NKOK Singer Knitting Machine

I needed to make about 20 scarves to give away as party favors, and with time a limiting factor I decided to order this knitting machine. I didn't want to spring for the more expensive professional models, so I ordered this one. I can't be more pleased with it. Even though it's a "child's toy", it works amazingly well.I have VERY FEW dropped stitches, and it's usually my fault for letting the tension get to tight, or using a yarn that is too bulky.A few tips:Use the correct yarn. A medium worsted weight is usually too bulky, unless you get a smooth yarn. I'm using Caron Simply Soft Medium #4, and it goes through this thing like butter. I can turn out a 4ft scarf in about an hour or less.Let your yarn hang loose. Don't count on the machine to pull the yarn from the skein because the tension will be too tight.Don't let your finished work wad up under the machine. Keep straightening it out every few rounds.Also, none of the needles are marked like in the professional models. To solve this figure out which needle to mark by setting the machine to "flat" and turning it until it stops, note the needle it stopped on, and turn it back the other way. It should stop at the same needle. If it does, this is the one you need to mark. I used nail polish to mark the needle and the fins on either side. This way, you can change colors at the same place in your work each round, or count your rounds.Be aware that this is the model that has undergone improvements. The previous version of this machine did not have legs, sat on it's side, and had 2 fewer needles. That model is still being sold, so be careful to get this model instead. Well worth the $25.

Do not purchase. We purchased for a XMas gift. It isn't hard to load and the circular knitting works fine with no dropped stitches. It is only a few inches around so it isn't big enough to make a hat; at best it could be a wrist or leg warmer for a small child. The rectangular knitting doesn't work at all. The back and forth knitting drops stitches and isn't consistent on how many stitches across it makes before reversing. As a knitter myself i thought this would work for my small children to get started. What a waste.

I bought this to make sock blanks for dyeing and for that it works just fine: I have a tube of sock yarn ready to dye that took only an hour to make instead of three days' worth of knitting time. However, I would not recommend this knitting machine to make actual projects. The crank and gears don't run smoothly for more than a few rounds at a time, the hooks miss stitches more than occasionally (a la slipped stitches in hand knitting where the missed stitch stretches, not dropping them where they'd ladder down), and sometimes will not knit a stitch for a few rows so the fabric bunches when it does finally knit the stitch. And gauge is all over the place - some rows are nice and even, but most rows are uneven, stretched and tiny stitches alternating usually by row but sometimes on the same row. If you can't hand knit or really, REALLY don't want to learn to hand knit, I'd invest in a better quality machine to make actual projects. But if you want to make sock blanks, either to dye yourself or check stripes or pooling, this machine will suit your needs perfectly.

I love this little machine; I have never made circular knit pieces, but I'm sure it would take me many hours just to make what this can in a few minutes. It was very easy to setup and the instructions were easy to understand (the diagrams weren't too helpful, but the text was, as long as you understand the different parts of the machine). It does drop stitches if you crank it too fast, so you are a bit limited in how quickly you can make a piece, but it still takes far less time and effort to make than by hand. However, this only seems to be for certain yarns; I tried it with a medium-thin baby blanket yarn and was able to crank it quickly with only one dropped stitch (out of a huge, 5-foot circle knit).My only complaint is that I haven't been able to get the square knit to work; I follow the instructions, but the machine seems to lock up when I try to loop the yarn through, and it isn't very specific on just how far in either direction I should turn it (because you're turning the handle in either direction alternatively for each row), so it skips stitches like crazy in that mode. It gets tangled easily in the process, and I'm disappointed that I can't seem to get it to work. I will keep trying, however, because it may just be an error on my part, but in the meantime, this machine can only fulfill half of its usefulness.I thought it was strange that I needed a screwdriver to remove this from the box; it isn't a problem for me, but be warned that you'll need a small Phillip's head screwdriver to get it out (a tiny flathead might work, too).The yarn that came with it is very low quality; it's very scratchy, so I wouldn't recommend making anything official with it. However, it is a great opportunity to practice - use it instead of your good yarn!One thing I noticed was that the instructions mentioned a dome piece that goes over the needles (to protect kid's hands), but there's no dome included in this kit; I assume that it was written for both models- with and without. You may be able to find a dome somewhere, but unless you have very little kids, you probably won't need it; the needles aren't very sharp at all (they have rigid edges, but can't actually puncture or cut without a LOT of force) - your main concern is fingers getting pinched as the needles move, so best to keep it out of their reach if they can't use it safely.Another minor complaint I have is that the machine moves around easily; it's not something you can set down and crank, you'll need to hold one of the legs to stabilize it - this isn't too bad, but I would have liked the legs to have a little more weight to them.Other than that, I think it's an excellent and cost-friendly alternative to some of the more expensive models; it is very small, though, but if you're unfamiliar with knitting machines, or getting this for your child to use, it's an excellent product for getting started without breaking the bank.

Hand crank doesn't work that smoothly, but this isn't the main issue. The resulting stitches are very loose and frequently dropped after a few rounds. The knitting flat setting was a disaster. Kids will get frustrated. The machine itself is fairly functional, but it's not really good enough to make anything useful. If you set your expectations very low, and use it for fun and with the understanding that you might have to start a scarf over (and over) because of dropped stitches, then you'll get your $20 worth.