Monday, July 7, 2014

Better With Bernina? I Got A 1090S

Friends, I am fickle.

Fickle, fickle, fickle.

My constant is a love of sewing machines and a deep curiosity about their different forms. But my sewing partners--well, I love them all for different reasons, but I am not "in love" with them forever. I'm not sure whether I even want a committed, long-term relationship.

I've been playing the field--by which I mean scanning Craigslist--for a while now. Yes, I was looking for trouble, and I found it.



As a form of talk therapy, I want to tell you about my history with Bernina.

I first started sewing as an adult, when I had moved from North Carolina to Boston with my boyfriend (now husband). Right before I left the nest, my father produced a vintage Kenmore sewing machine from the 1970's from his vast horde of goods. That machine is now long gone and I don't know exactly which model it was, but it was a capable machine. Though my parents both sewed, I learned from books (because that's how people in my family did things, pre-internet). And I merrily made lots of skirts, jackets and dresses for my corporate jobs.

Along came plans to get married. I briefly shopped for wedding dresses, but I couldn't get into parsing the different options, pros and cons of what was available in ready to wear, so I decided to just jump right in to making my dress. I asked my mother if I could borrow her Bernina, a 1000S, and she dutifully packed up the machine and sent it off to me.

What a revelation! I loved that machine, and my sewing became instantly and magically much more precise and easier. Without that pretty Bernina, my wedding-dress-making adventure might have ended before it got properly started and I might have bought something off the rack after all. In retrospect I could have saved myself a lot of aggravation and expense if I had just secretly kept that machine and told my mother that it got lost in shipping or stolen from my house or some other dire fate.

Instead, I packed it back up and shipped it home to North Carolina after my honeymoon, and soon I found myself at a Bernina dealership in the Boston suburbs being talked into a newer, more feature-laden, more sophisticated, more expensive machine, the Virtuousa 160. What a ridiculous name, by the way.

I had big plans for my new 160--but two life events interfered. First, I unexpectedly got a new and very demanding job. Second, I got pregnant. Event #2 trumped event #1 when I became the mother of an extremely high-maintenance baby. Colicky is just not the right word. Not much sewing happened until my son started school (and then stopped school and started homeschool, but that's another story).

By the time I got around to using my 160 in any major way, I discovered that I really didn't love it as much as I had expected. And then the motherboard went out. And then the local dealership displeased me with their attitude. So I just felt mad that this Bernina, which was supposed to be the end-all and be-all of sewing machines, hadn't lived up to my expectations.

So I sold it on eBay. After it was repaired, that is! And I used the proceeds (plus some extra funds) to buy a Juki F600, which I have enjoyed very much.

And yet, there were things I missed about the Berninas: 1. The thing everyone talks about: the amazing, wondrous presser feet, especially the #10 edgestitch foot and the #35 invisible zipper foot; 2. The small diameter of the free arm; 3. The quality of the stitch. I can look at a garment and tell whether I sewed it on my old Bernina or on another machine. And I recognize that no one but me can see this or will care, but still, I do see it and I do care.

So I've been following Craigslist and eBay, and the prices the vintage Bernina 830 and 930 Record machines command are daunting. A beautiful, very complete 930 came up on our local Craigslist, and I certainly considered it, but it was $900. The 830s were manufactured from 1972 through 1977, so they are now between 36 and 42 years old. The 930s date from 1978 to 1989, now between 25 and 36 years old. Based on my experience with a nine-year-old Bernina needing a new circuit board, I felt worried about investing so much in a machine of this age, especially since Bernina is no longer manufacturing the boards.

And then this 1090S came along. The feature set is perfect for me--just enough electronics to satisfy my longings, but not too many. It has the heel-tap for needle-up or needle-down on the foot control, which my 160 did not and which I love. It has the extra-long basting stitch, which the 160 did not have and which I am hesitant to try (because the machines can get jammed in this position if the basting stitch has not been used in a long time and require service to unstick). It has the continuous-reverse stitching feature which the 160 did have and the Juki did not, and which is wonderful for darning.

The 1090S came with everything--case, manual, knee lifter, extension table, all original attachments--and it is in gorgeous condition. Sews wonderfully. The only things I don't love so far are those dated graphics (the pastel swoosh on the front) and the not-terribly bright light. The light is easily addressed, since I have a great LED gooseneck sewing light mounted to my sewing surface (the Reliable Uber Light). For what I considered a great price on a Bernina in great condition, $440, I decided I can live with the graphics. It was manufactured in 1995, so it is 19 years old. Still vintage, but half the age of 830s going for twice the price. True, its electronics are more complex than those in the 830, so we will see how we do.

I loved the Juki's buttonholer, and I also loved how well it started off sewing without sucking the threads into the bobbin area. I will just have to miss those, because the Juki is headed to a new owner off in California as I type.

Bye, Juki! It was fun!

Another thing I've noticed is that the Bernina does shake the sewing table more than the Juki--maybe a function of the weight of the machine, maybe the difference between the rotary horizontal hook of the Juki vs. the vertical oscillating hook of the Bernina. Might need to rethink my sewing surface!

So, it's being very fun to play with a new toy. Hope I don't live to regret the change, but so far I'm good with it.


18 comments:

  1. I have a 1530 that I bought new...a LOT of years ago now, maybe almost 20??? Anyway, I have a newer machine of a different manufacturer, but I just keep chugging along with my Bernina. She's become a very close friend :) Wishing you lots of years of happy times together.

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  2. This is a really helpful analysis, loaded with information. Thanks very much for the investment of time in writing it.

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  3. Enjoy your 'new' machine! I have a 1230 I love and have owned since 1997. Looks very similar to your 1090S.

