Brother LS 2400 Review (2023 Update)

Note from the Editor: This Brother LS 2400 Review was originally written in 2015, and has been revised and updated in 2023. We have added alternatives such as SINGER Making The Cut, Elnita EM16, and EverSewn Sparrow 15.

Anyone who is the least bit familiar with my opinions and ideas about buying sewing machines knows how I feel about spending hard earned money on sewing machines at stores like Walmart or anywhere else where you do not have an opportunity to actually see the machine in action.

You can just imagine how appalled I was when I visited a friend in Detroit who proudly informed me that she purchased a sewing machine on sale for $50 at Walmart.

Sight unseen, I told her that she’d be shopping for another sewing machine in less than a year, but to be fair, I asked her permission to check it out.

Mind you, she purchased this sewing machine with the intention of learning how to sew after she retires, and since she is still working, she has not yet even unpacked it.

Brother LS 2400 Overview

The first thing that caught my eye was a huge red stop sign on the inside flap of the box that read in bold letters… “STOP … please do not return to store… WE CAN HELP”.

What follows is a toll free telephone number for owners to call for support. Another red light for me was a notation on the box indicating that customer support would be available ‘for the life of the product’.

Now that would be all well and good if the product’s life expectancy was more than a few months. Unsuspecting people, however, would think that this might be a good thing.

As one would expect, the Brother LS 2400 looks pretty much like most other portable sewing machines on the market today. It is a very basic machine with only the bare minimum of features… easy to follow thread guides; a front loading bobbin; on board accessory storage; free arm; dials to control needle position, stitch length and width and tension; a reverse stitch lever and seam guides on the needle plate.

There is also a decal on the front of the bobbin cover that gives detailed instructions as to how to assemble and care for the bobbin housing in both English and Spanish.

What are some alternatives for Brother LS 2400?

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What are the features on Brother LS 2400?

If you were expecting to find a lot of features on the Brother LS 2400, you will be sorely disappointed. It comes with the essential features on would need to operate any sewing machine and very, very little more.

In fact, the only feature that one might consider ‘extra’ on this very basic sewing machine is the needle guide with seam guides etched onto it and the needle position feature. Standard features on the Brother LS 2400 are:

• Straight and zigzag stitches only
• Three needle positions
• Manual tension adjustment
• Adjustable stitch length and width
• Manual four step buttonhole
• On board seam guide
• On board accessory storage
• Free arm
• Twin needle capability

Working on the Brother LS 2400

The easy to follow guides make threading the Brother LS 2400 and winding the bobbin simple and easy enough for an eight year old to follow.

With just a few options – needle position, straight or zigzag stitch and the stitch length and width – selection a stitch is much less challenging than when using a sewing machine with dozens of different stitch options from which to choose.

The dials on the top of the machine are clearly marked to indicate which one is to be used to set the stitch length and which one is to be used to adjust the length. Needle position is adjusted by adjusting a lever up or down.

Working on the Brother LS 2400 made me feel as though it would break at any moment. It feels very flimsy and unstable. As I turned the dials, I had the feeling that they would either come off or break after a few uses.

It runs a bit ‘rough’, with a slow start and is loud. It also vibrates more than I feel any brand new sewing machine should.

The stitch quality was surprisingly very good… much, much better in fact than I expected from a machine that has the excessive number of structural flaws that I observed. Don’t forget, however, that when I worked on this machine for this review, it was the very first time it has been out of the carton. I sampled straight and zigzag stitches using various length and width settings.

Each stitch was well defined, sturdy and secure. There have been other machines that I reviewed fresh out of the carton as well which did not produce stitch quality as well as those produced by the Brother LS 2400.

Which fabrics work on the Brother LS 2400?

Fabrics that work	Fabrics that don’t work
Natural fibers/cotton-linen-wool Synthetic fabrics/blends-rayon-polyester	Leather/suede Fur Reptile skin Canvas/Twill Plastic/Rubber Fine fabrics/silk-satin-taffeta/velvet Knits(Medium to heavyweight only) Upholstery Extra thick fabrics or multiple layers

Which accessories come with the Brother LS 2400?

