I'm very happy with this purchase. But I think I'm happy because I read the reviews and followed them...and got exactly what I expected.
We are sailors and bought this machine so that we could do some projects on our boat that require a tough machine. It's a competitor for the Sailrite at half the money, literally. Sailrite customers love their machines because of customer service. I was willing to take a gamble and am glad I did. I also looked at the Tuffsew or and Barracuda, and overall reviews seemed better for this (but they still weren't very high so that's why I'm reviewing this purchase)
Out of the box, we tightened all the screws and oiled it and ran it and oiled it and ran it and etc etc etc. Some reviews said it got hot, ours didn't seem to do that but ran smoothly with the oil. It's SUPER fast. I'm a novice at sewing and it gets a little fast for me. Most people get the Sailrite Monster Wheel to slow it down. But I made several little outfits for my 10 pound dog as practice and by the third one, I was comfortable with the speed. It sewed thru layers like butter. 10 layers of fleece, flannel was not remotely an issue. I put some folded over canvas through it as a test and it went thru 8 layers of Sunbrella with ease. Overall, the dog jammies were way more difficult than the boat projects will be.
It's a sturdy beast of a a metal machine. it weighs almost 40 pounds, and it is NOT what I'd buy as a machine to have at home or make clothes with, etc. But for heavy duty projects...I'm very happy. Also, I mentioned I'm a novice, I took one class at Joann's and made a little bag and that was like 5 years ago. I did EVERYTHING from youtube videos, from oiling it to threading it, etc. So if I can figure it out....really anyone can. If you look at you tube videos, you'll see most people fashion a base for it. A good idea because it's a little top heavy. I haven't done that yet but plan on it. Hope this helps!

I took a chance on this machine after comparing it to the Sailrite machines...I wanted something that could sew leather and didn't want to pay over 1K...After oiling the machine and changing the needle to size 21 I tried sewing leather, it made it through 2-3 oz no problem, I ended up sewing four pieces of 2-3 oz together no issue, I was even able to sew a piece of 8-9 oz to a piece of 2-3 oz

I followed the Sailrite videos on youtube for set up, I have also ordered a monster wheel and a delicate leather walking foot since the walking foot it comes with leaves a decent mark in the veg tan leather...I am no expert at sewing but so far this machine has done what I have tried using 69 thread, I plan on using 138 thread soon once I install the upgrades

Only drawback is the clutch motor, it goes fast if you let it, with a little practice you can get it to slow down, I am thinking about adding a servo motor by REX sold on Amazon for $109 but will wait for the sailrite monster wheel first

Update...it will handle 138 thread, I also added the sailrite monster wheel which took a couple of minutes and increased the torque and makes it even better machine

I've had my machine for about 1 month now and I really do love it. It has taken some getting used to after using domestic machines. Threading is fairly straightforward, but I did pull a video on YouTube to watch someone else thread it first. Adjusting the top thread tension was challenging for me. I had to keep moving the dial this way and that until I got it where I like it. The instructions booklet provided really didn't help much. On super thick layers, I sometimes need to manually encourage the hand wheel to start, but once it catches, it's off and running. The presser foot doesn't raise especially high, so when sewing those thick layers, it can be a little tricky getting them under the foot to start. You must also either pull very long tails on the needle or hold the thread with your fingers when starting or the thread will come out of the needle. My machine came with a few tools, a thread holder, and about 5 extra heavy duty needles. Make sure to get sewing machine oil and the tough thread too. Oil all metal parts before sewing. I housed my machine in a vintage drop table which is perfectly suited for it. All and all, it is a great semi industrial machine that seems like it can take on some pretty tough jobs.

El cisterna de motor está por devajo de la calidad de la máquina.quizás si se usara corriente derecta a través de trnsfomador y rectificador tenga mejor inició de costuras para alta presicion

I've only had the machine for a couple days, but so far, I'm impressed. I've sewn four layers of heavy upholstery material and two layers of velvet. The upholstery material was so thick I had to stuff it under the presser feet. The velvet wanted to pucker slightly, but I haven't played wit the foot pressure yet.

After reading the existing reviews, the first thing I did was remove all the covers and oil anything I could find that might move, There are three cam followers and rather than just hit them with light oil, I smeared grease on the forks and the cams. I also took a few pieces of wood and made a platform the machine now sits on. That made it really steady and solid.

One thing that kept it from getting a 5 was the electrical wiring. It's not a deal-breaker and I don't think it is unsafe. It's just odd. The plug fits in a standard outlet "¦ sort of "¦ the prongs are straight and smooth, but one of the prong is slightly longer than the other. The plug is probably polarized, but it fits equally poorly no matter which direction you try to plug it in. It really doesn't fit tightly in an outlet and I'm concerned it will fall out, or worse overheat. The machine also doesn't have a power switch so you need to make sure that you unplug the machine if you are going to leave it unattended for any length of time. I don't find a UL approval on it anywhere and that also makes me wonder what's up with the electrics. Could this particular machine have been destined for some country other than the USA?? I'll probably replace the power cord, but I shouldn't have to.

I have not had a problem regulating the speed and am pleased with that. I like the location and orientation of the bobbin holder and the fact that the bobbins are a standard size. Overall, I think the machine is going to make a good addition to my shop and I'm looking forward to getting more accustomed to it. It is most definitely one solid machine!

OK, so I've had the machine for a couple weeks now and have been practicing (playing) with it. I can control the speed, but with difficulty, It doesn't want to start very smoothly or easily. It wants to bunch up light material, but I still haven't adjusted the presser foot pressure. That may help when/if I do need to make something using light weight material.

I decided to spring for the Monster II balance wheel. What a difference that makes! The machine starts easily and smoothly and runs slowly enough that I can sew as slowly as I need to. It fits perfectly and is well worth the money. If the machine came this way, It would have gotten 5 stars. It's a joy to use now and I can't wait to start my next project (a chiropractor's treatment table covered in heavy vinyl.) I already have some of the material I will be using and the machine goes through it like a hot knife through butter.