Note
on needle size accuracy:
We
have discovered during our development of this gauge that some of the
needles and some of the gauges on the market are not necessarily made to
the required specifications. As a result, some needles that are
significantly undersized or oversized may not fit into the required
gauge holes properly. This tends to leave the knitter in a quandary.
Exactly what size is their needle?
An example: if your needle, which is marked
as a US size 8 does not fit into the
Size 8 hole, but does fit into the Size 9 hole easily, then your needle
has an actual size somewhere between the two needle sizes. This
is important for you to know because it may answer questions about the
gauge you achieve when using that needle and it is also important to
know how it compares to other Size 8 needles that you own.
Look at these sample needle sizes
and how we handle tolerancing:
| Needle Size |
Decimal
equiv. of needle size |
Our Gauge
Size |
Oversize Tolerance |
| US Size 6, 4 mm |
0.157" |
0.161" |
0.004" |
| US Size 6, 4.25 mm |
0.167" |
0.171" |
0.004" |
| US Size 7, 4.5 mm |
0.177" |
0.182" |
0.005" |
You can easily see
from the needles
above that there are only ten - 1,000th's of
an inch between the two adjacent hole size
diameters. This is a very small difference.
In our gauge, we allow a tolerance
of the decimal equivalent plus four -
1,000th's of an inch for oversized needles
which is almost halfway to the next needle size. If your needle does not
fit into our hole, then we believe it is oversized. If on the other
hand, it is loose in the gauge hole, then it is undersized. The needle
should be snug when you insert it into our gauge.
You should be aware of how
close to the stated diameter that your needles actually are. In
our research, we found some that were exactly on target while some
were close and others were significantly off. You should be aware of the
needles that you own that are really off and our gauge will help you
determine that.
You can use needle size
information gained from using our gauge to judge the overall "size
quality" of your needles. Since needle size and your gauge are
"relative" to many factors (needle size, yarn, your knitting style,
pattern, etc.), it is simply important for you to know what these
factors are and how to measure and accommodate them while you are
knitting.
Another important note,
when switching needles during a project, it is very important to verify
the needles' gauges. As you can see from these examples, it is very
possible that two needles presumably of the same size but from two
different manufacturers, may have actual diameters that are very
different. If you use two needles on the same project that happen to
have big variances in their diameters, your project could have a serious
gauge problem at the point of the needle changeover. Often times,
knitters discover this too late and have to rip out their project.
Plastic, Wood, and Metal needles
- There are undoubtedly challenges to making needles from all three of
these materials. We have seen some significant discrepancies in needle
sizes during our research. Some wood and plastic needles tended to be
the worst offenders for being "out of spec". However, you should be the judge of which materials
and which manufacturers make the most accurate needle diameters. Of
course, you must also take into account all of the other factors that
distinguish one needle from another.
Technical Tip: We recommend for those of you
who are so inclined, to purchase a 4" or 6" electronic digital caliper to
measure the exact diameter in metric or decimal (inches) of your
needles. These cost
$20 - $30 online and can be lots of fun and can be used for many
different measurement applications.
Know what your needle sizes are by
measuring them and then mark your needles
with our Circular Needle ID Tags™ so
that you can easily identify their sizes from then onward.
Buy a Gauge here
Needle Gauge