Although I didn’t expect much, I was surprised to discover that the standard accessories included with the Brother LS 2400 did not even include a seam ripper or lint brush. The accessories that were encased in the on board accessories case were:

• Sap on zipper foot (stand multi-functional foot was on the machine when I unpacked it)
• Two extra bobbins (one on the machine for a total of three)
• Two extra needles
• A feed dog cover to accommodate the use of freehand sewing, sewing on buttons and bar tacking
• Instructional DVD
• Owner’s manual
• Quick reference guides – one of which tells you ‘do not return this product to the dealer’

Anyone who purchases the Brother LS 2400 has ability to purchase a number of optional accessories, including:

• Hard carrying case
• Extra bobbins
• All of the snap on presser feet that fit other machines in the Brother sewing machine line

How to maintain the Brother LS 2400?

Maintenance activities	After each use	Monthly	Once each year	As needed
Clean race hook and feed dogs	Yes	No	No	No
Wipe head with soft dry cloth	No	No	No	Yes
Wipe head with soft damp cloth	No	No	No	Yes
Lubricate	No	No	No	No
Service by sewing machine repair professional	No	No	Yes	No

Brother LS 2400 Summary

I have so many issues with the Brother LS 2400 that I don’t where to start. In addition to everything discussed above, it has incorporated one of my pet peeves… a time wasting front loading bobbin that requires the user to remove the accessories case every time the bobbin needs to be changed.

My friend said she purchased this sewing machine because she wants to learn how to sew all over again when she retires… and it was on sale. Knowing her as I do, she’ll be looking for a replacement within three to six months after she starts working on it if not sooner.

Like many of us, she took a sewing class in school many, many years ago and wants to return to the art of home sewing when she has more time to devote to making small home décor items and simple garments and accessories.

There is no significant investment of funds involved with the purchase of a Brother LS 2400. It might be a good sewing machine for a child to start with because if they decide they really don’t want to sew, there is no real loss. However, an adult in my friend’s position deserves a much better, more reliable sewing machine.

When you consider the fact that this review was the very first time this particular sewing machine had ever been used, I am inclined to believe that given the issues with noise, vibration and overall poor structure, the superior stitch quality that I observed will not be the case for long.

I was talking with an authorized Brother sewing machine service representative who told me that when a machine that is still under warranty comes to him for repair, Brother pays him almost as much as my friend paid for her machine, plus the cost of parts.

With this in mind, I cannot help but wonder how the manufacturer manages to make a profit producing and selling sewing machines of such poor quality.

It is very interesting that the manufacturer took the time and to actually add a bold red warning on the carton advising the purchaser to call them rather than take it back to the store.

Obviously, they knew in advance that the Brother LS 2400 was a machine that would not provide many years of satisfactory service. It’s even possible that the folks at the big box stores that carry these throw away machines are growing tired of all the returns and are perhaps grumbling about discontinuing the line.

If you ask me… and nobody really has … I think Brother should get out of the throw away sewing machine business altogether. It diminishes the company’s reputation for making the reliable sewing machines that it has become known for.

When compared with the top of the line Dream Machine, for example, one cannot help but wonder what they would do with their resources if they were not wasting time and energy producing something like the LS 2400.

If you want to look at it in a different way, I guess Brother should be commended for producing a line of machines that even the most restricted home budget can afford.

With this in mind, I believe they should put a lot more quality in their basic bottom tier machines in order to encourage people who purchase the low end machines to stick with the brand as their circumstances improve and they are able to make a more substantial investment in higher quality sewing machines.

In my honest opinion, there is a very real possibility that anyone who purchases the Brother LS 2400 could very well decide that they never want to touch another Brother sewing machine again. By putting out such an inferior product, the people at Brother are running the very real risk of losing a potential life-long customer.

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