Comparisons in Machine Quilting Frames from the Grace Company

The Grace Company has been the number one seller of machine quilting frames as well as hand quilting frames. Kathy and I love to go to their factory in Salt Lake City Utah and see what new innovative thing they will come up with. They are always working on something new. They are quickly becoming the Machine Frame industry's frame maker. They are just awesome.

With that being said, there is a problem, which Grace Frame is right for me? Choosing the right frame can present a challenge. Kathy and I have been selling Grace quilting frames for about 13 years. The GMQ or Grace Machine Quilter has been around for about seven years. When the Grace Company was developing the Original GMQ they had Kathy be on of their technical advisers.

They would ask what do you think about this or that? Grace was planning on only having handles in the back of the carriage. We said you need to be able to quilt from the front and back. When the GMQ came out and all the other machine frames they made, they have it so you can quilt from the front or the back. This is really important because you freehand quilt from the front of the frame where you can watch the needle of the sewing machine. When you follow patterns, like pantograph patterns, you trace along a pattern with a laser or stylus. Since you are following a pattern, you stand at the back of the machine frame. There are machine frames out there that differ from this but most frames you quilt from the back when using a pantograph pattern or quilting template.

The Grace Company has wooden and metal machine frame models. The metal ones are usually quite a bit more than the wooden frames. The metal frames are the "Professional Series", frames because there are specific sewing machines that are designed to work with them. The wooden frames like the GMQ Pro and Little Gracie are designed to work with most sewing machines that have at least six inches of throat length. If you measure the length to the right of the sewing machine needle, this will give you the throat length. It is also called the "Arm". If you have heard of a longarm quilting frame, that would be a machine with 18 or more inches of throat length. If you are looking for a machine frame and it comes with a sewing machine that has a nine inch throat, that isn't a longarm. One reason I am writing this is to help people make an informed decision about which frame is right for them and the sewing machine that will give them the best results.

Wooden Grace Machine Frames

GMQ Pro - This is my favorite frame the Grace Company makes. When you upgrade the carriage to the Pro Carriage you have the best frame available for the money. It handles like frames that cost $1000 or more. The GMQ Pro has the same diameter aluminum frame rails (poles) as the Pinnacle. The ratcheting system is much simpler so there isn't anything that can really go wrong with it. It will allow you to do quilts up to 126 inches wide. The Pinnacle will only let you do quilts up to 114 or so.

The GMQ Pro allows you to put a machine on it with a throat from six to 18 inches. The frame rails pivot which lets you look under the quilt without throwing your back out!

Why we recommend this frame:

If you have the room to set the GMQ Pro up to King size and the money to purchase it, then this is the best frame for general all around quilting.