As my regular readers may know by now, I have been a sewing machine junkie for the last few years. Since I sold my Brother 2500D back in 2012, I have had a few machines.

Janome 8900

Brother DreamCreator VM5100

Viking Opal 690

Pfaff Creative 4.5

Pfaff Ambition 620

Viking Sapphire 930

Bernina 435

Bernina 570QE

Most of these machines have come and gone. Of them, only the Brother and the two Berninas remain. I found the Bernina 435 on Facebook Marketplace, listed by someone who had purchased it during the pandemic, and whose foray into sewing was short-lived. I purchased it because I’d always wanted to try out a Bernina, and this seemed like a good way to do it at a reasonable price. And it is, in fact, a very nice machine.

What I like about the 435 is that it is a 5.5 mm machine, which means that the feed dogs are 5.5 mm wide, and that is the maximum size stitch it can produce. In today’s market, it is very uncommon to find a machine with such a narrow feed dog pattern, but it is very nice for precision sewists and quilters alike. The feed dog pattern is so narrow, in fact, as to render some of the best 1/4″ seams I’ve ever seen, and I’ve tried them all, as you can tell.

I also like the extra large bobbin, something no other sewing machine brand offers. Bernina claims that their bobbins hold 70% more thread, and I believe they are correct. It makes for a lot of piecing or quilting before the bobbin has to be changed. There’s nothing more frustrating than to be sewing happily along, and then realize that you’ve been sewing without a bobbin for the last 20 minutes. And yes, that does happen when a machine doesn’t have a bobbin sensor. It’s less common these days, because bobbin sensor is standard on a lot of even the lower end machines, but it can still happen, and I’ve been sewing long enough to have owned machines that had no such feature.

Before we move on from the bobbin, you should know, if you don’t already, that this is a front load bobbin, meaning that this machine has a bobbin more like machines from the 1950s. It doesn’t drop in from the top, but rather goes in to a bobbin case that you then put in the front of the machine. These types of bobbins have one distinct feature that I think is worth mentioning – they can produce perfectly straight stitches. Some of the top load bobbin machines will produce a straight stitch with a slight hook, or a little bit slanted, which I have been told is standard with that sort of bobbin hook. Bernina machines have front load bobbins, and thus are supposed to produce more of a straight stitch than their top loading counterparts.

One other thing that you should be aware of with the Bernina bobbin – you have to oil it every time you get ready to sew on the machine. This is different from other modern machines, which require no oiling by their owners, and are oiled instead on an annual basis during servicing. Its not difficult, nor is it a big deal – basically, three drops of oil each time you sew, and you’re golden. But for someone who is not accustomed to this sort of thing, it takes some getting used to doing it every time you turn the machine on.

The 435 has an adequate number of stitches – 650, according to the website. This is a sewing only machine, but it does the job it’s supposed to do very well. I have really enjoyed using this machine, despite it’s small size – just 7 inches to the right of the needle. It would be a great travel and/or class machine, because it’s fairly lightweight at about 21 lbs, and it has great lighting.

And I would be doing this machine a supreme injustice if I didn’t mention the feet. No snap on feet here – these are feet with the full ankle. They are sturdy and practical … and not even a little bit cheap. Granted, most of my machines have been Brother machines, whose feet ARE snap on, and I doubt anyone could call them pricey. The standard foot for my Brother machines usually runs less than $20. I thought the Viking and Pfaff feet were expensive – some of them were as high as $40 for a standard, nothing fancy about it foot. But Bernina feet could put a person in the poorhouse. A standard foot for this machine will set you back at least $50, usually closer to $75, and $100 isn’t unheard of. For this particular machine, though, I could get away with the 57 or 37 – both of which are 1/4″ feet – and be set, because I don’t think this would ever be more to me than a piecing machine.

I like this machine so much that I went and purchased a Bernina 570QE, which I do not like, for reasons I will not cover here. But after the challenges I’ve faced with the 570QE, and the realization that I like the ease of use of the Brother machines, I’m thinking about selling both Bernina machines and going exclusively Brother. If I’m being completely honest with myself and my readers, I don’t find the Bernina machines to be worthy of the hype surrounding them, nor the cost of the machines themselves, or the accessories. It’s a little bit like a Porsche or Ford … you’re buying the name, but not necessarily quality, and everything with the Porsche name attached to it is going to be more expensive than if you just buy a Ford. Both vehicles will get you to where you want to go, so I guess it’s a matter of whether or not you want to pay for the vehicle name, or if you’d rather pay for the features you want.

A couple of weeks ago, I bit the bullet and I invested in the Brother Stellaire XJ1. I’ve come full circle in my search for the “perfect” sewing machine, and I’ve decided that my hunt is over. If I do go through with the sale of my Bernina machines, I will use the proceeds to pay off the Stellaire, and then I may buy one more machine – another Brother, to be sure – for classes and travel. For now, I’m happy with the Brother machines I have. I’ve enjoyed trying out all of these machines, but in the end, you have to go where your heart leads you, and my heart led me back to my first love.