2 questions for longarmers, quilt tops and sew zone space.
 

1. I've learned to secure the bottom of the quilt top, however, I've read about many who don't and float the quilt top. They state they have just as good if not better results. What have you found to be the best way to load your quilt top?

2. I have 17 inches for the sew zone. Do I need to adjust the pattern to handle the rolling of a king size quilt? How much room will I have in the sew zone towards the bottom of the quilt?
I'm using an Edge to Edge method with robotics.

Looking forward to your comments, I'm learning but still have very much to learn. Thank you.

not much help. I do float the top, when I get to the almost the end I do pin the top. If you are doing edge to edge with 17" sew zone use patterns less than 11" that is what I go by. You could ask your dealer what size of pattern will work well with your 17" sew zone. Good luck

I used to have a small quilting machine and as you got down to the bottom the pattern got smaller, or you adjusted the pattern to start with and make everything small to begin with. I did free motion with that machine.

1. I suggest you try both ways and find what works for you. I have always floated my quilts, have never pinned the bottom to a leader. I feel that I have more control.
2. I can’t help much on this, I don’t do many pantos. With 17” of space, you may want to space it so the center of the panto falls near the middle section of the available area to quilt, if possible. This would allow plenty of space for the quilt to roll without the bulk encroaching on the panto area.

I don’t know what LA you have, but you may want to check to see if there is a FB page you can join for your machine brand. There are pages for most machines that have hundreds - or thousands - of wonderful people who have worked with your machine and have considerable knowledge - often with dealers who chime in, too. You will probably get responses more machine-specific there.

I heartily agree with this. I have found SO much support and help on the FB page for my machine.

I used to float my quilt tops, but I've found I get better results on large quilts when I attach the bottom to the leader. I don't think it matters as much on small quilts.

I have experience with a midarm and an APQS Lucey. The Viking Megaquilter 1200 on an inspira frame was a challenge. By the time I got to the bottom of a full sized quilt, I only had about 4 inches of quilting space so I mostly just meandered. The Lucey has a 26 inch neck and has a leveler bar so most of the time, the roll of the completed quilt does not interfere with my quilting space. I love the Lucey. I usually pin the bottom of the top to the leader on the belly side of the frame....and then I baste the top to the batting and backing. I like doing this as it really seems to help me keep everything smooth and straight. I have only floated smaller quilts. I do not have robotics on my machine....I find I just like the simplicity of free motion quilting. I don't even do ruler work very often and most of the time, I just do an over-all design. Most of my quilts do not have the plain backgrounds that would show off the quilting....but I do love putting in little motifs as I meander my way across the quilt.

I float my tops, not because I think it's better, but because I'm lazy, i guess. I use the quilt clips (I think that's what they are called) to hold it down and provide some tension on the top, if needed.
can you use the quilt block size as a guide for your pattern height? then you know that things will line up equally from top to bottom as you approach the end of the quilt. or, if you intentionally start your designs off the quilt edge, then you can continue to do so across the whole quilt and it will all look even that way.

Can't help with #2 as I have a hand guided Gammill and seldom do pantos. I always float quilts (didn't use to) and use long, strong bar magnets that I put handles on to hold the quilt steady on the belly bar.

I think that by floating the top I'm better able to adjust for out of square quilts.

I like to stitch on a 'taut/firm' quilt, so roll the bottom up with the leader - then when the end is close I do pin the edge.

For pantos or edge to edge, it sometimes depends on the size of the quilt, and particularly batting used. Poly takes up a lot of room in the throat. I have an 18" Tin Lizzie and won't use any designs more than 12" wide. My DDs 60x70" quilt is on the frame now with a cotton/wool batting, and I am lucky to get a 12" pattern into the last row.