Intarsia carriage or built-in intarsia setting

Machine types that can knit it

• Single bed, punch card
• Single bed, electronic
• Single bed, no patterning
• Single bed (punch card) + ribber
• Single bed (electronic) + ribber
• Double bed with pushers (Passap type)

Steps

1. Cast on and knit the base with the K carriage.
2. Take the yarn out of the mast/feeder; put all balls on the floor (one per area, and per re-entry).
3. Thread the sinker weights on each yarn if supplied.
4. Remove the K carriage and set the I carriage at the opposite end from the yarn ends.
5. One empty pass to bring the needles to D (correct the row counter by one).
6. Lay the yarns into the hooks from the carriage side; hold the ends lightly; pass slowly.
7. Next row: lay the yarns again, crossing at each change according to the new direction.
8. Never run the I carriage without yarn laid; don't run it with the cast-on comb on the gate pegs.

The full card

What it looks like

Same as the previous card, with more even tension. Face identical to hand intarsia.

How it behaves

Flat, single layer.

How it works

A separate I-carriage replaces the K carriage. On every pass it brings B-position needles to D. Needles at D knit whatever yarn has been laid in their hooks, so many colours knit in one pass. Needles at E hold, for partial knitting inside intarsia. The knitter lays the yarns from the carriage side and crosses them at each change, in the direction that matches the carriage travel. The tension dial is set to roughly the same number as the K carriage, but the hand's hold on the yarns also changes gauge.

Machines

The Brother intarsia carriage is KA-8210 (an earlier one is KA-8200; the bulky one is KA-2600). *Correction to the brief:* KA-8310 is the Brother linker 缝盘/套口器, not an intarsia carriage. The KA-8210 manual lists trippers for KH-830/840/860, KH-881 and KH-910. KH-821 is not listed. It has the same standard-gauge bed, so it probably fits, but this is [unverified]. Built-in intarsia on the K carriage (yarn from the floor, holding-cam setting) is documented for KH-892, Knitking 893 and KH-930/940. KH-821 has no such setting: its carriage has PART/MC/TUCK buttons and weaving levers only [unverified for any hidden intarsia mode]. Dubied: no.

Parameters

I-carriage tension ≈ K-carriage number (adjust after a swatch); rehang weights every ~20 rows; tie yarns at the edge, never knot mid-fabric.

Steps

1) Cast on and knit the base with the K carriage. 2) Take the yarn out of the mast/feeder; put all balls on the floor (one per area, and per re-entry). 3) Thread the sinker weights on each yarn if supplied. 4) Remove the K carriage and set the I carriage at the opposite end from the yarn ends. 5) One empty pass to bring the needles to D (correct the row counter by one). 6) Lay the yarns into the hooks from the carriage side; hold the ends lightly; pass slowly. 7) Next row: lay the yarns again, crossing at each change according to the new direction. 8) Never run the I carriage without yarn laid; don't run it with the cast-on comb on the gate pegs.

Charting

As in intarsia-laid-in-manual. Add a carriage-direction arrow per row, because the crossing direction follows it.

Limits and common problems

Same as the manual method. Jams if forced, so lift the release knob instead.

Combines with

knit-leader shapes; partial knit (E position); plated areas (an extra yarn laid together with the area yarn) [inference].

Related techniques

• Hand-laid intarsia, single bed
• Intarsia by holding, one carriage pass per colour
• Partial-knit pseudo-intarsia
• Diamond / lozenge colour block
• Boundary behaviour and finishing in intarsia