Brother ST531HD Strong & Tough 53 Stitch Sewing Machine with Finger Guard 16x8x12

The Brother ST371HD is an amazing sewing machine! With 37 built-in stitches and 6 handy sewing feet, it handles everything from basic repairs to creative projects. The free arm option is great for cuffs and sleeves, while the included thread pack adds extra value. It’s sturdy, user-friendly, and perfect for beginners and experienced sewers alike. Highly recommended for its reliability and versatility!

I have been a seamstress all my life and at 70 I thought I knew about sewing machines. I have used a Bernina, which I felt was too fussy for me, and switched to Brother when I bought my first Serger. Besides the quality of Brother machines, I feel they are a great company that backs their products. With my Brother machines, I have made more than 40 Renaissance Court costumes, including King and Queen costumes. Now that I am a grandma (Meemo) I have started making doll clothes. I have had a computerized Brother for the last four years but because I am now planning on making covers for an outdoor lawn swing and patio chairs, I decided to get the Brother Strong and Tough to use with the heavyweight fabrics that will be necessary for those projects. Once I had this machine out of its box, it was set up in minutes. The stitches are nice and even and it is easy to adjust the tension and type of stitches. I have used it now on faile and dotted swiss while making dresses for my granddaughters' dolls and I have had my seven-year-old granddaughter using the machine as I teach her sewing. I had bought her a lightweight Brother as a birthday present but I think I am going to get one of these for her instead. It is a much better machine. I have stored my computerized machine to make room for this one on my sewing table. I find now that after all these years, I prefer the mechanical machine to the computerized ones. What a revelation! All the extra stitches on my computerized machine go to waste as any embroidery that needs to be done I do by hand. Always have. Always will.I appreciate that this machine has a rubber base to keep it from moving while I sew. I appreciate that none of the stitches skip and that it is easy to start sewing at the edge of the fabric without having to hold the threads in the back to keep the stitches from bunching. I like that the presser foot has an extra height adjustment to use on thick fabrics, something I will be needing when I make the lawn swing seats.There a couple of things I miss from my old machine but will adjust to quickly. The "down needle" button for pivoting fabric. The longer cord on the pedal foot which I could drop behind my table top instead of draping forward across the table. The quieter running motor, so I can sew at night without waking my grandkids and their parents up. These are all minor issues though in exchange for a really good machine that I expect will be the last one I get.All of the machine feet I have for my old Brother fit this machine as well, but the bobbins are a slightly different size and not interchangeable. It comes with four bobbins, and I had purchased more bobbins for my granddaughters' other machine that fit this machine just fine. AND it came with a Teflon foot which will come in handy on many of the fabrics I use for the doll clothes.I am a very satisfied customer. Thank you Brother for continuing to make such great products.

I LOVE this little workhorse! Ordered it out of frustration with my very expensive, very temperamental Pfaff which sends me the message that "the machine needs to rest" about every hundred stitches, including the first hundred each time. I wanted a mechanical machine with nothing electronic, no readouts, no nothing but a stitching machine. I know the Brother name, although this is the first I have owned. I am an experienced seamstress and quilter with little need anymore for fancy stitching. I quilt. I make gifts. Amazingly, I placed the order in the noon hour and the machine was in my hands by 5:15, out of the box and threaded minutes later and I am now making its first quilt. It is foolproof. The threading instructions are printed on the machine, solid line for top thread and dashlines for bobbin winding, which is smooth and reliable. DO NOT USE ANY BOBBINS WITH THIS MACHINE OTHER THAN THE SIZE AND NUMBER THAT COME WITH IT. They are not interchangeable. If you buy this machine, I would advise ordering a large supply of bobbins simultaneously. You may or may not be able to find these you-know-where when you need them and once you begin sewing on this machine, you will likely leave your computerized model for more complex or decorative projects. This machine is quite portable, but it is not lightweight or light duty. I am about to make a denim quilt and I am confident of sailing through it with only needle and tension adjustments. The stitching is smooth, needle position range is wide and there are plenty of utility stitches, even for a sewist like me. If I had an issue with anything on this machine, it is that the spool pin seems to be fixed and I prefer to have mine stand perpendicular to the machine. Aside from that, to have this little hoss delivered to my house in less than five hours for under $200 is the deal of the year.

I bought the Brother ST371HD in March 2022, after looking at high-end and low-end machines and everything in between. I’ve always used Singer machines - my most recent, bought in the early ‘90s, was a basic, non-computerized model that worked pretty well. It was loud, though, and starting to show its age. So, after not finding any Singer models that I liked, and deciding that I didn’t need an embroidery or quilting machine, I found this Brother model. It has a lot of features that I like - automatic needle threader (a struggle at first, but I finally figured it out), clear bobbin cover, horizontal spool holder, automatic buttonholer, free arm and just enough fancy stitches. It’s much quieter than any Singer I’ve owned. It sews a very neat seam. I’ve sewn through several layers of fabric with no problem.The threading was a little fiddly at first, but the directions are on the machine, which helped. And, the controls are slightly different from what I’m used to, but that’ll improve with time.I gave this machine 4 stars because, after I made some buttonholes, it would only sew in reverse. A couple of YouTube videos later, I was able to fix that by moving the hand wheel back and forth several times. The problem may have happened because I forgot to put a lever back in place after making the buttonholes - the gearing got out of whack somehow.It does not appreciate cheap thread - I have several spools of department store thread, and the Brother said “nope” to those.I’ve had no further issues with the machine and can recommend it for anyone who wants a sturdy machine with some modern updates for sewing clothing, housewares and the like.