[Home] [Gammill
Machines]
[FAQ] [Quilting
Supplies] [Statler Stitcher] [Stencil]
[Services] [price] [News] FAQ
2. How long does it take to complete a king-size quilt Length of time to complete a king-size quilt would depend on the style of quilting and complexity of the pattern (i.e., number of stitches), as well as the experience of the operator. For example, if doing an overall pantograph pattern of average complexity, the operator could complete the quilt in just a couple of hours, whereas a custom quilt requiring various machine quilting techniques and/or close stippling could take a full day. 3. How long does it take to complete a king-size quilt A king-size quilt can be completed on a 12' stand. A 14' stand would be needed to complete a king-size bedspread due to its larger size. 4. How big does my room need to be? All models come on stands that are either 12 or 14 feet in length. (With Classic and Optimum size machines, you have your choice.) Your room should be long enough to allow passage around at least one end of the stand, taking into account an additional 6" for handwheels/hardware. (The other end of the stand can be put against a wall, if necessary.) As for width, since long-arm models can be operated from both the front and back of the machine, your room should be wide enough to allow you to comfortably work from either side of the stand. We would recommend having a minimum of about 8 feet in width for most models. (If your room is not wide enough, you could add our optional castors to the stand legs, allowing you to reposition the stand closer to one wall or the other, depending on which side of the machine you're using.) 5. Can you make a custom size stand to fit my room? Yes, we can make custom stand lengths to your specification if standard sizes are too long. (There is a nominal customization fee to make an odd size stand.) Of course, the shorter the stand, the smaller the maximum size of the quilt you can complete on it. We would not suggest going any shorter than 10' in length, unless you plan to do only baby quilts or wall-hangings. 6. If another brand machine is more expensive than yours, does that mean it is better quality? We believe that our machine is the best value on the market. There are other brand machines priced higher than ours that do not match ours in quality of materials, workmanship and features. Because we are familiar with most every brand available (since we are often asked to accept them as trade-ins), we can state with confidence that higher price does not equate to better quality. We would strongly encourage anyone shopping for a quilting machine to try out the various brands before making a decision. A hands-on comparison of the different machines can be done here at our showroom in West Plains, Missouri, where we have trade-ins of every major brand on hand - including recent versions and new introductions. Otherwise, all manufacturers are represented at the major quilt shows. We would suggest you attend one of these shows, stop by each manufacturer's booth and ask to operate the machine for yourself. (Our machines can also be tried at our authorized dealer locations, although dealers generally do not accept other brands as trade-ins.) 7. Why do you think a die-cast head is better than one that's welded? Like every professional and industrial sewing machine manufacturer, we have our heads die-cast rather than welded. We believe a die-cast head provides more precision in parts alignment than welding ever could, since welding involves heating and cooling (expansion and contraction) of materials. (Until 1989, we too had a welded machine before switching to the more professional and improved die-cast method.) 8. Why don't you have your machine head made in the U.S.? At the present time, the industrial factories where solid die-casting (not 2 piece) is done are located abroad. However, ask any manufacturer where the important sewing mechanism parts for their machines are made (i.e., sewing hook, bobbin case, tensions, needle bar, take-up lever, etc.), and they should all answer "Asia" - even if the shell of their machine is made in the U.S.A. Our all-steel stands are built in the U.S. Motors, electronics and many parts on our machines are installed here in West Plains, Missouri. Since the majority of our total product is made in the U.S., and enough work is done to the heads stateside, our machines are NAFTA certified. 9. Is the weight of the machine an issue I should care about? Not in our estimation. Our best selling long-arm heads weigh from 45 to 68 pounds. Although there are machines on the market that weigh less than ours, we consider our machines the proper weight to give the operator the stability needed when the machine is moved to the widest point in the carriage -- without having to use an awkwardly designed track system in an effort to provide more stability. With our incomparably smooth wheel and track system, an operator can guide our machine with only two fingers. Finally, there are very few occasions when the head would need to be removed from the stand anyway. 10. What are ergonomically designed handles? Ergonomic design means conditions best suited to the worker. Our handles are positioned for the most comfortable operation of the machine, as well as to allow for visibility of the needle. 11. Why do machine manufacturers' warranties seem to vary so greatly? We encourage you to request a written copy of the manufacturer's warranty before making any purchase. Our warranty is one year against mechanical or electrical defect, with three years free in-shop service (our service center or a dealer location). Our warranty against mechanical or electrical defect is for one year because any manufactured defect would exhibit itself during that time period. If you'll read the fine print on some of our competitors' warranties, you'll find their deceptively generous warranty is only on the external shell of the machine - not on the mechanics or electrical, which at the time of this writing, is comparable to ours. We see no reputable or valid reason to warranty the shell of our machine "10" or "20" years, even though we could. 12. How does your double-capacity bobbin work? Our patented Automatic Thread Escapement system allows us to use the double-capacity "M" style bobbin in our machines. Since it releases all stress on the thread as it passes through the escapement, superior stitch quality is achieved regardless of speed. 