it should look something like this:
instead, it looks like THIS!
It looks as if a Knitting Hermaphrodite, OOPs, Dermatophyte took a big bite outta my needle. (Sorry, that’s what I always hear when that commercial plays on TV – I bet if that company did a survey, they’d find a lot of people hearing the same thing as me!)
Damn, I hate that commercial – almost as much as the Purple Animated Stomach! Drug Manufacturers – please stop torturing us!
Anyway, after my repeated, startling experiences with dysfuntional Bamboo Needles, (ie. Crystal Palace – whose bamboo ends came right out of their joins), I switched to Clovers.
Now, it appears, there is a wonky problem with these! The plastic compound they use to join the needle to the cable CRACKS and chips out leaving a ragged sharp area that pulls and catches the yarn when it’s traveling over that spot!
I was moving right along on my second Ribby Sleeve the last couple of days and the problem got worse and worse. This is my mobile project and I kept forgetting to find another pair of needles so there was a lot of colorful expressions and language on the #66 as I huffed and puffed and kept on knitting with the Bad Pair.
I better go practice my incantations – (Reparo!) – I bet Mrs. Weasley didn’t have this problem…
I am now on my second-go-round of HP5 – I think I read it so fast the first time, I missed half of it (“As the grasp of darkness tightens, Harry must discover the true depth and strength of his friends, the importance of boundless loyalty, and the shocking price of unbearable sacrifice.”). I have the Scholastic Edition – just saw the British editions – wonder why they used different cover art than the US editions…
I have been having the same problem with bamboo circs lately. I am finally giving up, and every time I go to my LYS, I buy a couple pair of addis. They really are the only circ I don’t have a join problem with. I think I may have a bamboo circular bonfire in my backyard once they have all been replaced. I feel your pain!
Dear Bonne Marie,
I am the Queen of Complaint E-mails. These needles cost you a lot! You deserve decent circular bamboos! The least they can do is replace these.
CLOVER NEEDLECRAFT, INC.
1007 E. Dominguez St., Suite “L”, Carson, CA 90746 USA
Tel : (310) 516-7846 S1-800-233-1703
E-Mail : cni@mail.clover-usa.com
http://www.clover-usa.com
In the meantime, have you checked out the Denise Needles? Yes, they ARE plastic…
I think the knitting gods are telling you something. I would switch to Denise interchangables. The have a grip/slip ratio similar to that of bamboo, they are so easy to organize and store, they have this great stitch holder system, and despite my (some say obsessive) need to knit constantly and everywhere, I’ve had no (count them) no problems. You’re a gadget girl. Give them a try. All the things we use in life should be so well designed.
While I’ve never had any of the problems you’ve had with bamboo circulars, I just don’t like working with them. The joins are always too big and bulbous making it difficult to slide the stitches from the cable to the needle. Addis are good most of the time but I find Inox needles are much smoother in the transition area. And I like the sharper points. Be sure and complain!
BULBOUS JOINS – Larry you crack me up! That is SO right on…
They fight one on every row!
The Denise Needles seem interesting to me – but it’s one of those can’t try without biting the whole enchilada scenarios that’s been keeping me away. (Borrowing someone’s set is really tough, too…)
I am gravitating towards using my INOX Teflon coated needles for everything – starting next project. I always get a *unique* gauge/needle size/type that I am using and I am afraid to upset my own apple cart and switch horses in the middle of the stream on this project.
ENUF of my mixed metaphors for one day – :)
I work at a LYS and speak with the folks at Crystal Palace often. The problem with the joins is that the glue that the offshore producer was using couldn’t withstand the steamy heat of said offshore climate. The problem was addressed several months ago, but there seems to be a lot of the old stock out there. Take heart if you love your Crystal Palace bamboos…
The Denise needles are wonderful – especially great for swatching and traveling. The end is pointy enough for most lace projects, and they are light. They aren’t as fast as Addi turbos but I have no issues with them for most fibers. I don’t like using the smallest needle – 5- as the cable diameter is too close to the needle size and I have to push the stitches around too much.
That hermaphrodite or whatever scares the begeebers out of me . I always turn the channel or the tv off when that comes on.
I heart my Denise interchangables.
That hermaphrodite or whatever scares the begeebers out of me . I always turn the channel or the tv off when that comes on.
I heart my Denise interchangables.
We’re such anglophiles here that we have both the US Scholastic Editions and the UK Bloomsbury Editions, LOL! I have to say I prefer the Briticisms so I wrestle DH for the UK editions. I’m also on book 5 as I decided to reread 1-5 before 6 came out, but I was slow.
I’ve come to the conclusions that the joins are one of the most important points of a circular needle. I’m sorry you’re having troubles with them. I’m having my own join problems and am knitting furiously on one project so I can rib myself of the problem…
Keep on Knitting!
