Brother AE1700 17-Stitch Sewing Machine, 45x20x37, White

I have been using a sewing machine for over 70 years, I was 'playing' about with the treadle machine that belonged to my grandma as soon as I could reach the treadle. So I am no dummy when it comes to sewing machines. My first proper electric machine was a New Home which I loved until the day when I realised I could no longer lift it from the floor to the table. So please accept the fact that I am comparing this machine with that one.Having tried several other machines, including an all singing, all dancing one I am more than happy with my little Brother. I was quite surprised at the weight, he is quite heavy for such a small machine, but I understand that there are more metal parts in him than there would normally be in a machine his size.The instruction manual is pretty good in that I didn't have to hunt through a variety of languages to find what I was looking for. It also begins at the beginning, as in what is where and how to fill a spool and thread him up ready for action. It can also be downloaded from the Internet, which I actually found more useful, especially when it came to inserting the spool.I did meet a stumbling block with the spool, four are included with the machine by the way. It would have been a good option for one of them to already be in situ ready threaded. It took me an age to work out how to thread it into the shuttle race. Having said that, the rest of the set up worked well, although there were a million (seemed like it) pieces of sticky tape and card protecting the needle, etc. I could have done with an instruction book for those, and how to remove the stuff when I have a dodgy thumb!With my last machine, the one that sang and danced, the infernal cable kept falling out. This little chap is totally different, a spot of brute force and ignorance was called for! It says in the instructions not to use an extension cable Well although it does come with more cable than most, it still wasn't enough to reach the nearest socket. I fail to see why one should not use one, especially as it is one that will only be used with my machine.Right, with fingers crossed I threaded up, plugged in and pressed the foot. Yippee, it works. Compared to all the other electric machines I have had I would say the pressure foot supplied is better than most. I haven't a clue as to exactly how fast it is compared to other machines out there, but it isn't a race, so speed doesn't bother me. Just so long as it sews without screeching like a banshee. In fact I found it reasonably quiet to use, not that I was going flat out, it probably would make more noise if I did. The light is quite good, not as good as the old 15 watt bulbs, but better than some machines I have tried.Downsides? Well he does use plastic spools, I prefer metal, but hey ho. Although he came with four, I have invested in a box of 25 for £5.99. No automatic needle threader either, what do I want for my money, blood! I found a pack of three for less than £3 on Amazon, so no big deal, especially as my efforts with the automatic needle threads have been somewhat problematic.He did come with several feet, mostly plastic, which I am not too happy about, but it may be possible to buy metal versions should I need them. Previous machines have come with loads of different feet, and like the fancy stitches were seldom used for anything worthwhile. He also came with a dust cover, useful if he is on my table for a few days, but the rest of the time he will live in a proper sewing machine bag.I should add that he was well boxed and delivered by Amazon at breakneck speed. Less than 20 hours from ordering to delivery can't be bad.I look forward to many happy hours with my new purchase, I am sure he and I are going to be friends for life.

Great quality and very easy to use for a novice, I read through the instructions and it was a breeze, lovely and quite compared to my old machine 👍

Good product; although not easy to assemble.,The video displayed would have included the assembling of the sewing machine. Aside that, the product is worth the amount charged.

Total newbie.Always wanted a sewing machine, never bought one.. until now!With Three kids under six I felt like I needed to do something for myself so I got a basic sewing machine to learn on. It's so easy, the dvd is very handy as showing you the basics (like threading the machine and the different feet that come with the machine etc).I find that sometimes if the materials folded too many times it gets stuck but that might be me doing something wrong rather than the machine (?)Besides that it's lovely, easy to use, not very expensive. Enjoy!! :)

I like this machine it does what you want it to with ease. It's not to fast but can be if needed easy to use and lovely to sew with. But to get the tension right with the right stitch you need to put it to around 7 which I thought was to hight but it works lovely.

This product was bought on a promotional sale for a first machine while attending machining lessons. We looked around and took advice before purchasing this particular machine. Other models we looked at were the Brother LS14 Metal Chassis Sewing Machine, Brother L14 Sewing Machine, Brother LX17 Sewing Machine & Brother AE2500 Sewing Machine with Instructional DVD, 25 Stitch as well as models from other brands. In comparison with our next option, the L14, we felt this has better overall design and more functions, also being able to sew Denim.We decided that the price-to-product ratio was better than with the AE2500 while this was on promotion. An important consideration was that on promotion this machine was cheaper than the L14.Having used this machine for a over a month we feel that this is a high quality, robust, well made machine. Importantly, it comes with a *brilliant* instructional DVD that goes through a lot of what this unit can do. This has been referred to several times. It comes complete with a good foot-pedal, a protective plastic cover and a pouch full of accessories including 4 bobbins, 3 spare needles, 1 double-needle and other bits 'n bobs.In use it's very easy to guide material along the presser foot while sewing with a 'forgiving' action and quiet operation. This is of note, as some machines aren't as easy to use and guide material through. It also has a good range of stitch patterns and buttoning modes at this price point. The best thing is that it's simple, smooth and highly intuitive to use, giving very good results.We would recommend this to a beginner or a more seasoned user who wants a quality machine for household sewing duties. Without going to computer-controlled programmable devices, like the Brother Innov-is NV955 Sewing and Embroidery Machine, we're not sure what a 'professional' would want more out of a non-overlocking/non-Embroidery sewing machine. Our sewing club teacher thinks it's really good too, and this unit is better than the machines that they have at the club. They use the Janome 2200XT Sewing Machine which, although high quality, isn't as easy to use. This Brother unit appears it'll last a long time and give good service. This unit's exceeded our expectations and we're very happy with this purchase.

Got what I expected to get, a good basic machine at a reasonable price.Lighter than the machine it's replacing, which is good, just hope it lasts as long and gives as few problems.Time will tell.