Hello,
I’m facing my fear of circular needles and making a jumper. It was all going pretty well until it came to doing the collar and using the magic loop technique and now I’m dreading having to use it to do the sleeves 
I feel like I’m constantly trying to wrestle a snake. The loop just doesn’t want to loop. I saw a video about soaking the plastic string part in hot water to try and get them to behave better. Has anyone done this?
So annoying! What brand of needles are you using?
I have carefully passed the cable back and forth through the steam escaping from a kettle. Do this several times and then hang the needle with a weight tied on one end for an hour. (I wedge one needle into a drawer and tie a running shoe to the dangling end.) That usually does the trick.
Also, how long is your needle? A lot longer than you need or not long enough can both be problems. Some needles magic loop better than others. Getting comfortable with the technique does take some time. You might like two circs better, lots of knitters do.
I don’t want to put you off your adventure into magic loop… and it’s good to try some cable taming and persist with the skill to become more comfortable with it…
…but if it doesn’t work out and you are not enjoying knitting because of it you don’t have to frog your sweater or continue to wrestle the snake. I work sleeves flat by adding a stitch each end for the seam, it’s possible to do this for bottom up and top down and even those where you pick up stitches on the body to work the sleeve cap and down from there. Generally neck bands can be worked like this too.
I just cannot work small circumference in the round at all (it’s the way I hold my needles and I don’t choose to change)
I kept my cable hanging near a warm radiator and it helped to settle the snake.
Cheering you on!
There are newer types of cables made of fine, braided wire coated with plastic that are much more flexible. Depending on the brand of needles, ChiaoGoo red cables (only work with ChiaoGoo needles), and Lantern Moon makes them to fit most other brands. I use them with my wooden Lykkes and would never go back to plain plastic cables.
But assuming you don’t want to invest in new cables / needles, the warm water / steam trick does help a lot. And as someone mentioned, having a cable that’s the correct length. Too long, and you have to pull a lot through; too short and it pulls apart and creates ladders.
Two circs might be easier. This, of course, means you need another set of the same size, though the cable could be a different length.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXFvCuYkWQQ&ab_channel=KnitPicks
Hi @salmonmac I’ll try the steam trick, thanks! They’re these knitpro ones.
That plastic cable has become the bane of my life. Though up until now I’ve been really liking circular knitting. Glad I gave it a go!
The one for the body and the sleeves is 100 cm and the ones for the collar and cuffs is 80cm. They were fine when I was doing the body but then the wrestling began.
Thanks so much! I’m definitely tempted to do the sleeves flat and add them on so it’s good to know that’s an option! This was meant to be a brain off and listen to audiobooks project.
Thanks so much ColoCro, much appreciated! I’ll definitely have a look into those brands (I feel a Christmas present coming on!).
I totally agree. But Ive heard that with really good quality circular needles it is less a battle.
Depending how your pattern constructed you can still follow the right direction of knitting and so on, but flat.
If you need help working it out just let us know.
Also, is the sweater on the 15mm? For me this would add to the struggle, so maybe a magic loop on a finer yarn and smaller needle would be more comfortable for you, and just go with knit flat for the chunky stuff.
“The one for the body and the sleeves is 100 cm and the ones for the collar and cuffs is 80cm.”
Have you tried the longer needle for the neck? It might work better. I don’t know what you’re experiencing to be wresting with the needle. I use Knitter’s Pride, US version of KnitPro, and do magic loop for all my small circumference knitting in the round. I love the Lantern Moon cables for my interchangeables. That said, cables do age and my oldest ones are not as nice to work with as the newer ones. I tried the red coated cable in a fixed circ and felt like it was constantly fighting me. It was not flexible enough for me to enjoy magic loop on it. The one I had seemed to have been possessed by a demon that delighted in making my knitting difficult. lol I find the Lantern Moon cables much more flexible than I recall the red one being.
Interesting. I used ChiaoGoo bamboo needles with the red cables for quite a while, until I found the Lantern Moon ones, which work with my Lykkes. The Lykkes have a smoother transition from cable to needle than the ChiaoGoos. But I feel the Lantern Moon cables are slightly stiffer than the red cables! Not enough to change back, but noticeable.
I had the red coated cable circular needle so long ago I don’t know the brand. Does more than one have the red cables? I hated that needle. Someone who was on here back then got it. I was doubly irritated that Ben Franklin, after telling me I could return them if I didn’t like them, wouldn’t take them back. I didn’t know how to find out if the manufacturer would honor the warranty that Ben Franklin wouldn’t. I shop at that store as a last resort since.
I did it, and it didn’t help one bit. I’d actually rather wrestle a living snake than fight with a magic loop. My answer is double pointed needles. They never misbehave. Never get in the way. Never fight with you. And they can be used for any circumference.
Yes, soaking the plastic cord in hot water can help make it more flexible and easier to manage. Just dip the cord in hot (not boiling) water for a few seconds, then straighten it out. It should be more cooperative afterward. Good luck with your jumper!
I skip dpn for small circumference knitting because I’m forever losing a needle. I drop the one just emptied and they’re extremely good at hiding. Chairs love dpn and will devour them. That’s my main problem with dpn. I use them for glove fingers and do the hide and seek thing. Luckily my dpn are five needle sets so if I simply can’t find the one I just dropped I can grab the spare and I can look again later when I’ve dropped the fifth one.
I understand your pain, 
.
Last year I knit my first sweater in the round. It was a top down raglan and I used my knitter’s pride interchangeable needles. Loosened the plastic cable by soaking in hot water and that worked fine for the body of the sweater.
When it came time to work the sleeves I decided to do them “two at a time” using magic loop so I switched to a longer cable. Softening the cable helped a little but it was still a struggle.
After that experience I invested in a set of ChiaoGoo, with the flexible red cables, for those projects that I want to use magic loop. Those flexible cables really make a difference.
You’ve already switched needles, so this is maybe too late, but Lantern Moon makes flexible cables that fit most other brands, unlike ChiaoGoo. I got them for my Lykkes, and I much prefer the taper from cable to needle. I found the ChiaoGoos to be a bit abrupt, as I knit a bit tightly.
Thank you, I will check into that brand. I like the ChaioGoo, no issues for me. However, I would like the option to use my wood needles for some yarns. Sometimes the metal ones are too slick.
