https://craftscall.com Buying guides for the machines crafters use to make and sell things: DTF and sublimation printers, heat presses for shirts, tumblers, mugs and hats, sergers and coverstitch machines, longarm and sit-down quilting machines, leather sewing machines, knitting machines, tufting guns and looms, compared on the makers' specs and the transfer makers' instructions. en-us Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://craftscall.com/articles/addi-vs-sentro-knitting-machine addi's Express machines against the many Sentro-style machines on Amazon: what is the same, what differs and which to buy. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Knitting & Weaving https://craftscall.com/articles/addi-vs-sentro-knitting-machine https://craftscall.com/articles/best-air-threading-serger Four sergers that thread their loopers with air, how each maker's system works, and when air threading is worth paying for. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Sergers & Sewing https://craftscall.com/articles/best-air-threading-serger https://craftscall.com/articles/best-button-maker Six button makers from a lifetime-warranty steel press to a budget three-size kit, plus the cut-size chart every button maker needs. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Print Shop Tools https://craftscall.com/articles/best-button-maker https://craftscall.com/articles/best-coverstitch-machine Four coverstitch machines for the stretchy, ready-to-wear hem on T-shirts and leggings, with what chain, cover and triple cover stitches each sew. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Sergers & Sewing https://craftscall.com/articles/best-coverstitch-machine https://craftscall.com/articles/best-dtf-printer Four DTF setups from a 13 inch desktop kit to an automated print-to-bake line, compared on print width, printheads, curing and warranty. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Printers https://craftscall.com/articles/best-dtf-printer https://craftscall.com/articles/best-hat-press Six ways to press a cap, from an auto press with 176 lb of pressure to a pro press with a heated lower platen, compared on platens, heat and pressure. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Heat Presses https://craftscall.com/articles/best-hat-press https://craftscall.com/articles/best-heat-press Six presses for shirt makers, from a handheld 12 x 10 to a shop-grade auto-open clam, compared on platen size, press style, pressure and power. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Heat Presses https://craftscall.com/articles/best-heat-press https://craftscall.com/articles/best-heavy-duty-sewing-machine Five heavy-duty sewing machines for totes, aprons, denim and canvas, and what actually makes a home machine heavy duty. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Sergers & Sewing https://craftscall.com/articles/best-heavy-duty-sewing-machine https://craftscall.com/articles/best-knitting-machine Five hand-crank and electric circular knitting machines for beanies, scarves and socks, with needle counts, yarn sizes and what each makes. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Knitting & Weaving https://craftscall.com/articles/best-knitting-machine https://craftscall.com/articles/best-leather-sewing-machine Five machines for leather goods makers, sorted by how thick a leather each one sews, from 16 oz tabletop machines to a 3/4 inch hand stitcher. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Sergers & Sewing https://craftscall.com/articles/best-leather-sewing-machine https://craftscall.com/articles/best-longarm-quilting-machine Five frame longarms from a 13-inch hybrid to a 19-inch Elite, with the throat size, stitch speed and frame each needs, from the makers' own specs. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Quilting Machines https://craftscall.com/articles/best-longarm-quilting-machine https://craftscall.com/articles/best-mug-press Five ways to press mugs, from Cricut's one-touch Mug Press to a dual-station press that does two 11 oz mugs at once. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Heat Presses https://craftscall.com/articles/best-mug-press https://craftscall.com/articles/best-rigid-heddle-loom Four rigid heddle looms from a 10-inch Cricket to Ashford's 48-inch loom, with weaving widths, reeds and what each suits for woven goods to sell. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Knitting & Weaving https://craftscall.com/articles/best-rigid-heddle-loom https://craftscall.com/articles/best-rug-tufting-gun Five tufting guns from a 7 mm low-pile Duo to a 60 mm pneumatic shag gun, plus the cloth, backing and tools a rug needs. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Knitting & Weaving https://craftscall.com/articles/best-rug-tufting-gun https://craftscall.com/articles/best-screen-printing-press Four presses and a starter kit for screen printing shirts at home, what colors and stations mean, and how to cure plastisol properly. