Juki 1541S vs. Thor 1541S

[onathread]

Hi to everyone! I have decide to purchase a flat bed in addition to my Consew 227r  cylinder.  I feel the Juki 1508 would be more machine than what I need as far as working with "heavy" leather. I make bags, some leather purses (3-5oz.). Other than the specs seeming to be the same, does anyone know of a difference between the Juki 1541S or the Thor 1541S? It seems that parts, etc. would all be available for the Thor, and it's a little bit cheaper. Any advice is much appreciated. )

[Bmwmoa67707]

Call Gregg at Keystone Sewing....we got a Juki 1541S about a month ago.  Terrific deal.....great communication...just a bit more than the Thor machine, but well worth it.

[kgg]

49 minutes ago, onathread said:

does anyone know of a difference between the Juki 1541S or the Thor 1541S?

Quality / dependability, plain and simple. The last I checked the Juki 1541s is still made in Japan not China. The Juki is the standard that the Chinese clones try to measure up against.

kgg

[onathread]

Thank You so much Bmwmoa67707! Quick response too. I'll give em a call.. All the best! 

Thx  kgg! I thought that might be the case. There is a difference in production. Just want to make the "right" choice. Even if it means spending a little more. 

[kgg]

Remember by once, cry once.

kgg

[dfrensdorff]

I have the Juki 1508NH .... it is a fantastic machine. The last flatbed I’ll ever own. A bit more $ than the 1541S, and maybe a bit heavier, but the 1541S is also a great Machine. I’m not familiar with the Thor, but I’d buy the Juki if it were me. 

[onathread]

Thank You so much dfrensdorff.  I'm feeling very good about the Juki! )

[chrisash]

10 hours ago, kgg said:

Quality / dependability, plain and simple. The last I checked the Juki 1541s is still made in Japan not China. The Juki is the standard that the Chinese clones try to measure up against.

kgg

Would not the import tax on the chinese versions make the price far higher than the ones made in Japan or has the trade dispute been solved now

[kgg]

1 hour ago, chrisash said:

Would not the import tax on the chinese versions make the price far higher than the ones made in Japan or has the trade dispute been solved now

I have not heard that the tariffs on the machines from China have been lifted in the US. Be interesting to see how much the price drops once they are lifted.

kgg

[chrisash]

Or did the Juki ones made in Japan, sneekly creep up over the last year to match the chinese ones paying the higher tax rate. Has anyone checked

[Gregg From Keystone Sewing]

Any dealer worth their salt is happy to explain to the best of our ability these new to everyone Chinese tariffs.  It's almost across the board 15 percent on machines, motors, legs, table tops and anything else I can think of that shows up from China.  So our cost is now higher, and in turn our price.  So, even if you buy a Japanese machine head, everything else probably comes from China.

[CowboyBob]

5 hours ago, kgg said:

I have not heard that the tariffs on the machines from China have been lifted in the US. Be interesting to see how much the price drops once they are lifted.

kgg

No,at this time the tariffs are still in effect & it is 25% now,they started out @15% & added on another 10% later.

[Matt S]

4 hours ago, chrisash said:

Or did the Juki ones made in Japan, sneekly creep up over the last year to match the chinese ones paying the higher tax rate. Has anyone checked

When talking about relatively common upholstery-weight machines like the 1541 and 1508 Jukis are/were roughly 1.5-2x the price of a Chinese equivalent before tax. Say £1200 vs £1800 in the UK. It's my humble opinion, based mainly on a lot of struggling and swearing with a couple of Chinese clones (and yes I know not all Chinese machines are built equally), that the price difference simply isn't enough to warrant a business or time-short hobbyist buying them over the Real McCoy (so long as the OEM ones are available and within the buyer's budget). The clones now being 25% more expensive to American buyers than they were (so using the previous numbers £1500 vs. £1800) just reduces the Chinese machines' sole benefit and make the premium manufacturers' ones seem more attractive by comparison.

Heavier machines like the Juki 441 and its clones have a different set of numbers, probably due to reduced economies of scale. Frinstance a brand new Juki 441 is about £7k over here, whereas a clone from a dealer somewhere around £3K. To me that starts to be a viable saving in cash outlay to consider a clone machine.

I'd still rather have a good used Juki/Adler/Singer/Seiko/Pfaff/Brother/BUSM/Mitsubishi/Toyota than the equivalent new Chinese clone but that's just me. I'm certainly not denigrating any particular dealers of Chinese machines, especially the diligent and reliable ones who help keep the lights on at LW.net just expressing a preference.

Edited February 5, 2020 by Matt S

[Gregg From Keystone Sewing]

2 hours ago, CowboyBob said:

No,at this time the tariffs are still in effect & it is 25% now,they started out @15% & added on another 10% later.

Depending on what parts, machines, brands, all kinds stuff, exactly.

[onathread]

Thanks again for everyone's help! I purchased the Juki 1541S from Keystone sewing. Thank You Bmwmoa67707 for that lead. They're on line price was the best I found. Delivery will be delayed due to the fact that they sold their last speed reducer. (  No rush tho. Lois was very kind and helpful. Have a great day everyone!