Fresh from another job interview after moving here with my partner I turn to knitting, After thirty years I swear by addi turbos. Not as cool in appearance but boy do they last. Even in Phoenix where the heat takes a toll even on yarn. Love your site, read it every day Thanks
Try Addi Natura! They are by far the best bamboo circs out there. I’ve tried them all. As smooth a join as regular Addis but with all the loveliness of bamboo. Get some now!
The question should be – why does the US version have different cover art to the UK verson? The book is, after all, British. “Briticisms”? Do they change the British to American lingo?!! If so, sad, very sad. But predictable.
You name the needle, I’ve probably tried it. My all time favorite are the addit Natura bamboo circs. All the benefits of bamboo plus the addi cable. Plus, they aren’t as blunt tipped as the clovers. I personally don’t like the denise needles, but I know many who swear by them. I only keep my set for travel. I have the bamboo interchangeable sets by both Plymouth and Webs. I love them and they work with each other, too – must be the same factory. Never had a problem with either. I’m itching to try rosewood circs if I can lay hands on some. If they’re anything like my LM straights, I’ll consider myself in Knitter Knirvana.
Addi regulars are really wonderful – I have quite a few – maybe it’s time for me to try some bamboo Natura’s. I have to order them mail order because I haven’t been able to find them sold close to me. I like the fact you say they are sharper pointed – AND the quality control of the company seems high.
HP UK: looks like there is not only different cover art, there are different editions, one for children, one for adults? I don’t know anything about book distribution, but I’d have to guess it is a marketing decision. The UK graphic design looks less slick to me than the US versions – both are cartoonish but really different. I think the US Harry is cuter… :)
“Drug Manugacturers – please stop torturing us!”
No KIDDING! The all time worst, as far as I’m concerned, are the Macarena-style Pepto-Bismal commercials. EWWWWWW! Just what I need… someone touching their behind while saying diarhea. I could do w/o all the ED commercials, too… ESPECIALLY before kids are in bed. Whatever happened to family friendly TV?
That Pepto commercial is soooo VULGAR! There is absolutely nothing remotely funny about THAT condition – so PLEASE, do not shake a videotaped dance party in my general direction…
As far as ED goes – PLEASE do not shake a videotaped Smarm Party in my general direction – the actors/actresses are dripping with SMIRK – EEEEEEWW! I am a true believer in the concept of Adult Private Concerns – I don’t want to know about your peeper. EVER! It’s all YOURS. Go ahead and have a party and DO NOT INVITE ME!
(Actually, those particular drug manufacturers don’t NEED to spend a penny advertising – doctors are pushing the stuff at people in the form of samples at a record pace.)
I got my hands on a two pair of Holz & Stein circulars a few weeks back – in rosewood and ebony! These are wonderful needles, with smooth, effortless joins and nicely pointed tips. And I’ve used them with cotton and wool, so it appears that most fibers move pretty nicely over the hardwood surface. Less drag than bamboo and not as slick as Addis.
If you have a friend in Germany, get them to procure a couple for you.
I second the vote for addi naturas… they, like their metallic twins, are more than worth the cash. The join is perfection, and near-indestructible, as far as I can tell!
I think the UK HP editions do contain different lingo from the American versions. And the adult vs. kid version is, AFAIK, an issue of covers, only – there were some adults who didn’t want to be “caught” reading a “kids'” book, so they put a plainer cover on them.
I hate the ED ads the worst of all. (The radio ads are, if you can believe it, even more annoying than the televison ads). But Digger the Dermatophyte creeps ME out, and I’m a biologist who sometimes researches fungi. (“Digger” in fact, were they portraying him (it?) realistically, would actually be a fungus – like a mold or yeast – rather than a little animal).
the medical ads I hated the most in the whole world have been taken off the air, though – they were for some cholesterol-lowering drug and had these horrible, Dr. Suess-gone-bad rhymes in them, and their basic message was “Here’s Jane. She’s eating nothing but rabbit food and running ten miles a day, but her cholersterol STILL won’t come down” Ugh. Just depressing.
I recommend Denise needles and Addi Turbos. I love both of those.
As to HP – I was shocked when I looked at an American ebook edition and saw that Mum had been replaced by Mom etc. And of course there’s also the fact that the title of the first book is “HP and the Philosopher’s Stone”, yet in the USA it’s called “HP and the Sorcerer’s Stone”. I really don’t understand that.
For the Half-Blood Prince I bought the adult cover. I haven’t seen the USA book jackets but I’m not too fussed on the British kids’ covers.
I second the Denise needles…and I never could stand using circs at all…love my double points, always wood, never plastic or metal. I mostly use the Denise set now and am considering buying another, since I have several projects going at once, and find myself switching points from one to another. Their joins have never come off on me and I love all the lengths of cord that can link together. Another reason I didn’t like circs before…may have had the right size needle but not the right length and then had to hunt around for a store with the right one. Considering all the sizes and lengths (including the great end stoppers), it’s not really that pricey.
By the way, love your blog…Barbara