babylock evolve or evolution and a Juki MO-2000QVP

The babylock evolve/evolution is a nice machine, I’ve used it at the store the lovely lady walked me through a lot of the features and it’s a very nice machine super simple easy to thread easy to use the no tensioning feature is stunning and seems to work exceptionally well for the most part. Changing it over to a coverstitch is easy enough relatively simple and quick to thread. But it’s very very expensive and has features I just don’t believe I’ll ever use like the way stitch

The Juki, haven’t had a chance to use it just yet (I will soon though) the reputation are impeccable and this model has air threading for the loopers which is cool it does a lot of the same things as the babylock except the wave stitch and it’s almost half the price, it doesn’t do a cover stitch BUT I have used another Juki that is a straight up cover stitch and I would be happy getting that too and STILL be saving money over the babylock

The type of sewing I’ll be doing is mostly tshirts, knits, underwear, sports fabrics, technical fabrics, maybe some home decor things like a jumbo outdoor bean bag, a few pillows. It’ll also be used with other woven fabrics and the top stitch will be used in a lot of wovens. I haven’t any real intention of sewing womens clothes since well I haven’t got one of those haha and this is primarily for me because I’m sick of clothes that look like crap and fall apart

So to anyone who has both or used both or used either or has opinions or advice I’d be very willing to hear. I’m not super keen on getting a cheap machine since it wont be an “upgrade later” more a “use it for 10 to 15 years” situation so any thoughts or ideas would be much appreciated

Morgan

Re: Babylock or Juki
« Reply #1 on: January 27, 2018, 12:14:17 PM »
Consider getting the Juki and if later on you decide to get a coverstitch, look at the Janome.
I've had a Babylock Evolution for a while.  The reason I bought it was because of all the coverstitch options around at that time, the Evolution's coverstitch feature needed the least messing about and working around the tension issues.  The down side of it is the tiny space to the right of the needle and the wide foot that becomes necessary because of the width of the feed dogs.  Wide feet when overlocking require a bit more mastery and control when stitching curves.
I'd got thoroughly fed up with my previous coverstitch option and as I have a 2nd overlocker, I was prepared to put up with having less control over the overlocking stitches compared with overlockers where you have independent control over each thread tension.

Since then, coverstitch options have improved a great deal and if in the market now, my choice Would be one of the Juki overlockers with a Janome 2000CPX for the best of all worlds.
For a long time I favoured the Bernina 1150MDA as my favourite overlocker, but now I've been won over by the Juki.


I still have my first, old, dinky little Bernina overlocker as a 2nd machine and it works like a dream.





« Last Edit: January 27, 2018, 12:17:53 PM by Morgan »

maliw

Re: Babylock or Juki
« Reply #2 on: January 27, 2018, 15:08:42 PM »
I have the Babylock Imagine 2 and I've had it for about 4 years now. I really like it but the Juki ones seem to have a good reputation.
At leisure on the leisure penninsula

Francesca

Re: Babylock or Juki
« Reply #3 on: January 27, 2018, 15:53:40 PM »
I have a Juki MO644D and I adore it. I'd most definitely recommend Juki.

Roger

Re: Babylock or Juki
« Reply #4 on: January 27, 2018, 16:50:11 PM »
I have heard that Juki make babylock and that it’s one of their brands. Both have excellent reputations and are supposed to be brilliant machines although I see more Juki machines being used for teaching than BL...

I own a Juki but haven’t used it yet! (Bad)
A bit of a vintage sewing machine nut! Singers: 500a, 401g, 48k Elnas: lotus SP & grasshopper, Bernina 530-2 F+R 504, Pfaff 30, Cresta T-132

BenJM

Re: Babylock or Juki
« Reply #5 on: January 28, 2018, 11:36:22 AM »
Seems like Juki is definitely the go with a cover stitch. It doesn’t surprise me I’ve been reading nothing but good thing about them and they are a very very good price. I look forward to getting to play with one in a few weeks and finally making the decision.

Thank you for commenting guy, it’s much appreciated especially Morgan regarding the evolution small throat space, they have another model that adds a few hundred dollars and increases that space but there I absolutely no way i’d Pay the price they are asking for it. I hadn’t considered the wide box feed, definitely something to think about on that front considering how many arm holes i’ll End up overlocking heh

As to Juki and babylock, I’ve heard lots of things from being made in the same factory as bernina, being branded babylock, being new and the underdog. You just never know what to believe except they have been around for decades as industrial machines mum used to have a really old lock stitch from Juki but I can’t remember what it was used for

Surest1tch

Re: Babylock or Juki
« Reply #6 on: January 28, 2018, 15:54:40 PM »
The Juki every time

Bodgeitandscarper

Re: Babylock or Juki
« Reply #7 on: January 28, 2018, 16:03:20 PM »
I don't have personal experience, but I've heard people find changing from overlock to coverstitch on one machine can be a right nuisance.  If/when you go for a seperate coverstitch, I can highly recommend the BabyLock BLCS2, much much better than the Janome 1000cpx which skipped stitches a lot.

Pixie

Re: Babylock or Juki
« Reply #8 on: January 30, 2018, 19:15:15 PM »
Agree with bodgeit....just upgraded my Janome for the Babylock coverstitch....and no more skipped stitches hooray!
Pfaff Performance 5, Brother Innovis V3, Bernina Overlocker, Janome TXL607, Babylock BLCS, Toyota Oekaki Renaissance, Bernina 830

BenJM

Re: Babylock or Juki
« Reply #9 on: February 15, 2018, 09:10:25 AM »
Thought I’d update you guys on my thought process.

I played with the Juki MO-2000, it performs as nicely as the babylock and didn’t take much to get the tension right anyway. It was fast and solid and relatively quiet. It was simple to change stitch types and retread needles.

Also got to play with some janome cover stitch and it wasn’t the one for me, it seemed fiddly and not “me friendly” but the lady showing it used it like it was the easiest machine in the world. But I did play with the Juki cover stitch and between the two while no stitch was exactly straight and true the Juki seemed to produce better stitches more even and more pleasant to look at. Also played with a babylock cover stitch and it was smack on with the Juki but more expensive and while the babylock looked nicer I’ll get the Juki cover stitch.

Stupidly I also looked at a sewing machine from Juki.. I just suddenly felt like a Juki fanboy

Anyway I can’t buy the overlocker yet need to not send my self broke on a holiday that’s coming up so will likely get the overlocker next month

Also collecting parts for a desk.. but that’s another story

I am rather surprised in stitch quality though and how much it can vary from machine and brands considering what it does you’d think that would be at the top of a manufacturers list

toileandtrouble

Re: Babylock or Juki
« Reply #10 on: February 15, 2018, 09:54:24 AM »
Yes, I'd expect stitch quality to be top too.  However, having bought a new Pfaff ' off the shelf', I was amazed when I took it in for a service later, it ran like a Rolls Royce.  The service man says they do not 'tune them up' when they come out of the factory. If it was my business, that is the first thing I would do and expect it to impact on sales. Less glossy advertising please, and more common sense.
Yarn down:  1000g
Fabric down:  29m

Francesca

Re: Babylock or Juki
« Reply #11 on: February 15, 2018, 10:09:18 AM »
Interesting! I admit I don't take my machines for servicing regularly at all. There is only one place nearby and it's horrible, did me out of a lot of money and has a terrible reputation (I only found out afterwards). I would personally only ever have my machines serviced in Tunbridge Wells but it involves driving down two weekends in a row so I can drop off and collect and I'm rarely driving to Kent regularly like that, usually just a flying visit a few times a yea.