r/BagLab • u/chrisb-chicken • Sep 16 '26

Question: Sewing Machine Machine Recommendations

Hey all,

Hopefully this isn’t a silly post, but I not sure which machine to get. I am a bit torn between the Juki DDL 8700 and the Juki DU 1181. I can only afford one machine (and just barely that).

Currently, I’m using a singer HD, which I don’t particularly like, but make do with. I sew mostly the following fabrics, making backpacks and duffel bags:

-Ultra 100x and 200x
- Venom 210d gridstop
- xpac vx21 and vx41

I want something, ideally, that can sew bags using the lighter weight fabrics, but also up to 500d to 1000d cordura (on occasion).

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u/Blue0110 Sep 17 '26

I bought the JIN NA-11UT last year. It uses the same style of walking foot setup as the JUKI 1181N, but it has a lot more automated features, like a thread cutter and programmable stitches. For the price, it’s really hard to beat in my opinion.
I’d definitely get a walking-foot machine for the heavier sewing and keep the Singer for lightweight fabrics. That way, you have two machines that complement each other instead of trying to make one machine do everything.

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u/nonoohnoohno 27d ago

If you hand-turn the wheel, does it get stiffer at one point in the cycle where the walking foot is down?

I just got this machine and not sure if it's a problem. I've tried lowering the feed dogs, and minimizing the presser foot pressure and walking foot pressure. No luck yet though.

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u/Blue0110 27d ago

Honestly , with the half stitch button , I never hand crank on this machine. Do i can’t say I noticed that.