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Group owned quilting machine?

Several of my guild friends and I are talking about buying a long arm quilting machine together. Mainly since not many of us have space to dedicate to such a large piece of equipment that is used possibly 2 times a month, nor want to make such a huge investment. It would be housed at a local Arts building for a nomimal rental fee, so no one house would be tied up with the machine. It would be for group's use only or possibly for others (after a training period, for a nominal hourly fee).....It would be X number of dollars to buy into the machine, with a limit of say 10 people, if you decide to leave then you could sell your interest with the approval of the rest of the group. Has anyone had any experience with such an endeavor? Mauvice

Reply to
mauvicem
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Absolutely! My DH and three friends went together to buy a fishing house in Mexico -- just for the use of the men when they wanted to fish and be grubby. Two of the friends have died, and we no longer live as close to the house as before. The remaining "friend" has now begun taking his wife down with him (she'd always sworn she had no interest in going there), so we're getting bills for amenities like curtains and rugs that were never part of the plan. In addition, when DH does get a chance to go there, he usually finds that the friend and wife are also going, so DH can't stay there. The wife also tried to make DH sign away his rights to the house, claiming that it was "just a formality" -- luckily, he may be trusting, but he's not quite that gullible. It's left a sour taste in our mouths, since we have no legal recourse without anything in writing.

Reply to
Sandy Foster

Howdy! What a great idea, Mauvice. Many, many good suggestions from this group.

More thoughts: Make sure that all the users/owners/investors know HOW TO USE that machine. How to perform light maintenance, how to change needles, thread, that kind of stuff, how to call for help, who to call for repairs. Have an introduction class and make sure every quilter "signs the pledge" before she/he is allowed to work with it. Keep food and drinks out of that area. Add to that slush fund for replacement items by charging a small fine for those who forget to clean up after themselves, who leave the machine in less than maximum condition. who forget to LOCK the DOOR! Have a 2 or 3 person inspection team that could change regularly. This can all be done in the friendliest manner, and will help insure that everyone remains friends. I'd keep this project separate from the guild because I know our guild doesn't need one more permanent responsibility, and some people take guild officer/committee positions way too seriously (controlling is the word that comes to mind); no need to organize all the fun out of this.

Btw, many of these same issues have to be considered by people who share cars, tools, community swimming pools, etc.. It can be done, it can be fun; organized but still fun. Good luck! Ragmop/Sandy

Reply to
Ellison

Reply to
mauvicem

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