What to buy?

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   Quandry. The LSZ-1 is the machine I want, but I can't afford it. Second-hand sailrites are hard to find in New Zealand, where I am mailing from.

What I can find here is a new Mercury (portable, straight/zigzag, walking foot, claimed to be similar to sailrite) - and a second hand sailrite sailmaker with monster wheel - (for similar prices, which are about half the cost of what a new LSZ-1 would be in the States.)

Now, I doubt if the Mercury is as good a quality as the LSZ-1 - but it DOES have walking foot.
The sailmaker, which I presume is a superceded model, does not have walking foot but IS a sailrite machine and I have no doubt about its good quality.

I want to learn new skills, to repair my sails (37' gaff schooner), be able to make a dinghy sail, make covers, even fix my jeans. Is walking foot (or ultrafeed) important enough to make it worth going for the Mercury - or is walking foot less important and thus better to go for the earlier model of sailrite machine?

I'll get a LSZ-1 one day, I hope. In the meantime, in your opinion out there, whats the best choice between Mercury with walking foot, sailmaker without?

Many thanks.

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SLTAK Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 25 September 2009 Online Status: Offline Posts: 2	Quote Reply Topic: What to buy? Posted: 25 September 2009 at 6:06am
	Quandry. The LSZ-1 is the machine I want, but I can't afford it. Second-hand sailrites are hard to find in New Zealand, where I am mailing from. What I can find here is a new Mercury (portable, straight/zigzag, walking foot, claimed to be similar to sailrite) - and a second hand sailrite sailmaker with monster wheel - (for similar prices, which are about half the cost of what a new LSZ-1 would be in the States.) Now, I doubt if the Mercury is as good a quality as the LSZ-1 - but it DOES have walking foot. The sailmaker, which I presume is a superceded model, does not have walking foot but IS a sailrite machine and I have no doubt about its good quality. I want to learn new skills, to repair my sails (37' gaff schooner), be able to make a dinghy sail, make covers, even fix my jeans. Is walking foot (or ultrafeed) important enough to make it worth going for the Mercury - or is walking foot less important and thus better to go for the earlier model of sailrite machine? I'll get a LSZ-1 one day, I hope. In the meantime, in your opinion out there, whats the best choice between Mercury with walking foot, sailmaker without? Many thanks.

MattGrant Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Admin Group Sailrite Employee - Expert Joined: 21 April 2005 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 1185	Quote Reply Posted: 25 September 2009 at 8:50am
	Get the Sailmaker! It is based on the Brother TZ1-652 machine and is a fine quality rotary hook machine. Use basting tape to hold things together prior to sewing and you will not miss the walking foot so much. The Mercury machine is absolute junk. I think that one is a Chinese knock off from the second year of our Ultrafeed introduction. They went out of business here in the states and at the time had several hundred heads to dump. They tried to get Sailrite to buy them - we obviously refused. I wondered where all of those units went. Sounds like some made it to New Zealand. By the way, Sailrite still stocks parts for the Sailmaker. Best Regards, Matt Grant Sailrite
	Best Regards, Matt Grant Sailrite

jim grant Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Moderator Group Sailrite Employee - Expert Joined: 25 July 2005 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 69	Quote Reply Posted: 25 September 2009 at 9:03am
	I still have a warm place in my heart for the Sailmaker. It is a beautifully made machine. Smooth and quiet -- it runs like the preverbial "sewing machine". Even so, my machine now sits in the corner unused and the Ultrafeed gets all the use. What you get with the Ultrafeed is better feeding, better control over stitch tension, a much more robust system (adjustment is seldom required) and a good deal more power. But the Sailmaker will do the work (which is likely not to be the case with the Mercury). Don Casey (author of This Old Boat -- which, by the way, is available in a new expanded edition with great illustrations and much more good info -- still makes good use of his Sailmaker although he, too, has the Ultrafeed as well now).
	Jim Grant

SLTAK Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 25 September 2009 Online Status: Offline Posts: 2	Quote Reply Posted: 27 September 2009 at 12:03am
	Hi Many thanks to Matt and Jim for prompt and informative replies. Your feedback response time is really impressive and I'll be taking your advice.

RandyOnR3 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Visit Members Homepage Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 21 September 2009 Location: California Online Status: Offline Posts: 16	Quote Reply Posted: 27 September 2009 at 1:51pm
	For the past 10 years we've carried a sailmaker aboard our boat, along with the wifes singer 221.. almost never found a project we couldnt handle.. We've now opened a canvas shop and have seven different machines on the floor including a new Elna and a JUKI but my favorite is the sailmaker.. I've modified it with the monster wheel and added the gear reduction from a Ultrafeed and its unstopable...
	Randy & Ramona Garrett SV/R3 - and the sign reads(Gone Cruising) www.stitches-n-snaps.com www.photo-opps.org