I saw a set of bamboo circular needles on ebay and was tempted to buy them, as I am curious to know if I can knit with them without getting shoulder trouble. They came in 2 lengths: 50cm or 100cm. I imagine I will be using them for knitting jumpers from conventional patterns. What length should I go for?

100cm for jumper knitting as the 50cm probably wouldn't let you get enough stitches on.

Thank you Jill. Ive read into this a bit further and read that the join between cord and needle can be problematic on some of the cheaper ones. I dont fancy heaving my stitches over a little hump every time.

Do any of you have any recommendations? Are the bamboo ones OK?

My mum is in the USA and I am tempted to ask her to get me some of the Denise ones, but she will blanch when she sees the price. Has anyone on here used the needle kits (any brand?). Im sure I saw someone showing them at a meet.

Thank you Jill. Ive read into this a bit further and read that the join between cord and needle can be problematic on some of the cheaper ones. I dont fancy heaving my stitches over a little hump every time.

Do any of you have any recommendations? Are the bamboo ones OK?

My mum is in the USA and I am tempted to ask her to get me some of the Denise ones, but she will blanch when she sees the price. Has anyone on here used the needle kits (any brand?). Im sure I saw someone showing them at a meet.

The cord often kinks at the joint on the cheaper needles. Sometimes soaking in warm water can help straighten it out. The Addi needles have a better cord joint than some of the others. Of course, the price reflects this (between £5 and £8 for the bamboo circulars). Having said that the Pony bamboo circulars are a similar price but I don't think the cord is any different from the regular ones. Must investigate that......

Thank you Jill. Ive read into this a bit further and read that the join between cord and needle can be problematic on some of the cheaper ones. I dont fancy heaving my stitches over a little hump every time.

Do any of you have any recommendations? Are the bamboo ones OK?

My mum is in the USA and I am tempted to ask her to get me some of the Denise ones, but she will blanch when she sees the price. Has anyone on here used the needle kits (any brand?). Im sure I saw someone showing them at a meet.

I have knitpicks Options which are lovely! The tips are almost like Addi turbos in shape and material (no no good if you have a nickel allergy unfortunately) - they are very light tips with lovely smooth joins to the cable and the cables are flexible - unlike the Boyes needlemasters I also have:D Knitpicks also have some with funky wooden ends - Get Knitted have them I think. Ive never used Denises so I dont know how they compare - Woolforbrains has some of these I think. I believe that if you like bamboo that a company called Plymouth do some interchangable bamboos which are supposed to be good too - only available in USA at the moment as far as I am aware though.

Which are the ones you can take on aircraft? Mind you its a bit optimistic to think that with a 5 year old and a 2 year old I will get chance to knit, but was just curious.

Perhaps I just ought to get a couple of circular needles, see if they are OK for me before I buy a whole set. Its just that a bought a set of bamboo crochet hooks to try and they had some whole sets of bamboo circular ones on ebay but at the price they were, I suppose there has to be some disadvantage.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/5-5mm-Circular-Bamboo-Knitting-Needles-Pins-UK-Seller_W0QQitemZ150194784247QQihZ005QQcategoryZ117 99QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

This is one of the single ones, Im sure they had a set though.

I've got the Denise set which is the set that you're supposed to be able to take on aircraft. I think BeckyB bought a set of bamboo circulars on ebay a while since when she started knitting her pig.

We were discussing interchangeable needles recently, the thread is here (http://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=282012)

I did, and they're 60cm which aren't much use for anything - too long for a hat, too short for a jumper! Quality wise they're not bad though, the join is quite smooth and for £1 a needle I can't really complain! I think littleblue had some too...
I quite fancy some interchangeable circulars, but again, they don't go short enough. Get Knitted now have Harmony circulars (i.e not interchangeable) which look gorgeous, but I had a thought - I bet you can't see the stitches very well against the multicoloured background :suspect:

Becky B - despite the length, are the bamboo ones OK? If I bought 100cm I presume I would be OK? I have a chunky jumper I want to knit. Its not a circular pattern, just a flat one but I thought I might try the bamboo circular ones to see if my shoulder allows me to knit a whole jumper (if that makes sense).

What are the real advantages of the denise ones? Ive got most size needles in metal, I just cant use them because of my bad shoulder. Ive tried casein needles and find them OK but they dont help me knit for any longer than metal. I wondered if the circular ones would, as the knitting style is completely different.

The advantage of the Denise is the same as any interchangeable set, you have needle tips across a range of sizes and cords of different lengths so one set of needle ends will make any length circular. The differences between the sets are the smallest needle they go down to and the smallest cord length you can use (and obviously, they're made of different materials)

Before you lash out on an interchangeable set (because they're not cheap) I'd suggest you buy a single circular needle and see if that works for you. If you're still in pain then you won't have wasted so much money.

Thanks everybody. Ive decided to buy a bamboo circular and a steel circular for a particular project and see how I get on.

Its a pity my mum is only in the US until 29th though. Still I told her to look out for some crochet stuff for me.

I got bamboo because I prefer to knit with that (or wood) than metal. You may find circular needles help with your shoulder as the weight of the WIP is central rather than off to one side - I find there's less strain on my hands/wrists using circulars as opposed to straight.
When I got my set from ebay there were sets of different lengths... :)

Thanks Becky. I think what causes my shoulder pain is that I have to hunch my right shoulder slightly as I tuck the needle under my arm, then whilst in this hunched position I have to wrap the wool round with the same side. I tend not to get too much pain in my wrists or hands, only if I knit for a really long time. Its all worth a try to see if it makes a difference.