Machine Knitting and Updated links.

Hello, Someone recently emailed me a question about resources for machine knitting and I've somehow lost the email. If you are following the forum, please email me your question again, thanks so much.

And I'm checking and updating the links on the Knitting home page so keep watching for changes.

Hi,

It was me who sent you the email re machine knitting. I am wondering if there is any machine knitting sites within thiese pages of forums. I have been machine knitting for over 40 years here in New Zealand and make all my own patterns but am always interested in other peoples ideas or to help if someone else needs advise.

Machine Knitting Lover

Here in UK we used to have six machine knitting magazines ( when I started 40 odd years ago) - now there is only one,

Machine Knitting news and product reviews, exhibition dates, readers' letters. Subscribe on-line to MKM. ...www.machineknittingmonthly.net/
Current Issue, Club News, Directory, Features, What's New, Reviews, Ask The Experts, Letters

Anne Smith, the editor, is very helpful
Ednamay

I wonder if machine knitting will enjoy the resurgence that hand knitting is going through. Most of the shops in my area carry almost no yarn on cones so it seems not yet here at least. It will be interesting to watch for though.

Here in the UK (again!) a number of suppliers are accessible on the Internet (details in Machine Knitting Monthly, which is on the Web); surely there are some elsewhere, or some of the UK suppliers would be happy to ship abroad, I am sure - especially if you have a club, or form a byers' group. good hunting!
Ednamay

Hi everyone,

Here in New Zealand there seem to be still quite a few machine knitters and a few younger ones coming on. the problem seems to be getting new machines as the makes that we used to get here are not made any more so it is second hand ones as they become available.
As far as yarn is concerned we are lucky in that there are still quite a few supplirs of coned yarn most of which seems to be spun either in New Zealand or Australia.

Machine knitting lover

Hi knitfans!
Today. 3rd Jan. 2009, the latest edition of Machine Knitting Monthly has been delivered in my post; I have not yet checked the website today, but the magazine has some wonderful chunky knits - unfortunately my chunky machine is still in the loft - I can't even get to my standard machine because my son has started reorganising my workroom!!! But I have just found some very lightweight chunky yarn so I will get out some needles and see if my arthritic fingers will co-operate!!!
Happy New Year from Ednamay

Hi everyone,

Happy New Year to all from Bonnie Scotland.

I have just bought a knitting machine second hand off ebay. I have never used a machine before and would like to know if anyone out there knows of where I can get my hands on some very easy patterns I could practise on. I have a HK160 handknitters machine with punchcards. I cant wait to roll out sweaters etc for my grandchildren (and myself ) I like all the shrugs and cardies that are in fashion at the moment but don't know where to start.

I haven't been here for a while and didn't even know there was talk of machine knitting started. I started machine knitting at the beginning of 2008 and I love it.

I have nine machines of which I am currently using four. I have to move stuff to put up some other machines and I always seem to have a project on each machine making it impossible to move it.

I need to get things moved so I can at least get put up two more machines, then two of them will be used with the two garter carriages I have while I work on other machines.

One of the machines is a portable, and one I have put up in a gun case to make it portable. It is a mid-gauged brother machine that I take outside in the spring and summer to knit in the open air.

I find that the best place to purchase cone yarn at a reasonable price is ebay. I have gotten some wonderful yarns at great prices, but there are also other on line vendors that carry cone yarns. Another thing is to check out the for machine/knitting for sale groups at yahoo. Very often you can find listings of cone yarns for sale and/or parts-accessories for machines. All of mine are brothers, with the exception of one that is a knit king (another name used for brother machines, so really the same).

As for patterns, do a search for machine knitted free patterns. There are a lot of them available at various web sites. To just give you links would be ok but there is so much I might miss.

Where to start would be with a little practice on the machine with some swatches. There is a slight learning curve to using the machine and doing hand manipulations.

From everything I have read that Hk160 is the same machine as the MK-70 (granted the MK-70 is fold up and the HK160 is not, but they use the same needles and such). I did read at an ebay review of the 160 that is was one of the only punchcard machines that uses the dk yarns easily.

Hi Thanks for your help. I have looked at many sites for free patterns and am sometimes confused at the yarn descriptions as a lot of sites are American. I am used to 2ply,3ply,4ply,dk,Aran or chunky. Some of the patterns call the yarn worsted. I have tried to find a site that "translates" the terminology and so far all I can gather is that worsted is a chunky/aran. I may be wrong.
You are right the hk160 is th same as the mk-70 and believe they are easy to use. I have done a few swatches but not tried different tensions etc on the same swatch to see the difference as I am going along.

Brother standard gauge machines will take fine double knitting at tension 9, and slightly thicker on alternate needles - you need to play with your machine to find out its capabilities. For heavier DK you will need a mid-gauge or a chunky machine.
If you have a knitweave facility on the machine, DK makes a good weaving thread on 3ply or 4ply, makes a lovely lightweight but warm fabric.
If it is still in print, Mary Weaver wrote a helpful beginners book called "Knit easy, knit Brother" - it might be available through e-bay or Amazon.
Ednamay

Thanks for your help. I found a beginners basic tutorial dvd on ebay which came today, also there are some video tutorials on you- tube for the uliimate sweater machine which has much the same basic techniques. Its so much easier to watch than to read. I have used scrap wool to try out the machine and am having some fun, not so funny though when the knitting falls at your feet!! Still it gives practice in trying to put stitches back on machine

New one: I have a standard gauge Brother (my Chunky has not come down from the loft since we moved house!!!) and I have not been able to use it for some months because of arthritis in my shoulders. I don't want to buy an electronic (mine is a punchcard) but I am dithering between buying a motor or a garter stitch accessory. I do have a ribber accessory which I use mainly for cuffs etc., but also for knee shawls (it keeps the edges flat). Any advice??? Ednamay

I wish I could help, but I'm at a total loss when it comes to machine knitting. Although I'm loathe to send you away from BellaOnline, have you tried any of the links suggested here? Machine knitting links

You need to know that an electroni machine doesn't mean the machine will knit by itself. It is just the same as your punchcard machine, you have to push that carriage. The electronics are only for the built in patterns.

For example where you might have a punchcard that has a diamond pattern on it, that same pattern could be in the electronic machine under what ever number they gave it (there is a book with all the built in stitches).

So instead of putting in the punchcard to select the needles you would turn the machine on and select the pattern number to use and that built in pattern selects the needles, just like your punchcard machine does.

People hear electronic and automaticlly think the machine knits all by itself. That just isn't so. I have a punchcard and two electronic machines and I have to push that carriage the same on all three machines.

Now the other thing you are talking about, the garter stitch accessory, well I think you are talking about the garter carriage or g-carriage as it is called. These do knit by themselves. They come in several different models. For example I have a garter carriage 93 and an 89. These will work for some machines but not for others. These garter carriages are only made for the brother standard machines (and not all of those). At the end of this I will put a link to a compatibility chart for the g-carriages.

There is another thing that will run your carriage called a motor drive but those are very expensive and very hard to find. I think the last one I saw sell went for around $900 and that was a good buy.

Chart: Daisy Knits