[rchaven]

Hey onathread, I don't mean to rock the boat as the saying goes, but what do you figure is just a bit more money?? Keystone sewing has the Juki 1541 listed at $1710 without speed reducer or anything else other then motor and table.. The Thor 1541s is only $1395 which is some amount less. Now I know your going to say that japan made vs china made, but what really is the difference. They both have to live up to ISO standards. Is it my imagination that the Thor 1541s has the foot height knob on top while the Juki 1541 does not? Or is it only the Juki 1508 that has the walking foot height adjuster knob on top? I think that would be a big difference when sewing leather of different thicknesses. But perhaps I'm wrong and not on the right page. That know and its adjustment was a big selling point for me. Has anyone that you know or that is on this forum done a direct comparison between the Thor 1541s and the Juki 1541s?? I'd be curious as to which proved to be better and at what price point.. Remember don't kill the messenger, as I'm just asking and If I don't ask I can't learn. My question is if one was on a limited budget what is wrong with the Thor??? thanks in advance.. 

[onathread]

Hey, no problem. I would rather have all the info and recommendations.  I will definitely be checking out that machine as well. Thank you very much!! 

[Gregg From Keystone Sewing]

I've always said, if you want to learn something new on the internet, post the incorrect information and people will flock to you to make corrections.  Hopefully this is the 1st and last time I get involved with comparison shopping online for sewing machines.

Their machine at this time is $1,395 complete store walk in ready to sew, ours is current at $1,600.  They want $170 for reducer, we ask $115 additional for SR-2 and Family FESM-550S motor. I'm sure theirs is comparable setup that's good and works well.  Commercial Van line freight to business or commercial address, us $125 vs $170.  Van line freight is NOT set in stone, and things can change quickly, so this number can be misleading with a number of factors like multiple machines, various van line services and the like.

So, again, the price difference is for machines with motors and speed reducers shipped to a business for ours $1,840 and less money for theirs at $1,714

But, the problem here is that this is not an apples to apples comparison.

See the image below, one is a Jaguar, the other is not.  Kia copied the body type of the Jaguar, but that does not make the Kia a Jaguar.  

Just like the Juki; one is made in Japan by the second largest sewing machine manufacturer in the world, the other is not.

    

Edited May 4, 2020 by Gregg From Keystone Sewing

[onathread]

Hi Gregg!! I already made my purchase from you, and I am VERY happy!!! Great customer service, you have a terrific day!

[Bert51]

I have a Juki machine and as you say Gregg, Oranges to Oranges and Apples to Apples and once you own a Juki you will always buy another over a Chinese copy.

There is nothing wrong with the Chinese machine, but it is not in the same class as the Juki. I do not own a Chinese machine, any more, but I also have several Singer and an Adler machines, from my point of view I know the difference from experience not from what I have read or been told.

I have not spoke to Gregg and I don't plan buying from him in the future, as the P&P to Australia id to high, I know what he is saying to be fact.

Bert.

[Flatcapper]

So Gregg, we are not comparing apples to apples. The Juki fun-1541s does not come with the walking foot adjustment knob where the Thor go-1541s does, as well as the dual tensioner’s. With the Juki I think you have to go to the 1541s-7 in order to get the height adjustment knob. In your comparison between the Jaguar and Kia, you forgot to mention that the Kia looks great and is a very dependable machine with a 100000 mile warranty. Also you may consider the Jaguar so much better, until it comes to the cost of having one repaired. Also so many that buy Jaguars do so for bragging rights having very little to do with the engineering involved. I guess those of us that can only afford the nice looking and tried and proven dependable automobile will always be looked down upon by those driving Jaguars.Perhaps I’m just cheap? But then perhaps I’m just someone that is buying what’s within his pocket book allowance. If the Juki 1541s had the features of the THOR 1541s and was remotely close in price I’d also buy the Juki. But since it’s not and I don’t have that kind of money right now I have to stick with buying the Kia. I’m sure the drive may be a bit more bumpy, but it’s still going to get me there.

[Flatcapper]

Ok, just for everyone’s information, I just received my brand new shine Kia, no that’s not it.. I just received my brand new Thor GC GC-1541s srg package. First thing it’s one heavy beast. The crew at Sunny Sewing Machines packaged the machine very well. Not only was the sewing table legs bolted to the wooden pallet, but also banded in 4 locations.  It took some timme and effort to unpack all the pallet wrap, cardboard and foam   I can’t say anything about the other brands as I don’t have one to play with, however with that said my new Thor looks every bit as good as the Consew and Juki 1541’s I saw in a sewing machine shop in Portland, Or. last fall. If you took all the labels and identification tags off and put them side by side in a room I couldn’t tell you was the Juki from the Thor. (This is assuming I’ve never seen any of the ,models previously.) The only thing is lacking is the manual. The one in the box of accessories is plain white paper and say 1541, 1541s. So I assume Thor did not make their own manual for thr gc-1541s. The manual obviously isn’t for my machine. I’ll talk to Sunny Sewing about this later today as most of the stuff covers my machine', with the exception of the adjustable walking foot, and the dual tensioner. Also according to the manual that came with My machine the thread size I’d 46-138, however this does not take into yjrdouble tensioner.  

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[Bullhead1]

Hi flatcapper just wounding how you like the Thor as I am looking at the 1760 model and would like to here your opinion on it thanks Bullhead