Gammill Charm aka “Tasha”

It was inevitable. I knew the next step in my quilting was to get a long arm. So I began my research with Bernina. After waiting patiently for the Q20 to be available locally, I attended a seminar for some hands on experience. Going with the Bernina had some advantages. Unlike other long arms it uses standard domestic sewing needles. Second, it  can use the free motion feet I was using on my Bernina 820. It has two different built in stitch regulators. Those were great features and I would have loved to take advantage of them.

But there were two show stoppers for me. Having free motioned quilted for three years on the 820, I knew I wanted my long arm to be oriented the same way as my 820. It makes no sense to me to be sitting perpendicular to the machine. When I free motion quilt, I take advantage of the space behind and to the left of the machine to carry the bulk of the weight from the quilt. Plus quilting front to back and vice versa is way less tiring than quilting side to side.

The second show stopper was the need for wheels on the cabinet or table the long arm sits in. Bernina does not offer this as an option. I need the ability to easily drop the back leaf and roll the table back to reduce space when I wasn’t quilting on it. In addition, I found the cabinet leaves cumbersome to raise and lower.

So I decided to look specifically at machines oriented sideways. Three candidates came to mind: the Janome AQ18, the APQS George, and the Gammill Charm. The Janome AQ18 was the smallest of three with an 18-8 throat. But the few reviews I was able to find were not very good…mostly related to customer support. And I really didn’t like the lighting system.  The APQS George is a bare bones long arm with excellent reviews and a 20-8 inch throat. This was a serious contender but I found the table too small. I wanted something big and solid while I was quilting and a small footprint when I wasn’t. That left me with the Gammill Charm.

It has a marvelous 22-10 throat space. Its table is solid with industrial casters and leaves that are very easy to raise and lower. But I wasn’t able to find many reviews. The two I did find were 3 years old and brand new users. So off to Cut Up and Quilt I went to get some input. They’ve had a Gammill Statler system for several years and just purchased a second to handle their growing business. They did extensive research before deciding on the Gammill with most interviewees either loving their Gammill or owned another brand and wishing they’d spent the extra money for the Gammill.  I also talked to an employee whose mother owned the Charm and who loved it. After those stellar reviews and knowing Cut Up and Quiltt was a hands throw away if I had questions, I made the plunge.

Tasha arrived on December 9th and I spent the afternoon with installer Bill from At The Heart Of Quilting. He ran me through oiling, threading, changing the needle, and using the stand alone bobbin winder (the Charm has a built-in as well that fills the bobbin as you quilt). The one thing the Charm doesn’t come with is a standard hopping foot for ruler work. I was rather surprised. But a quick call to At The Heart Of Quilting and I had one in less than a week….loving the service so far.

So what do I like and dislike about Tasha after a month of use? Let’s start with the likes first. Wow…the space the space the space. As important as the 22 inch throat length is, so is the 10 inch height. My first project was a throw quilt…piece of cake on this machine. I could have easily gone from right to left all the way across the middle of the quilt with absolutely no problem feeding it through that huge opening. Love love love. The long arm needles cut through all the various layers like butter…no stuttering over seam allowances or points…nice! I personally find the machine rather quiet…quieter than my Bernina 820 when I’m free motion quilting.  The Bernina is a “hopper” versus a “glider” when it comes to FMQ so I had absolutely no problem transitioning. I prefer the rhythm of the hopping motion. It really helps my brain form those even stitches.

So what don’t I like? Right now tension is my number one frustration. I KNOW this is a learning curve item. I’ve resigned myself to TEX 30 thread (40 weight) in the bobbin until I can figure out how to adjust the bobbin winder so that it doesn’t wind Bottom Line and So Fine so tight (my first and second choices for bobbin thread). I fussed with tension for several weeks before I switched to Permacore to finish the throw quilt. It was a practice quilt, thankfully, as it is full of bird’s nests on the back. I kept going from too tight to too loose in the tension until I switched my bobbin thread….then everything ran smoothly. I will conquer this!

My second gripe is the fact that the table at its lowest setting is about four inches too high as a result of the casters. Seriously? Right in between a standard desk chair and a task chair. So I added a ROHO cushion (air cushion with bladders) and a monitor stand for the foot pedal and life is good. Honestly, sitting on air is rather nice benefit of this problem…ha!

And last, despite what some websites and reviewers say, there is NO stitch regulation with this machine. I am no fan of Bernina’s stitch regulation. I never use it on the 820 and I didn’t like it much when I experimented on the Q20. But the price of the Gammill Charm was high enough that it is not unreasonable to expect that it would be included. It’s not. I thought I might use it with ruler work but ruler work is so much easier on this machine, I don’t really need it. So it worked out in the end.

For those that have been free motion quilting for a while on a domestic and want to make the leap to the sit down long arm, it’s a wonderful leap. But do your research.  Just cruising the internet for tension advice was an eye opener for me. Long arm tension is a different beast from the domestic machine and a source of frustration for many long arm quilters regardless of the machine brand. Local maintenance is also hard to come by unless you live in a big city. If you are intimidated by adjusting tension or changing worn out parts, a long arm might not be for you. I haven’t had any major problems after one month but I would certainly hope that would be the case.  I will be definitely picking up the phone for moral support the first time I need to time the machine.

It’s way too soon to give a carte blanche recommendation for the Charm….especially when it’s a bit more expensive than other brands. When I first purchased the Bernina I went through the same sort of frustrations with the bobbin and I mastered and fell in love with the machine. I plan to do so with the Charm as well. So far, there’s lots to love about it and I am anxious to get quilting on my next project, a quilt for my grand niece’s first birthday.

I would love to hear from other Charm owners. They appear to be too busy quilting to post about their machine on the internet. 🙂