13. How do I know which model best suits my needs? The throat space on each model determines capacity for piece size, batting thickness, and pattern width. Since we offer four long-arm sizes and a short-arm model, there's a Gammill machine to fit every need and budget. If you're planning to machine quilt as a business, we would recommend either the Classic or Optimum size machine. The Classic's 26" by 10" throat space is large enough to handle any quilt a client might ask you to do. The Optimum's larger 30" by 12" throat would be better suited to the quilter who also does bedspreads (which are larger than quilts and use thicker batting), the quilter who prefers wider patterns and a larger work area, or the quilter who simply wants to roll up the fabric less often. Our smallest long-arm, the Premier 18-8, is generally sufficient for the person who's just quilting for family and friends, or doing limited business. (A king-size quilt can be done on the Premier if thin batting is used.) However, if quilting as a business, you would encounter some limitations with this model with regard to pattern width, piece size and batting thickness, due to its smaller 18" by 8" throat space. Our largest long-arm models, the Supreme 36-14 and Supreme Plus, are designed for the large decorator workroom doing mass production bedspreads (channel, outline or simple pantograph). Their extra large 36" by 14" throats are greater than someone making quilts would need or want for doing the intricate patterns usually desired on quilts. Our short-arm model, the Homecraft, is designed for doing narrow (6" wide) pantograph patterns on up to queen-size quilts. Its throat space is that of a standard industrial sewing machine - 11" by 5.5". This machine does not have nearly the capacity or versatility of a long-arm model, but it does an excellent job at what it can do, and is a comparably inexpensive way to start machine quilting. 17. If my machine should ever need service, where do I take it? We and/or our dealers offer toll-free technical support six days a week. Part of the training we provide with personal delivery is on the maintenance of the machine, and our machines come with an easy-to-follow Technician's Service Manual. If you were ever to encounter a service issue we couldn't address by phone (which would be unusual), we would ask you to bring or ship the head to our service center or to your dealer's shop for service. Otherwise, because our machines are made with standard industrial sewing machine parts, anyone knowledgeable in working on industrial sewing machines should have the know-how to work on ours. (If you ever took the machine to a local repairman, our Lead Technician would want to speak with him first.) 18. Should I buy from a dealer or direct? Customers can purchase from any authorized Gammill dealer or direct from our Company. Machine prices are the same whether you buy from a dealer or direct. (There could be differences in charges for shipping and/or delivery, set-up and training.) Due to the specialized nature of our product, our dealers are generally quite distant from one another and are willing to cover broad areas for delivery. If you live near a dealer, it could be advantageous for you to purchase through this dealer for convenience, future training opportunities, or service availability, if ever needed. But if you prefer the services offered by another dealer or want to purchase direct or any reason, you are free to do so.
19.
How can you offer
personal delivery,
set-up and training,
instead of just shipping
by truck linelike most other
manufacturers?
Due to
the number of machines
we sell nationwide, we
are able to offer
personal delivery for a
reasonable charge by
batching our deliveries
by direction. With
personal delivery, our
Delivery Technicians (or
dealers)
will set up the machine
and stand for the
customer and provide
on-site training on the
basic operation of the
machine. To supplement
the training we provide upon delivery, we invite
our direct customers to
come to our showroom for
an intermediate class at
no charge. (We require
our dealers to offer
personal delivery to
their customers, as
well, and provide them
training opportunities.)
Although our machines
come with an excellent
instructional video for reference, we find that
nothing can beat some
hands-on training when
someone is first getting
started. Our stitch regulator is a built-in feature on our "Plus" line of machines introduced in Spring 2001. The Classic Plus, Optimum Plus and Supreme Plus are essentially stitch-regulated versions of our conventional deluxe line, but with a few extra features in addition to the stitch regulator. On our Plus machines, stitch length (i.e., number of stitches per inch) is selected from a display panel at either end of the machine. Encoders in the wheels signal the motor to speed up or slow down based on the operator's movement, so even stitch length is achieved regardless of whether the operator is moving the machine at a perfectly consistent speed. There were other stitch regulators on the market before ours. We worked with several electronics engineers before finding the one who was able to design and develop the product we wanted for our machine. We could have introduced a stitch-regulated machine sooner that would have been similar to others, but we wanted to wait until we had a stitch regulator that was superior in performance, simplicity of operation and noise level, and had some added features to further distinguish ours from the rest. These added features unique to our Plus line include a low bobbin alert, "stop-sew" sensor, run-time clock and dual channel locking system (horizontal and vertical). 21. Does your machine have any patented features? Yes. We have patents on six features, three of which are our Automatic Thread Escapement, Variable Stroke Hopping Foot and Auxiliary Intermittent Tension. 22. How long does it take to get the fabric pinned and set up to quilt? Initially, it takes a new machine quilter 20-30 minutes to get the fabric pinned. Speed and agility come with repetition and reduce the prep time to 12-15 minutes. 23. In choosing a quilting machine, how important should a manufacturer's experience be in making my decision? We consider experience one of our greatest assets. While employing the expertise of world-renowned electronics engineers to keep our brand at the forefront of new technological developments, Ken Gammill knows the mechanics of quilting machines better than anyone, having been in the sewing and quilting machine business his entire adult life. Together with our well trained staff, we have over 100 years experience designing, selling and servicing sewing and quilting machines. 24. How much money can I make machine quilting? The amount of money a person can make machine quilting will vary due to their location, the type of work clients are willing to pay for, and how many hours a machine quilter can devote to their business.
Our
customers tell us
consistently they are
booked ahead weeks or
even months with orders.
Quilting in
general has steadily
increased in popularity
over the years -- and
continues to do so as
more folks decorate
with quilts and pursue
quilting as a hobby. So,
the more pieced tops
done, the more there are to be machine quilted!
In addition, machine
quilters are not
restricted to just their
own geographic area for
their client base. Many
people are willing to
send their quilt tops
great distances to be
quilted due to a certain
machine quilter's
reputation for creative
work, the lack of
machine quilters in
their area or too long a
waiting period.
Many
machine quilters rely on
machine quilting as
their primary source of
income. We have numerous customers who've left
professions to stay at
home for one reason or
another, yet still
needed to generate some
degree of income. As a
cottage industry,
machine quilting is an
ideal pursuit to allow someone to "be their own
boss", and take on as
much or as little
workload as they want to
stay busy. [Gammill
machines] [Gammill features]
[compare brands] [stands]
[service] |
