Is there anything you can do about it? This isn’t a pair I’ve used too often, mostly because they’re stupidly long lol, but I noticed yesterday the grey/silver coating is rubbing off onto my cream coloured yarn (luckily it’s just a tension square).
The kicker is I still can’t even decide between the sizes and there’s no intermediate size between 1.75mm and 2mm. If there was it probably would be what I wanted 
Wow, I’ve not heard of that happening. It seems that anything you did (a coating or sealant) would be temporary and probably wear off at the worst moment. I’d complain to the manufacturer and switch needles.
They’re Addi ones, if that helps? I have seen it on older needles but assumed it was because they’d just been used a lot! I’ll try and find some other ones but thinking I’ll be using the smaller ones for this project anyway. Thanks for your help!
Get in touch with Addi. It’s a good company. You’re probably not the only one to complain and I’ve found them to be very responsive.
What material are they made of?
They’re aluminium - I looked on the site I bought them but that’s all it said, no detail on any added coating or anything. I got them a while ago, maybe a couple of years? But they’re relatively lightly used. Now I’m looking closer, it’s only one needle tip that’s worn, the other is still fine.
I really guessed they were aluminum. It is possible to fix the coating, but it is probably more work (and money) than what you are willing to put into them. If you search for how to anodize aluminum at home you will find plenty of videos/articles on how to fix the coating.
Interesting, thank you!
Try wood or resin needles of size 1.75mm. They are more grippy on the yarn so you will need go lesen your tension and get a bigger sts with the smaller needles.
Thank you very much, OffJumpsJack! I honestly keep forgetting different needle material can influence gauge. I nearly exclusively use metal ones now, but I’ll definitely have a look on eBay or somewhere for those.
Edit: ordered some Addi lace circular needles which are brass but with a fine resin coating; these were the closest I could find but hopefully they’ll work for what I want. Thanks again!
Are they aluminim? I had this issue with my Susan Bates aluminum needles. After a fairly short period the coating started flaking off. It was really dissapointing. You might try contacting the company, especially if you have a receipt to prove when you bought them and they might send a replacement.
They are indeed. I don’t have a physical receipt any more since I got them quite a while ago, from Wool Warehouse. My order details may still be there, however. Not sure if that would work!
Wow! I misread the sizes. My needle size guide only goes as low as 2 mm or the size of a wooden tooth pick.
Kudos to you for knitting with things too tiny for my eyes to see. 
Happens to the best of us, and thanks! I only got started with tiny needles because I wanted to do 12th scale knitting. Must admit I couldn’t manage with my 1mm needles. 1.5mm is about my limit!
I’m a jeweler and metalsmith so I feel a little able to try to help. I’m guessing that if they are aluminum they are anodized, which is achieved with an electrical charge and an acid bath and all this rigamarole. I think if you were to take a scotchbrite pad to them with some baking soda, water and dish soap you could scrub that coating off and be left with just the metal…which may not knit as nicely as with the coating on but…better than getting it all over the sweater. My guess is that your needles came in contact with someone’s bare fingers before they were treated and it caused whatever coating not to adhere properly. If Addi won’t replace them, I’d try scrubbing them. Good luck!
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Good idea, much more achievable than re-anodising too, thanks! 
haha, yes. Unless you have a tank of acid, a rectifier, anode and all the other stuff. That process is SO TOXIC. HAHA
I hope it works!
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