[CathyN]

I am using Caron one pound yarn medium 4 on a bulky singer 155. The pattern says to e wrap and then knit 1 row. I do this and the carriage jams every time. I tried changing the tension, cleaning the carriage, checking and changing needles. I have a new sponge bar. I am very new to machine knitting and I don' know anything about hand knitting so I am sure that I am doing something wrong. I am trying to follow Diane Sullivan's. Entrelac. She makes that look easy and fun. HA, HA. Can anyone think of something I am doing wrong. By the way, when I used scrap yarn to practice it did not jam and I believe they are the same thickness. Could it be the yarn ( bought at Joann's) or is it me? Thank you in advance for any help.

 

[dagmargrubaugh]

Have you tried pulling all the needles out to hold? Sometimes the first row is a little hard to knit.
If the scrap yarn knitted ok, I would try to knit a few rows with is, then knit one row with ravel cord, or a smooth cotton yarn, e-wrap with your garment yarn, put some weight on the scrap yarn part, and knit across. Hope I have made myself clear.
This is definitely the place to come for answers.
Good luck,

 

[Linuxgirl]

First a question (from my own experience): do you wrap conterclockwise? And make sure, you don't wrap tightly, as that will stop the carriage for sure. It should be loose, but the loops shouldn't "dangle". I made both mistakes, so I learned the hard way .
Ewrap will always be a little hard to go over, I have to use a tiny bit of force too with my Brother KX350.
Also it helps to very carefully wax the yarn by winding it up while letting it run over a paraffin block (actually tea candles made of 100% Paraffin work fine and are cheap, if necessary melt some and pour into some kind of mold to make a bigger block). Sometimes you need to wax it twice, if the yarn is very difficult.

 

[CathyN]

Thank you very much for your help but it still jams even after waxing and watching the tightness, so is there an alternative cast on for an e wrap? Thanks again.

 

[dagmargrubaugh]

Thank you very much for your help but it still jams even after waxing and watching the tightness, so is there an alternative cast on for an e wrap? Thanks again.

If you google for crochet machine knitting cast on, you should find some answers.
Did you try doing a little knitting with waste yarn like I suggested and then e-wrap or crochet with your fashion yarn?

 

[Linuxgirl]

You might also look for latch tool cast on, that's another name for crochet cast on.
The first pass is a little easier than for ewrap, but you will still need a little bit of force to make the carriage pass the first time.

 

[dagmargrubaugh]

You might also look for latch tool cast on, that's another name for crochet cast on.
The first pass is a little easier than for ewrap, but you will still need a little bit of force to make the carriage pass the first time.

Thanks, you are so right. I forgot to mention that,

 

[CathyN]

No, that is next. But I don't understand why this will change the way this e wrap would be different with waste yarn. I have to do some chores right now but I will definitely try this today and will be very amazed if it works and I will surely let you know . Thanks

 

[dagmargrubaugh]

No, that is next. But I don't understand why this will change the way this e wrap would be different with waste yarn. I have to do some chores right now but I will definitely try this today and will be very amazed if it works and I will surely let you know . Thanks

I don't understand it, either. Or try the latch tool/crochet cast on.
Good luck,

 

[GinB]

Is one of the flaps on the underside of the carriage closed and stuck?

 

[CathyN]

I didn't get the chance to try with the wy but the latch tool method worked. Thank you all very much.

 

[dagmargrubaugh]

WOOOHOO! Keep us posted and we want to see pictures...

 

[jaysclark]

When you ewrap it is tighter than normal and it makes it difficult/impossible for the stitch to move over the latch head. This is why pulling the stitches out to hold means that you have done half of the work of the carriage for itself. If you wrap too tight and force it you will end up with bent needles and broken yarn

 

[gclemens]

You might also look for latch tool cast on, that's another name for crochet cast on.
The first pass is a little easier than for ewrap, but you will still need a little bit of force to make the carriage pass the first time.

This is what I do when I have problems with the yarn. ALSO be sure to weight it down. You can even add weights to the cast on to help.

 

[peggerty]

Yes, I believe the weights will help as I have also had the problem of the carriage jamming when I have forgotten to add the weights to the first row. Good luck.

 

[madkiwi]

Yes, I believe the weights will help as I have also had the problem of the carriage jamming when I have forgotten to add the weights to the first row. Good luck.

you thought you had a problem ??? I always end up with the knitting on the floor if I forget the weights. No wonder the landlord had to paint the ceiling! I didn't realise I knew so many bad words!

Seriously, the tension is the thing to watch. Too tight or too loose around the hooks and you're in trouble. Been there, done that!

Madkiwi.

 

[MtKnitter]

Unless I'm only knitting a few stitches wide, I always start with waste yarn and a weaving cast on. I hang weights after I have about two rows of waste yarn on. After several rows of waste yarn, when I am sure that all the needles are knitting correctly, I knit a row of ravel cord and then I ewrap with my regular yarn. I don't know why this works but it does seem to cause a lot fewer problems than just casting on first with an ewrap.

 

[evesch]

Unless I'm only knitting a few stitches wide, I always start with waste yarn and a weaving cast on. I hang weights after I have about two rows of waste yarn on. After several rows of waste yarn, when I am sure that all the needles are knitting correctly, I knit a row of ravel cord and then I ewrap with my regular yarn. I don't know why this works but it does seem to cause a lot fewer problems than just casting on first with an ewrap.

One of the reasons this works better is that the stitches already have weight on them and the e wrap forms better. Another technique to try would to be a double e wrap cast on. It is more tedious if you have to do a large amount of stitches but much easier to get through the first rows with the carriage. Also pulling your needles all the way out to the holding position (but make sure you don't have the carriage set to not knit them) helps a great deal. Another thing I sometimes do is to starting where I finished is tap lightly on the stretch of thread between the needles with the 3 prong tool (does 3 at time) pulling just a tiny bit of looseness into them across the cast on. That can be done after they are in hold. But look up and try the double e wrap cast on. I haven't gone back to single wrap since learning that one.

 

[30Knitter]

You will find that when you e wrap the needles even when you think you are making your e's loose they are too tight. Try making them a little looser than you normally do and try that. Most times when we think we are doing something loose by hand the machine says you're too tight!

 

[colly]

When I first started machine knitting I made the mistake of trying to learn with 4 ply yarn, NOT cone yarn. I had a lot of trouble... mostly because I didn't know what I was doing. Then I got some 2 ply (02/09) cone yarn.... what a huge difference. I was able to get the machine to work easily. After I learned how to use the machine it was a lot easier to use 4 ply yarn.