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If Baby Locks are made by Brother Why buy one?
jynclr Advanced Beginner TX USA Member since 2011 Posts: 339	Login to reply to this post Like this post Date: 1/19/12 2:32 PM It seems to me you can get a comparable Brother machine for less than a Baby Lock. I found a dealer near work where the sales rep admitted to me that Brother makes Baby Lock sewing machines. With Baby Locks, you're pretty much locked down to what the dealer wants to charge. (One dealer I went to the sales guy seemed like some sort of used car salesman. I felt smarmy after leaving there.) With Brothers, you can at least shop around for some of the lower end machines and they tend to get really good reviews. So why should I buy a Baby Lock over a Brother? If you own a Baby Lock, why did you pick that over Brother? ------ Helen V: Baby Lock Companion - BL 1550 Rachel: Singer 57285c
FrBasil Advanced Beginner PA USA Member since 2009 Posts: 718	Login to reply to this post In reply to jynclr Like this post Date: 1/19/12 3:48 PM Quote: jynclr It seems to me you can get a comparable Brother machine for less than a Baby Lock. I found a dealer near work where the sales rep admitted to me that Brother makes Baby Lock sewing machines. With Baby Locks, you're pretty much locked down to what the dealer wants to charge. (One dealer I went to the sales guy seemed like some sort of used car salesman. I felt smarmy after leaving there.) With Brothers, you can at least shop around for some of the lower end machines and they tend to get really good reviews. So why should I buy a Baby Lock over a Brother? If you own a Baby Lock, why did you pick that over Brother? A couple of reasons: 1. Supposedly, the dealer-sold Brothers are different from the ones in Walmart and Amazon. 2. Manufacturers can make things at a lot of different price points, using their own designs or manufacturing designs of others. If Brother is making Baby Lock-exclusive machines, those Baby Locks may still be different from Brother-branded machines made by Brother. Certainly Foxconn makes stuff for Apple, Acer, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Dell, HP, IBM, and lots of others.
Harriet P. Intermediate TN USA Member since 2005 Posts: 76	Login to reply to this post Like this post Date: 1/19/12 4:33 PM About 5 years ago I bought the Brother CS 6000, ten pound machine through Walmart online. Then I called Brother and asked if it is the same quality of Brother sewing machine that I saw at my dealer's place, but for a lot more money. She said yes and that I could also register my machine online. Last year I called the Babylock number at their main office and asked her if Brother makes their machines that look like the "sister" of the Brother machines. She said yes and the machines are made in the same place as the Brother machines. The quality of the inside of the machines is the same. The only difference would be the Disney designs in the Brother machines and the Nancy Zieman designs in the Babylock version. Also, Brother has the custom stitch feature and the Babylock has an exclusive font. There maybe a few decorative stiches that are not found in one machine or the other way around. The Babylock person said that they check the machines going out of the warehouse pretty closely. I think one reason that people go along with their Babylock dealer is that he or she really likes the service at that particular dealer. Also, in some cases, their Babylock dealer is cheaper. Also, I left one other reason. With their higher end Babylock sewing machines one could buy their "gold" warranty service. Brother doesn't offer that. Harriet
Maia B Advanced Beginner IL USA Member since 2010 Posts: 1855	Login to reply to this post Like this post Date: 1/19/12 5:30 PM The Baby Lock Quest Plus and it's replacement, the Serenade, plus Baby Lock's famous sergers don't have Brother equivalents and aren't made by Brother. ------ Berninas 820 QE, Artista 630 PQE, Aurora 440 QE, Activa 240, 930 Record, and 731 Baby Lock Quest Plus, Featherweight 221s...
Sibilance7   Advanced Beginner IL Member since 2011 Posts: 126	Login to reply to this post Like this post Date: 1/19/12 6:12 PM Don't the Baby Locks come with a longer warranty period than the Brothers? ------ Bernina Aurora 430 BabyLock Enlighten
karen149   Intermediate CA USA Member since 2005 Posts: 1945	Login to reply to this post Like this post Date: 1/19/12 6:26 PM As Maia noted, not all BabyLocks are made by Brother. The BL9, Anna and Molly are made by Janome and there have been Kenmore versions of them. The Molly is also known as the Janome Sewist 500. The Audrey has also shown up as a Singer, White, Morse and some other brand.
Artsewer   Intermediate NY USA Member since 2011 Posts: 593	Login to reply to this post In reply to jynclr Like this post Date: 1/19/12 7:05 PM I really like the BL Elizabeth. I think for me it would make an excellent travel and class machine. What would be the Brother equivalent?
karen149   Intermediate CA USA Member since 2005 Posts: 1945	Login to reply to this post In reply to Artsewer Like this post Date: 1/19/12 7:54 PM There's the NX450Q or the Laura Ashley NX800, which has sideways sewing. Both come with extension tables
LynnRowe   BC CANADA Member since 2009 Posts: 3304	Login to reply to this post In reply to jynclr Like this post Date: 1/19/12 8:46 PM There are a very limited number of sewing machine manufacturing plants in the world. Machines are made to the company's specs. Brother has a manufacturing plant, and makes several different company's sewing machines...but they're made to each company's specifications. Brother does not own Baby Lock, and has no say whatsoever over Baby Lock design. What Brother does is manufacture (some) Baby Lock models per Baby Lock's specs. hth ------ I heart Babylock! And my Feathirteen Flock!
jynclr Advanced Beginner TX USA Member since 2011 Posts: 339	Login to reply to this post Like this post Date: 1/19/12 9:46 PM Thank you for the responses, folks. In sum, check out which machines you like. If there's a Brother equivalent and you're ok with not having some features of a Baby Lock, then get the inexpensive Brother. Unless of course, there's no Brother.. uhm.. "brother" to a particular Baby Lock - then get that Baby Lock. Am I right? ------ Helen V: Baby Lock Companion - BL 1550 Rachel: Singer 57285c

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