Help with needles

XxavoOo · 11-04-2009, 11:01 PM

Ok, so I went ahead and bought these DPNs (in sets of 2, I bought 2 sets). They're size 5.0mm... However, I don't know what they're made of. The bag in which they came in is in Chinese (I asked a Chinese friend to translate but... Well, let's just say his Spanish is terrible), so I have no idea if they're bamboo or what. I've never even touched bamboo needles before (or maybe these are bamboo, I really have no idea), so how do I know what my needles are made of?

It might sound like a very dumb question, but if these are made of bamboo, then... I really don't like bamboo needles. The yarn doesn't slide at all. Any suggestions for identifying them? (Are bamboo needles light (in weight)?)

suzeeq · 11-04-2009, 11:29 PM

Bamboos are lightweight and made of wood, and if they're from China that's probably what they are. With dpns though, they can be good to use because they grab the yarn a bit, metal needles tend to slide through the sts more easily. There are ways to slick them up, though I don't know what they are. I found by using my bamboo circs, the yarn 'polished' them a bit so they're slicker. Maybe you can take some leftover yarn and knit with them a bit and see if they get less grabby.

etoilechaude · 11-05-2009, 06:49 AM

It does sound like bamboo... and some people love it and some hate it. Honestly I have a DPN set that's all bamboo, I have NO clue where it's from (my partner ordered everything he thought I 'might' need from ebay... and I LOVE that...) but my DPNs are fab for what I do.

Oh.. AND... you can take some wax paper (the cooking kind) and rub them on your needles and it makes them a LOT more slick!!!

I think using them over and over and over... etc... develops what people call a patina (basically, a more slippery shiney surface!)

globaltraveler · 11-05-2009, 09:05 AM

What they said. I really don't like knitting with wood needles, but I do keep DPNs in multiple sizes in wood and bamboo. Grabby is good when translated out to DPNs.

That said, if you take a bit of silicone spray (ask any of your mechanic friends or one of your friends who owns a knitting machine, if you don't want to buy a whole spray can yourself), spray a towel, and then wipe the pins with the towel (then make sure you get it all back off, what doesn't absorb), you'll find them a lot slicker. Still not as slick as metal, but slicker than they were.

ArtLady1981 · 11-05-2009, 03:22 PM

Originally Posted by etoilechaude

Oh.. AND... you can take some wax paper (the cooking kind) and rub them on your needles and it makes them a LOT more slick!!!

GREAT IDEA, NATHAN!!!!

XxavoOo · 11-06-2009, 11:12 PM

Thanks. I'll just go ahead and knit with them to make them more slippery. I'm afraid of spraying anything to the needles (I fear they might have permanent damage or something).

I've been knitting a gauge, and I do notice them easier to use. I guess it just takes a while to get used to them, that's all.

globaltraveler · 11-07-2009, 01:42 PM

Shouldn't be any damage problem spraying them with silicone. I only mention this because many of the knitters who use yarn on cones that's oiled for machine knitting often comment on how nice the oil is for their wood needles (I use metal, so i wouldn't know!), and that oil is silicone.