Potential Used Serger Purchase -- Please Help

OK all, so the woman I love sews with this old piece of junk and is always swearing and what have you, and says she would like to get a serger but the ones she would buy cost around a grand...

SO I have the opportunity to buy one of two as a surprise gift:

a Bernina 11000 for $200 or an Elna Pro-5 Serger for around $300. Both claim to be in largely unused condition.

What I wonder is -- are these nice machines? Are they on par with new $1000-range type sergers even remotely? I can't seem to find out what they cost new, assuming that would sort of indicate their features/durability/etc.

Any help would be much appreciated

Reply to
jp
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Do not know what your financial position is, but if possible why not purchase both and let your good lady wife choose between the two. One can always sell on the machine not chosen on eBay or something, probably matching or maybe even making money on the deal.

Sergers are very hard to shop as a gift IMHO as they vary widely in quality and features. You really need to know what type of sewing a person does to make the right choice. There is also the fact some sergers drive their users mad, others never give any sort of problem. Threading seems to be one of the larger problems.

Best of luck,

Candide

Reply to
Candide

G'day jp

Not sure I can help other than to say get the one that is easier to thread...has differential feed...4 or 5 thread...auto tension...possibly has CoverStitch. These are the things I look for in a serger. Sorry I'm not familiar with either model you've mentioned so can't comment on either.

Br> OK all, so the woman I love sews with this old piece of junk and is

Reply to
HC

"jp" wrote

JP - You really need to know what her current serger does that drives her crazy and what features it doesn't have that she needs on a new one! I have an Elna Pro 5 (which is a 5 thread) and chose it because it was easier to thread than the other brands. However, mine is a later model which has a stitch finger that swings out of the way when I don't need it rather than having to get the tool kit out and change the stitch plate... It doesn't do a cover stitch which didn't matter to me but may matter to her. My advice would be the same as for buying a sewing machine for someone else - DON'T! Let her try both machines and decide whether either does everything she wants and needs.

Reply to
Chris Underwood

Don't buy either until you have considered these questions:

WHAT is she doing when her present machine drives her mad? If she does a lot of work on stretch knits, and is already using the correct needle, then maybe a serger is the way forward. If it's driving her batty no matter what she sews, maybe a new sewing machine would be better...

Is she sewing a lot of fairly simple shapes? A serger can certainly speed things up here, but they cannot do all things...

Is she sewing a lot of stuff that frays? Sergers can certainly help here!

The Bernina 1100D (I couldn't find an 11000 - are you sure it's not an

1100D?) is a good machine: sturdy workhorse, will go through most things she'll find in a domestic setting, and $200 sounds like a good price. See here:
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Just went and found a couple! :) Looks like an older machine, 4 thread, nothing fancy. You could probably get a better price than $200 for it, or look for a newer one at that price range. Again the Elna Pro-5 is an older machine, not part of the current range, and $300 seems a little steep, considering there's one on ebay that just went for $45!
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the ones that are in the thousand dollar range are there for several reasons: they do cover stitches, and take 5 (or more!) threads, and some of them have the free-arm feature, as well as differential feed. Does your wife want one with these features? Personally, as a professional sewist, I find the free arm (only on the Husqvarna and Janome TOTL machines) is a lot of use, but cover stitch is a pain, and I get better results with a twin needle in the ordinary machine, so I didn't upgrade to that feature when it came out. Hope this helps! :)
Reply to
Kate Dicey

Given that a serger and a sewing machine are two different kinds of machines that are designed for different jobs, for that price I'd get them both.

-Irene

-------------- You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.=20

--Mae West=20

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Reply to
IMS

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