SINGERHeavy Duty 4411 Sewing Machine with 11 Built-In Stitches, Accessory Kit, Includes 9 Presser Feet, Twin Needles, & Case - Sewing Made Easy

Why did you pick this product vs others?:Good starter machine. Does everything you need for a beginner sewer.

Why did you pick this product vs others?:My wife picked this machine out and she loves it.

I love this machine, it glides through stitches like a hot knife through butter. The feeder teeth give good traction and move the material through the machine perfectly.Even jean material. I had a 25 year old Kenmore sewing machine before I bought this one. I had never tried a singer machine before. My mother who went to school for sewing, at the fashion institute of New York, says that Singer is an excellent brand. So I bought this one after reading a lot of Amazons reviews and talking to her. I used to have such a hard time taking up jean pants on my Kenmore. Whenever I would get to the seam on the jeans, I would have to turn the needle manually, while hold the presser foot in the furtherest up position. This machine went right over the jean seams like it was not even there. It didn't get stuck, it didn't slow down, it didn't even sound strained at all. It just plowed right through it, like a champ. Love it.I love the fact that it does not have one of those computer screens on it as well. Those are annoying.This machine is easy to use, once you read the manual. I sat down and read the manual in about 45 minutes, from cover to cover. The manual has clear pictures and step by step instructions for threading the machine. Once I followed the instructions it was a piece of cake.This machine also has the option to turn off the feeding teeth. Which is new. My last machine did not have that option and I could see that being a useful feature.The thread spool sits on it side instead of upright which was new to me as well. One thing I had a momentarily problem with was, the spools thread holder slot on the top of the spool, caught the thread and then caused the thread to break mid sewing. If you encounter this problem turn the spool around and it solves the problem.The machine uses standard bobbins so I am able to use all my bobbins from my old machine which was nice. However all of my pressure feet from my old machine do not fit on this model. The needle size on this machine is 90/14, if you were wondering what size you need for this model.The adjustment dials on the machine are solid and well made. I am very happy with my purchase and hope this machine will last me for years to come. I will tell everyone I know who sews about this great machine.___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________I just received the following product question about the warranty on this model."How long is the warranty of this machine? And if this product need to be shipped to Australia, can I get the warranty in Australia then?"Here is my answer.I just pulled out the warranty info on this machine, to look at, so I can answer your questions. The paper work says that it has a 25 year Limited Warranty. It says that the Sewing machine head is covered for 25 year for manufacturing defects. It has a limited 2 year warranty on the Motors, light assembly, wiring, switches, speed control and electronic components. It has a 90 day warranty on adjustments, belts, rings , bulbs and attachments.As for you second question, I do not know if Amazon or anyone else ships to Australia. You would have to go the website you wish to buy it from and try it. If they ship to your county, I would think they would allow the purchase to go through and block your purchase if they do not ship there.Your third question, can you get the warranty in Australia? Yes and no. The warranty is a contract that is legal binding that says that they will replace or repair you machine for defects. But they do not cover damage to the product. So if you or someone else or something else damages the machine (ex. tree falls on it) it is not covered. These damages could be covered home owners insurance, so check your policy. More examples of things not covered are drink spills, throwing it into a lake or dropping it. I know this because I used to be a warranty specialist at IBM (And yes, sometimes people really do throw their things into a lake.) But if your sew machine is defective they have to fix it or replace it. Here in the US they have approved repair shops in all 50 states for singer machines. I do not know if you have one where you are located. If it needs repair, you would most likely have to pay to mail it back to the US or Canada for repairs. Since this machine is so heavy, it would most likely be a better deal for you to buy a new one, then send it for repairs.If the machine is dead on arrival, send it back to Amazon, they are very good about returns and will refund you money with out much problems. Sorry I can't be more help about shipping practices, but I am just a person who bought the machine and used it. I do not work for Amazon. I do not work for anyone. I am a stay at home Mom.

Easy to set up and use

I have a Pfaff quilters machine that died and needs parts. It is going to cost about double the cost of this machine to repair it. So I figured what the heck. I've been sewing since grade school in the 1960s and have used all sorts of machines. I also worked at a fabric store for a number of years. I have some advice for the beginner. Various reviews of this machine complain about some problems I thought I'd speak to here.This is a nice little machine. Initially even I had trouble with it. Discovered that the threading instruction picture in the instruction book is a bit tricky. Don't forget to thread the little bracket that is above the needle. It is step 7 in the book, but not obvious in the picture and not obvious on the machine. The thread first goes through the fairly obvious metal holder in step six, then it needs to go in that little tiny bracket, a small piece of metal that is laying on top of the needle mount. If you don't thread that, the thread will ball up underneath and mess up your sewing and lock up. I suggest stopping at a Joann Fabrics where they sell this machine and ask someone to show you if you can't find it. that's what I ended up doing.Also for the beginner, Singer machines in particular can also tangle the thread if you don't gently hold the ends at the beginning of a seam. Sometimes, it will pull the thread down into the bobbin area and lock up. This is solved simply by holding the ends for the first couple of stitches. Eventually, after you've had to rip out a few balled up seams, you remember.I made a heavy vinyl pouch with it as my first project, and it handled the vinyl really well. The feeddogs struggled a bit with the weight of the fabric, pulling it out of line, so I had to put the weight of the fabric on a chair so it didn't pull. Another tip for the beginner, always stop the machine with the needle in the fabric. You do this by stopping and quickly turning the wheel to get that needle back in the fabric.Another tip here to any new sewer. First take the original needle out of that machine and throw it away. You have no idea what kind of shape it is in. Open the packet of needles that are in the little door in the free arm and use a fresh needle. Sharp needles are critical to any project. And they only stay sharp for a few projects at most.When you are working with heavy fabric like vinyl or denim, you need to use a heavy duty needle, especially if you are going through four layers of denim. Check them out at the fabric store. Get the type of needle that matches your type of fabric. If you are not sure, ask. And sew through the thick parts very slowly, sometimes you may need to manually insert the needle and pull it up to get through a lot of layers properly to get the machine going. Take your time.Knits need different needles, sometimes, a ballpoint needle that passes between fibers instead of splitting them as you sew. Fine fabrics also need different needles and they must be very sharp.Whenever the stitching balls up under your piece, it is likely because the top or bobbin is threaded wrong. Make sure the thread is coming off the bobbin with the loose thread pointing to the left. It can be a bad needle. It can be a tension problem or a bad match between needle and fabric. If the stitches seem really tight, the tension can be turned a half number either way and solve the problem, but only after you have ruled out the other problems. IT happens to the best of us so don't get discouraged. Imagine me going into my old store to have them show me how to thread a machine. : )Beyond all that, I liked sewing with this machine. it is relatively quiet, and does sew fast. This will be great for doing piecing for quilts. It isn't the quality of my Pfaff, which is all metal (the skin of this machine is plastic) and doesn't have a lot of fancy stitches, but it is a great value for what it does do and does execute well for all I've done so far. And perfect for a beginner sewer, or someone who only needs a machine once in awhile to hem pants or take care of odd little projects or someone like me who was going through withdrawal when her machine dies and is going to take some time to get fixed.

Wore the motor out on the first one (yes, I sew a lot!). Smooth, fast, easy to thread and drop in bobbin makes this a breeze