Alright, let’s talk about getting started with this Sentro 32 pin knitting machine. I’d seen them around and finally decided to give one a go myself. Pulled it out of the box, first impressions? It’s plastic, feels like a toy almost, but sturdy enough I guess.
Setting It Up
First thing was attaching the legs and the suction cups. They popped in okay. Then I clamped it down to my craft table. You really need it stable, otherwise, the whole thing wobbles when you start cranking, which is just annoying and probably messes things up. Found a good spot where it wouldn’t slide.
First Attempts – Casting On
Okay, threading the yarn through the tension guide. That part was simple. The tricky bit was casting on. The instructions weren’t super clear, but basically, you loop the yarn around every other pin for the first row, then go around again catching all the pins. This took me a few tries. Seriously, dropped stitches were happening left and right. My advice? Go super slow at the beginning. Make sure each hook actually grabs the yarn. Patience is key here.
- I used a medium-weight acrylic yarn first, nothing fancy.
- Made sure the yarn tail was held down initially.
- Cranked the handle very, very slowly for the first few rows.
Getting into the Rhythm
Once I got past those first few rows without disaster, it started to get easier. Started cranking the handle steadily. It’s actually quite satisfying watching the tube grow. But, and this is a big but, tension is everything. The built-in tension guide helps a bit, but I found I still needed to feed the yarn through my fingers to keep it consistent. Too loose, and the stitches look uneven and sloppy. Too tight, and the machine starts making scary clicking noises, skipping pins, or just jamming. You find a sweet spot eventually, kind of guiding the yarn gently.
Making Something
I just aimed for a simple tube to start, maybe turn it into a beanie later. Crank, crank, crank. It builds up fabric pretty fast, way faster than I could hand knit a tube, that’s for sure. Kept an eye on the yarn, making sure it wasn’t snagging or getting too tight or loose. Stopped after I had a decent length.
Casting Off
Now, getting the work off the machine. You cut the yarn, leaving a long tail. Then you crank the handle slowly one last time until the first stitch comes off its pin. Used a wool needle to thread the yarn tail through each loop as it came off the machine’s pins. Go one by one. If you rush, you risk dropping a stitch, and the whole thing can start unraveling from the top. Took my time with this part. Once all stitches were on the yarn tail, I pulled it tight to close the loop.
Final Thoughts
So, the Sentro 32 pin. Does it work? Yeah, it does. It’s good for making simple tubes quickly – hats, scarves, leg warmers, that sort of thing. It’s not magic; you still need to pay attention, especially to the yarn tension and the casting on/off process. It definitely prefers certain yarn weights; super chunky or very fine yarn probably wouldn’t work well. But for standard worsted weight? Pretty decent once you get the hang of it. It’s a tool, and like any tool, needs a bit of practice to use effectively. I’ll definitely be using it again for quick projects.
