SINGER 4423 Heavy Duty Sewing Machine

This was my go-to workhorse for 25 years, now they are garbage. I have been extremely loyal to Singer, and these machines in particular. I sew professionally for my business. I have been using the Singer Heavy Duty machines since the beginning. I appreciated the speed and simplicity of these machines. I only use these machines for straight stitching with a twin needle. I know how to trouble shoot problems when they occur. I'm a pro, especially on these machines. I use these machines for about 10 hours per week. That isn't excessive. I properly oil and clean them, replace needles often, know how to spot a bad bobbin or bobin casing, use high quality thread, and fully understand how to adjust tension. I am a master at using twin needles. These machines would usually last me about a year, then when they start giving me problems, I simply donated and replaced them. They aren't expensive, so it is more cost effective to replace them than service them. I loved their SPEED. They are fast. But after a week, they are noisey. I can deal with that. I have already purchased two Singer Heavy Duty machines in the last 2 months. The first one was garbage. It constantly gave me problems, so I quickly returned it and bought another. The second machine is no better, it is also garbage. Thread constantly breaks and nests under the fabric, and needles keep breaking. These are the exact same problems I had with the machine I just returned. Experienced sewists may say, "Hey, you're using twin needles! That's the problem! They are always problematic". I'll respond by saying I have been doing this for 25 years on these machines with minimal issues. SOMETHING HAS CHANGED. Having one bad machine could have been a fluke. Two in a row in less than two months? That's a sign that Singer QUALITY has drastically gone downhill. Yesterday, I finally got to the point where I couldn't do ANYTHING with this machine. I changed the bobin casing, needle, and carefully wound a new bobbin with NEW thread. There was no dust, lint, or loose threads in the machine. The needle wasn't bent or dull. I could find absolutely no reason for the problems I was having... the same as with the last machine. These machines simply don't seem to have the quality that the prior Singer Heavy Duty machines had. I can't afford down-time, and I wasted the entire day trying to sort this issue out, without success. So I decided to just switch to a different brand and had a new machine delivered today so I can get back to work. I'm not leaving this comment to plug another brand. I'm just trying to show how frustrated I am that the quality of the machines has degreaded so much over the last year. After some research I decided on a Necchi machine. I wanted to keep the cost down because I do consider these types of machines to be semi-disposable after a year or so, and I wanted the same sewing speed. It arrived today and it works PERFECTLY on a straight stitch with a twin needle. I used it for two hours without the slightest hiccup. I am also AMAZED at how much quieter it is than the Singers! To compare the noise difference, the Singer is a baby crying in the middle of the night and waking me up from a deep slumber, while the Necchi is like a baby cooing in the middle of the afternoon. The Necchi isn't quite as fast as the Singer although the both claim 1100 spm. Only time will tell how well it holds up. But, so far I'm pleased. In a nutshell, these Singer Heavy Duty machines are not your "granny's Singers". Singer was always my go-to choice, but now they have serious quality control issues. I'm not sure I could go back to Singer again.