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Print Shop Tools https://craftscall.com/articles/best-screen-printing-press https://craftscall.com/articles/best-serger Five sergers from a $319.99 list-price Brother to Juki's air-threading MO-1000, with what differential feed and air threading actually do. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Sergers & Sewing https://craftscall.com/articles/best-serger https://craftscall.com/articles/best-sewing-machine-for-quilting Five domestic machines for piecing and quilting, from a 70-stitch budget Brother to Janome's AcuFeed Flex Skyline, with what each brings to a quilt. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Quilting Machines https://craftscall.com/articles/best-sewing-machine-for-quilting https://craftscall.com/articles/best-sit-down-longarm Five stationary quilting machines for small studios: throat size, stitch regulation, table size and the makers' prices. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Quilting Machines https://craftscall.com/articles/best-sit-down-longarm https://craftscall.com/articles/best-sublimation-printer Five purpose-built sublimation printers compared on print size, ink system, software and warranty, and why a converted EcoTank is a risk. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Printers https://craftscall.com/articles/best-sublimation-printer https://craftscall.com/articles/best-tumbler-heat-press Five ways to sublimate tumblers, from an auto press that sets its own pressure to an oven that does four cups at once, matched by cup size and diameter. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Heat Presses https://craftscall.com/articles/best-tumbler-heat-press https://craftscall.com/articles/best-uv-dtf-printer How UV DTF differs from regular DTF, and five machines for sticker transfers and direct printing on hard goods. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Printers https://craftscall.com/articles/best-uv-dtf-printer https://craftscall.com/articles/best-vinyl-cutter-for-shirts Five cutters for HTV shirts compared on cut width, matless length, software and connectivity, from a compact Joy Xtra to a 24 inch roll cutter. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Print Shop Tools https://craftscall.com/articles/best-vinyl-cutter-for-shirts https://craftscall.com/articles/best-walking-foot-sewing-machine Walking foot attachments, built-in top feed and industrial triple feed compared, with the machine that fits each kind of layered sewing. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Sergers & Sewing https://craftscall.com/articles/best-walking-foot-sewing-machine https://craftscall.com/articles/clamshell-vs-swing-away-heat-press How the four heat press styles differ, what each is best at, and which one fits your space and the products you make. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Heat Presses https://craftscall.com/articles/clamshell-vs-swing-away-heat-press https://craftscall.com/articles/cricut-easypress-vs-autopress The handheld EasyPress SE against the automatic AutoPress 2 in both sizes, and why the 15 x 15's adjustable pressure matters for DTF. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Heat Presses https://craftscall.com/articles/cricut-easypress-vs-autopress https://craftscall.com/articles/dtf-vs-sublimation The two most popular print-and-press methods compared on fabrics, colors, hard goods, equipment and running work, with the makers' own rules. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Printers https://craftscall.com/articles/dtf-vs-sublimation https://craftscall.com/articles/heat-press-settings-chart Pick your material and get the maker's own temperature, time, pressure and peel, in Fahrenheit or Celsius, with the source for every row. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Heat Presses https://craftscall.com/articles/heat-press-settings-chart https://craftscall.com/articles/htv-vs-dtf-vs-screen-printing Three ways to decorate shirts, compared on what designs they handle, which order sizes they suit, and what each takes to set up. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Print Shop Tools https://craftscall.com/articles/htv-vs-dtf-vs-screen-printing https://craftscall.com/articles/longarm-room-size-calculator Enter your frame and your room and see whether a longarm fits, using the walking space Handi Quilter publishes for its frames. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Quilting Machines https://craftscall.com/articles/longarm-room-size-calculator https://craftscall.com/articles/sawgrass-vs-epson-sublimation-printer The two purpose-built sublimation printer brands compared model by model, and which one suits a beginner, a Mac user or a busy shop. Sat, 07 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT Printers https://craftscall.com/articles/sawgrass-vs-epson-sublimation-printer