Knitpost: Boye needles with KnitPicks cables
I have a couple of sets of interchangeable circular knitting needles — the Denise set and the Boye Needlemaster set. Neither is perfect. The Denise needles are plastic which is not my preference (usually), and the Boye set has great colorful metal needles but possibly the worst cables ever, stiff cables with bumpy joins. Then along came KnitPicks with a new kind of interchangeable needles, the Options set, which are slick and great to knit with, and the cables are perfect. But. I don’t want to buy another set of interchangeable needles for $60. And the KnitPicks cables aren’t compatible with the Boye needles, even though they are designed similarly.
The problem has been solved. Apparently you just have to go to a gunsmith, who can retap the Boye needles and make them fit the KnitPicks cables. On the other hand, for $3.75 per tip, you might as well buy the KnitPicks needles, I think. But if you know someone who can do this fix for free, or if you like the Boye needle surface much more than the KnitPicks one, it would be worth it. Now the question is — do I know anyone with the equipment and skill to do this for me? 😉
Your comments have just confirmed all my fears about investing so much money in these types of needles….
Ehh, it’s not that bad. If the needles and the cable are right for you it’s excellent, and even if not they are still helpful. The ideal thing would be to try them out first. FWIW, so far I love the KnitPicks Option needles, and if I didn’t already have two sets of other needles I’d probably have bought the whole kit. Instead I’m just buying a few of them here and there.