the elephant in the room...

The sponge bar, a.k.a. needle retainer bar, is a touchy subject. It’s not mentioned in any techniques books or resource manuals that I’ve ever seen. And hearsay, yikes! So much, do this, don’t do that…and I have, in the past, given little hints here and there but I thought I’d put it all together here. First, for the beginners out there, almost all flat bed machines have a needle retainer system which is some sort of foam strip that holds the needles down in the channel. You need to have the correct one for your specific model. I admit much of my knowledge is with the Silver/Studio/Singer genre but have had experience with Brother/KnitKing and I think the basics are the same. The weather/climate and how your machine is housed plays a large part in how long the foam strip will last. If you’re in a warm climate, no air-conditioning, the heat will play a part in how fast that bar will retain elasticity , same as a home with forced air heating in the winter – no set rules in how long it will last, but…

How to know if it needs to be replaced? In certain pattern stitches, like tuck, maybe the tucks are not knitting off properly. Maybe the stitches are not actually tucking when they should. Mistakes in patterning will show up. Sometimes, if the foam strip is really bad, it will even show up on plain stockinette where the stitch doesn’t knit off properly, making a tuck where it’s not wanted. When hand transferring, like cabling, manual lace, or increasing and decreasing, if the needles are moving up and down as you attempt to fit the three-prong or a multi-prong tool onto a group, causing more work than it should be, these are indications that the sponge bar is loosing it’s holding power. I generally notice when the hook part is elevated above the flat bed when the needles are in A or B position.

When a brand-new strip is inserted properly, the front of the needle in A or B position should be sitting firmly down on the metal.

My guidelines for the sponge bar (and lace carriage work - the touchiest one): Swap it out between pieces. I always have at least 3 bars. A brand new one (never use for lace knitting – it will be too firm and the needles won’t transfer properly, not enough give!). Save this one and break it in on a stockinette project. Mark the date on it with a felt pen when it’s first inserted. The other two, (both somewhat used, at least one or two projects on each) use to swap out, if necessary – if it’s working and lacing properly, keep going – this is only when problems occur! - for each new piece, giving the second one a day of rest between pieces.

Check the give on the needles – Bring needles to B and press down – if there is a quite noticeable distance, consider replacing.

Try to complete one full piece per sitting. The bar won’t suddenly collapse and if it’s working well, go with the flow!

May all your lace transfers transfer!

P.S. I don’t like the idea of taking the bar out of the machine while you’re away – you may forget how it went in…I once had a customer who put it in upside down and then called for help…yikes!