The low rating is exclusively for the assembly process, NOT the sewing machine itself. Please read this review before purchase.
Assembling the table was VERY difficult. It absolutely does NOT come assembled, even though the item description says it does. Some nuts, bolts and washers were missing. Parts in the bag of small hardware are not segregated or labelled. Extra parts were provided but not needed. A couple of parts were very rusted, but usable. The wood table is made up of layers of thin plywood veneer glued together; I recommend caution and pre-drilling when installing the screws, to prevent stripping and splintering.
The box labelled as the motor drive actually was filled with 51 small boxes of needles, but the company promptly shipped out the correct motor and a pre-paid return address label to send back the needles. They did include some free needles to compensate for the trouble and delay.
The assembly video does not match the product exactly (had to improvise), it has poor sound quality (loud fan masking some narration), does not demonstrate the proper use of tools for the job (a screwdriver tip used as s nail set, for example) and it frustratingly does not show close-ups where it would have been most helpful. There are NO written instructions. Having two people and many hours are required.
I was only able to successfully assemble this because I have: 1) Years of experience as an auto and motorcycle mechanic, 2) A shop with lots of tools and spare parts collected over decades, 3) A degree in engineering 4) Experience in hardware repair for a silicon valley high-tech top-ten corporation 5) Patience.
The hardcopy User Guide is in English but looks like a photocopy of a photocopy; the photographs especially are poor. The hardcopy Parts Breakdown manual is good and helped slightly during assembly.
However, now that it is finally assembled, my wife is happy with it, it runs quietly, and she's going through all the hours of adjustment and maintenance videos. We hope the mechanism will loosen up over time, because it has areas of high resistance through its 360 degree rotation and I am concerned about long-term motor and belt damage. Also, the machine surface is not flush with the wood table; the video says it will settle into its rubber supports over time…we hope so.
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