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    1. I have a 1230 and love love love it. Many have tried to sell me other machines but I just love that machine Hope it never breaks down as I would have to go online to get a used one. I have so many extra feet that it is highly unlikely I would get a different machine.

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  4. I found a 1090 on Craigslist for $400 about 5 years ago. I have been in love with it ever since. It is simply a wonderful sewing machine! Enjoy.

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  5. Wow,congratulations! I love my 1230. I'm sure you'll enjoy your 1090!

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  6. I to have a 1090 I bought used on ebay many years ago (sometime mid 2000s) and love it so much I've been stalking ebay and craigslist looking for a "backup" for if it ever stops working. I love it for some of the same reasons you do - just enough electronic - but not so much as to make it difficult and expensive to upkeep. I quilt with mine and bought it for the manual stitch width and length feature for machine applique. Hoping you get as many years of enjoyment out of it as I have and am.

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  7. OMG I just found your post and my Bernina story sounds the same. I have my auntie's 1090S Bernina that I've borrowed for the course of a good 5 years and gave it back a few times. But I REALLY want one of my own. I don't want to learn on another machine. I love this one too much. I JUST found one on Craigslist today and so I was Googling Bernina 1090 and your blog came up. I just emailed the seller.. Fingers crossed I get it. $400! I'm so excited! My aunt would be too since she gets hers back finally!

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  8. I have the NEW Bernina 830. I should have known that any company that would name a new machine after an old one, like the universe ran out of numbers, couldn't be trusted. This machine is a nightmare and now it's dead. I paid $10,000 for it about 9 yrs ago. I had the 180E before that and that was a nightmare, too. I thought it was a lemon and it wouldn't happen again. I was wrong. It wasn't a lemon it was a Bernina.

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  9. I have a Bernina 153QE and love it.
    I've been searching for a second machine and found one on a local CraigsList type of site on facebook. It's the 1090. The photo I saw was sketchy, but I was promised it was a working machine. I paid AU$80 for it. When I picked it up, the seller wasn't home and had left the machine on his front porch. I was instructed to leave the cash under the mat. Which I did. I didn't get to see the machine until after I got home. Apart from being a bit dusty, I was disappointed to find many of the accessories were missing from the little box, as well as it was a European machine with a European plug.
    I gave the machine to my trusty sewing machine mechanic, and $120 later, and with a new plug installed, I have a fantastic machine. It sews beautifully. Although I am disappointed about the lack of accessories, including the knee lift not being there, At least the bobbins and feet are interchangeable on all the machines, so I can get the bits - if I'm prepared to pay! So, AU$200 and it's a Bernina! Bargain. :)

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  10. I have a Bernina 153QE and love it.
    I've been searching for a second machine and found one on a local CraigsList type of site on facebook. It's the 1090. The photo I saw was sketchy, but I was promised it was a working machine. I paid AU$80 for it. When I picked it up, the seller wasn't home and had left the machine on his front porch. I was instructed to leave the cash under the mat. Which I did. I didn't get to see the machine until after I got home. Apart from being a bit dusty, I was disappointed to find many of the accessories were missing from the little box, as well as it was a European machine with a European plug.
    I gave the machine to my trusty sewing machine mechanic, and $120 later, and with a new plug installed, I have a fantastic machine. It sews beautifully. Although I am disappointed about the lack of accessories, including the knee lift not being there, At least the bobbins and feet are interchangeable on all the machines, so I can get the bits - if I'm prepared to pay! So, AU$200 and it's a Bernina! Bargain. :)

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  11. I have a Bernina 1090S that I bought used, traded in my 910 on it. Some days I wish I still had my 910 as the circuit board is going out on my 1090 and I won't be replacing it (due to the high cost, if it is even repairable?). Luckily I recently became interested in vintage machines (no computers!), all metal, very sturdy, and am sewing with them more and more. I have to turn to one of those when my Bernina starts sewing that wavy stitch and I can't get it to stop doing that. Usually if I leave it alone for a day or week, it will work find for quite awhile.

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  12. Paterd I have the same problem with my Bernina 1090 as you do -- it decides on its own to use a stitch type I didn't select (usually zigzag). My dealer told me it's the circuit board fading away. I guess the zigzag and the straight stitch are close to each other on the board. I paid $1000US for it only two years ago and I'm VERY disappointed. I don't think I'll buy another Bernina, new or used. I own about 8 vintage machines, some of them classic Singers with only straight stitch capability. I'm tempted to put the money into having one of those totally overhauled. No electronics to ruin everything.

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    1. My Bernina is now beginning to make teeny tiny stitches in the middle of sewing. When it does this, it makes computer noises too. I found a Bernina 830 this summer, which does not have a computer. I may be switching to it, sure going to miss the needle down position though.

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  13. i have a Bernina 540 favorit from the 50s and a Bernina 1000 i do love them both but they both stopped working on me at the same time! one i think was my fault when I was installing it in the cabinet so they will go to the spa but I love my mechanical machines I also have a Juki F600 and its a love hate relationship especially since it struggles with feeding the fabric at times but it can take a lick and keep on ticking so I keep it set up along side a vintage one or two

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  14. I have a 1090, purchased new, in 1992. It still sews like nothing else, I love it (except for the light which I've resolved, same as you have). I purchased a new 750QE four years ago, a significant upgrade, I wanted the bells and whistles and love it. I still have the 1090 set up and use it. It still sews like nothing else and makes me very happy. I have a lot of different feet for it, so, depending on what needs doing in the sewing room, garment construction is mainly done on the 1090. Quilting on the 750. I'm in a very happy place.

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