Ilima--Nature and beauty will always win in the long run. I'll be rooting for you and your garden. How can people muck up such a bit of paradise as Maui with such a thing as the plastic house?

About 2 months ago I bought a florescent bulb for my nightstand lamp. I thought I'd "try" it to see how I'd like florescent. Don't care for it. Now, it might be the type bulb I bought. I've been using the GE Reveal (bluish in color) for years and much prefer those over the soft white bulbs. The florescent bulb I bought says "cool natural light"...daylight 6500K. Not at all appealing in a bedroom setting, nor would I want my kitchen "washed" in this lighting. Even tho the 26 watt florescent says it equals 100 watts incandecent, I don't think it's anywhere near as bright. SO, what color florescent would give a warmer tone? I priced the cans with Specular and white baffles. They were nearly 2x as expensive with the Specular and at this point, with a busted budget, I went with the white baffles. Monica

That's expensive! You've verified your bobbin and top stitch are equal? Does it do this no matter what thread you use? Can you return the machine? Ya never know, it could be a lemon. Don't blame yourself btw, it could just be a factory error in manufacturing. Women always blame themselves lol. If you buy a new machine don't forget to oil it before you first use it. They say "it's oiled" 99% of the time they haven't and it can lead to problems. It's that little hole you see when you drop a bobbin in. Oh, do you have the right thread bobbin? They all look alike but there are different "model" types for bobbins. It'll be a litter like S or C and verify you've got what the mfgr says you need. Wouldn't it be nice if that was the problem? Keep me posted :D

Wow, 20 cup?! Sounds amazing, and something like we could use around here. But the largest we've ever had is 11-cup, and truthfully, it does most of what I need pretty well. Maybe I just don't know what I'm missing. ;-) But for $800, I'm not going to find out... Like EAM44 said, Cooks Illus/America's Test Kitchen always like the KA. My first one was a KA, and it lasted for years. I went with a Cuisinart this time, because it was about $100 cheaper, thanks to Costco. I can deal with it, but can't recommend it. It has so many little safety catches and locks, and little plastic parts that break. EAM44 is right about the feed tube, too... and your larger models seem to have the same size feeding tube as mine does. Lindsey...LOL. I sure get what you're saying. I haven't even discovered ChowHound as an addiction, although I've researched things there a few times... I have kept busy enough here and on the appliance forum over the last several years.