i love interchangeable needles!
I have put together a few pics, comparisons, and my overall feelings about working with these sets. I could talk about knitting tools all day, so if you have questions, ask away. At the VERY bottom of this post, there is a small 'spreadsheet' summarizing certain points of interest. It is in very small print so it would fit.
This is not an all-inclusive list. I don't own every set of interchangeables out there (i wish!!!), but this post might help you with these particular sets.
All needles in my pics are the Size 7's.
Here's a shoutout to the Fabulous Yarns website because I have found the best prices there and they have great customer service. I bought my Addi's and Knitters Pride Royale Paris sets there. My other sets not sold through Fab Yarns are my Knitpicks Options which I purchased through Knitpicks, of course, and the Hiya Hiya Bamboo (5" set of "small" sizes) I purchased through Eat Sleep Knit.
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| top to bottom: addi lace long tip, addi bamboo, hiya hiya bamboo, knitters pride royale paris limited edition, knitpicks options sunstruck
TEXTURE OF THE NEEDLES:
All these needles feel great. The Addi Lace is metal and therefore more slick than bamboo/wood. Stitches really fly off them but they are not the slipperiest metal needles I've used. The K Pride Royale have the best of both worlds: slick metal tips and grippy wood shafts. I prefer bamboo/wood, as you may tell. The other 3 sets (Addi bamboo, Hiya Hiya bamboo, and Knitpicks wood) are all wonderfully smooth with excellent grip. I think they're all excellent on this score.
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SMOOTHNESS OF THE JOINS/CONNECTIONS:
All the joins are certainly smooth enough, but the Addi bamboo fared the worst. You can see in the pic that it is the most angular of the bunch. Both the Addi bamboo and the Addi lace have just enough of a rise at the connector that if you are a very tight knitter especially (or if you use "magic loop" technique), you may have to fiddle with moving some of your stitches over it. The smoothest joins are the Hiya Hiya and the Knitpicks Options, followed by the K. Pride Royale.
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| top to bottom: addi lace long tip, addi bamboo, hiya hiya bamboo, knitters pride royale paris limited edition, knitpicks options sunstruck |
THE CABLES:
Overall I find all these cables to be excellent in flexibility. To me the colors vs. the clear aren't really an issue. The bonus points on the cables are that the Hiya Hiya's cables swivel, which is quite lovely especially if you use the 'magic loop' technique. The color coded cables of the K Pride Royale is a nice plus.
All the cables have marked sizing except for Knitpicks Options. (and the K Pride but they are color coded).
Note that all cables have holes for lifelines except for Addi Bamboo.
THE SIZE MARKINGS ON NEEDLES:
Addi Lace Long Tips are marked on the shaft but they are already wearing off with use. Addi bamboo are clearly marked on the shaft. Hiya Hiya are marked on the shaft. K Pride Royale are very clearly marked on the shaft, and they are color coded as well. Knitpicks Options has the sizing etched on the metal connector, which I find hard to see.
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| top to bottom: addi lace long tip, addi bamboo, hiya hiya bamboo, knitters pride royale paris limited edition, knitpicks options sunstruck |
THE TIPS:
I have looked long and hard at these tips, and having worked with them all, I'd say they're all about equal in pointiness. All nice and pointy to manipulate the stitches and work some mad maneuvers.
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| top to bottom: addi lace long tip, addi bamboo, hiya hiya bamboo, knitters pride royale paris limited edition, knitpicks options sunstruck |
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| left to right: addi lace long tip, addi bamboo, hiya hiya bamboo, knitters pride royale paris limited edition, knitpicks options sunstruck
THE PACKAGING:
I didn't take pics of the packaging. If you will be researching further, you can see for yourselves the range of quality in the packages. Addi includes high quality, sturdy cases with their sets, Hiya Hiya wins for the most portable case, made of quilted fabric. K Pride Royale comes in a magnetic box which is the least portable of the bunch, and Knitpicks Options comes in an uninspiring but completely sufficient clear vinyl case.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
If you are an avid fan of the "magic loop" technique, be sure to get a set with smooth joins. My favorite for this are my Hiya Hiya's with their ultra-smooth joins and swiveling cables.
If you get a set of interchangeables with screw-type connectors, be sure to grip them at the connectors when screwing/unscrewing. Do not screw in while holding the shaft.
I had bought a set of Chiagoo Twist, but returned it when I had trouble with some of the joins not screwing in. It seemed that the threading was uneven. I've heard good things about those needles, but at that price point, to have a problem right away rubbed me wrong so I did not replace them.
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Awesome post! Thank you for doing all the comparison work for us. BTW have you come across any cables with swivel capability? If not, perhaps you could invent some, JK!
ReplyDeleteThe K Pride Royale Paris comes with a fabric bag. The gigantic magnetic box is just for display in shops I think. You'd never haul it around with you!
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