Embroidery machine?

Daniel Macina

Well-Known Member
Has anyone thought of getting a small embroidery machine for knife cases, patches, hats that sort of thing? It seems like a good idea but I’ve not heard of anyone having one so there’s got to be some reason. Any thoughts on it. Thanking something similar to this. It’s small but I don’t think I would need some thing big necessarily. Anyone have any thoughts?

generally pricing isn’t terrible to have someone else do it but sometimes they require a steeper minimum then I would like to order and the guy that does my cases sometimes has a pretty long turn around.

 
I like stuff ... I’ve entertained picking up something like that forever ... you totally should grab it. Then let me know if I should :p
 
There is a pretty steep learning curve with embroidery machines, and particularly with digitizing vector files so that the machine can use them. It's one of those things that looks really simple when everything is going right and it's being done by somebody who knows how to do it well. (Like watching an accomplished maker grind bevels in a youtube video. you think "hell, that looks pretty simple.")

My advice: If you are serious about embroidery then go for it. However, if you need like 10 things a year embroidered.... it's way cheaper to pay someone else to do it.
 
Has anyone thought of getting a small embroidery machine for knife cases, patches, hats that sort of thing? It seems like a good idea but I’ve not heard of anyone having one so there’s got to be some reason. Any thoughts on it. Thanking something similar to this. It’s small but I don’t think I would need some thing big necessarily. Anyone have any thoughts?

generally pricing isn’t terrible to have someone else do it but sometimes they require a steeper minimum then I would like to order and the guy that does my cases sometimes has a pretty long turn around.

That machine will handle fabric (mats) up to vinyl and denim. We have the Brother PE770, it is a dedicated embroidery machine and will handle fabrics up through higher quality (thicker) denim and light weight suede.
 

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Stitch'in is for men, embroidery's for the ladies. :rolleyes:
LOL. Sewin's for the ladies too unless you're sewin' leather. Or your uniform. Or sails. Or a knife wound.

Back in the before times, I thought I wanted to run a t-shirt business. How hard can it be, right? Screenprinting, digital garment printing... embroidery... Turns out that every part of that business is a lot of darn work.

There are a lot of parallels to knife grinders in that you *can get by* or you can get a workhorse machine. You start off with a decent, workable embroidery machine that isn't too tough to learn. But then you learn that it's half the machine you really need and won't really do what you want. And it won't do hats. And you have to stop and rethread the machine to change colors. And it's a giant PITA to download the artwork. And then you learn that you need some art skills and computer skills to create art unless you're happy with basic designs that you find for free on the internet. Of course the machine that does everything you want costs as much as a car, but you can get a tabletop model that gets you real close for about the cost of a good knife grinder so long as you aren't trying to run it all day every day like an industrial machine.

Embroidery is really cool and everybody loves embroidered stuff. Abbott's Brother machine above is a darn good machine. If I was buying a personal machine to have around that's a great one to get. My Mom runs a Husqvarna that is probably the closest you'll get to a dream machine that isn't an industrial machine, but you better be using it a bunch to justify the price tag.
 
Thanks for the help fellas. I’ll hold off for the meantime because I like the people I currently have doing stuff for me and don’t mind giving them the business a bit. I know I know embroidery and sewing is a little questionable but I’m just stubborn and like to try to do everything myself. LOL.
 
LOL. Sewin's for the ladies too unless you're sewin' leather. Or your uniform. Or sails. Or a knife wound.

Back in the before times, I thought I wanted to run a t-shirt business. How hard can it be, right? Screenprinting, digital garment printing... embroidery... Turns out that every part of that business is a lot of darn work.

There are a lot of parallels to knife grinders in that you *can get by* or you can get a workhorse machine. You start off with a decent, workable embroidery machine that isn't too tough to learn. But then you learn that it's half the machine you really need and won't really do what you want. And it won't do hats. And you have to stop and rethread the machine to change colors. And it's a giant PITA to download the artwork. And then you learn that you need some art skills and computer skills to create art unless you're happy with basic designs that you find for free on the internet. Of course the machine that does everything you want costs as much as a car, but you can get a tabletop model that gets you real close for about the cost of a good knife grinder so long as you aren't trying to run it all day every day like an industrial machine.

Embroidery is really cool and everybody loves embroidered stuff. Abbott's Brother machine above is a darn good machine. If I was buying a personal machine to have around that's a great one to get. My Mom runs a Husqvarna that is probably the closest you'll get to a dream machine that isn't an industrial machine, but you better be using it a bunch to justify the price tag.
your mom runs a chainsaw? So do I !
 
John Wilson: "Back in the before times, I thought I wanted to run a t-shirt business."

A recent knife maker on here did just that. Do you remember Anthony Self. He started a t-shirt business.
 
Here you go.

Well I know who I’m going to have to get to make me some shirts!
You could bedazzle yourself some Texas blue jeans...
I’m just gonna pretend you didn’t say that so we can still be friends.
 
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