Wow! Thanks so much. I’ve been away from knitting so long and now all the yarns are classified too as to their thickness…numbers like 4, 7 and so on. What a change…interchangeable circular needles and everything.
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I kwym. My dad used to knit years ago and he said the same thing – all kinds of thick yarns and thick needles!!!
Knitcindy
You can’t get away from change it seems. I have a hard time with that.
I use Clover Needlecraft Takumi circular needles. Purchase from Amazon. The metal ones @ Walmart are frustrating to work without.
Thanks for that info.
If it’s a soft plastic cable, I hold it over a warm stove burner and pull both ends to smooth the kinks out.
What kind of needles are you using?
I’m using soft plastic. I don’t know if I’d trust myself to do that. I drop everything I touch, but thanks for that information.
I’ve also tried soaking the cable (not the needle tips) in very hot (just shy of boiling) water for a few seconds, then pulling them to stretch the kinks out. That worked well for my Clover bamboo needles.
I too was hesitant on spending a lot of money on a good set of interchangeable needles, especially as I was just picking up my knitting again and with youtube help, learned magic loop. I’d always knit with straight needles. I knit daily and love that I don’t have to buy several lengths of cables for one size and that I can simply buy tips if I want a different texture like bamboo rather than the steel (Hiya Hiya interchangeables) tips. I buy the 5" tip Sharps. when I’ve looked at individual prices it really does make a difference. It was a big investment but worth it in the end
Thanks for that reply, Cathy. Good to know.
I have tried to keep the needles out of the boiling water, but so far no problem with them. I am concerned about where the joining is though so I’ll try harder next time. I don’t want the tubing coming off.
I was lucky and was given a birthday gift of enough money to be my set. I would have eventually anyway but it was a big treat being able to buy them right away! Good luck with everything
Maybe you can gift her some on special occasions til she has most of her own.
I’ve had that happen as well. I try to keep any water a couple inches away from the join, so it doesn’t ruin the glue.
That’s a good idea lizzy23!!! I hadn’t thought about that before.
Knitcindy
Yes, you must use very, very HOT water. I put the water into a saucepan, and when the water boils, THEN I insert the cables only into the water. I leave the metal needle tips out. I have learned now to leave them in the water a fairly long time! At first, the curl came out instantly… but doesn’t last. So I now boil the cables for a couple of minutes… it does work.
Then I pull it out of the water and hold them straight for a long time, until they are cooled down – right to the core. It took a long time to heat up, so it will take a long time to harden in a straight shape.
And yes, I don’t coil them up again. I hang them over a hook, or a holder, so they keep their straight(er) shape. If they curl up again, you may not have heated them long enough, and will have to do them again.
The newer (and expensive) needles have a different material for the cables, and they don’t hold any shape. They are great – so only get the ones you need, and you don’t need to buy the whole set if you only use 2-3 sizes. I get long circulars and use them for EVERYTHING! No need for anything shorter than 32", in my opinion. So only ONE length for each size I use. More reasonable that way.
I’m a novice knitter. I actually taught myself on circulars before six. I started with the cheap store bought ones. Then I went to the Amazon cheap batches of wood circulars because they were very cheap. lol
Then I tried Knit Picks Options interchangable. I only bought 2 tips and a cord. I absolutely loved them until…I had a blanket on them and the fural fell off the needle. I called them right away and they sent me a new pair. I gorilla glued the old ones for spare. I like the cords on these, they dont have a lot of memory and dont twist up in my face like a monster.
I have arthritis also. I’m always looking.
I dont have a lot of money so I look a lot and save pages, then I wait for a holiday and everything’s on sale and I buy. Good luck!
Regarding your arthritis, this is an awful painful condition that I suffer with also. I’ve found turmeric helps a lot to calm the inflammation and CBD oil rubbed into the painful joints also helps. Arthritis sucks😁
Thank you so much. Will try your suggestion.