STOCKINETTE, STRIPES, and WASTE YARN
As soon as the cast on is completed, set the row counter to 000. Knobs may be turned either direction.
Begin to knit. Move the carriage at an even speed. Many people are afraid that they will damage the machine and do not push hard enough at the beginning. Expect to find some resistance. This will get better fast as you learn the feel of the carriage. Take the carriage the width of 5 or 6 needles past the last one in position B before changing directions. If you turn around in the middle of the row, the stitches will drop and the carriage may jam. If you go too far there may be loops and tangles on the edges. After 3 or 4 rows, hang the claw weights on the fabric edges. You may also remove the cast on comb after knitting approximately one inch; it really isn't necessary to keep it attached unless working with a very difficult yarn. Claw weights should be moved up every 20 - 30 rows. Now continue to knit. The object is to become familiar with the feel of the carriage, learning how to keep a nice, even speed, learning how far to move the carriage, and how to manage the weights. Repeat the cast on and knitting process several times, until it becomes comfortable.
Stripes are formed by changing colors while knitting Stockinette. End with carriage on left side. Remove yarn from the carriage. Pass it around the right end of the machine and hook it into the yarn rest on the right rear of the needle bed. Thread contrasting yarn through the left side of the Auto Tension unit and into the main yarn feeder on the carriage. Knit a few rows. Now remove the second yarn, pass it behind the left end of the machine and into the yarn rest on the left rear of the needle bed. Remove the first yarn from the right yarn rest, bring it back to the front, and slide it into the main yarn feeder. Pull up on the yarn to remove the slack, then knit a few rows. Continue in this manner, exchanging yarn and placing the discontinued one into the appropriate yarn rest. Patterns will usually say how many rows per color are in each stripe. Actually, it is possible to change yarns with the carriage on either side of the bed, even though this is not shown. Always rest the yarn which comes through the right antenna in the yarn rest on the right rear of the needle bed, and the yarn from the left antenna in the yarn rest on the left rear of the bed. This will keep them from tangling as the carriage passes over the working needles.
We will now remove the fabric on waste yarn. Waste yarn is a few rows of contrasting color. It is not part of the completed garment, but is removed during finishing. It acts like a stitch holder, allowing live (not-bound-off stitches) to be removed from the machine without worrying that they will ravel. After completing the fabric section, clip the main yarn, leaving a 6" tail. If you clip above the carriage, this will be about right. Pull the yarn free of the carriage, and fasten a clothes pin on the end to hold it down. Thread the second yarn into the carriage, knit 8 rows and clip. Take the carriage across empty, and the fabric will just fall off.
Remember this for the future; any time the yarn comes out of the yarn feeder while the carriage is moving, the fabric will fall off the machine. The LK 150 yarn feeder sometimes has a little quirk. A casual glance from the top indicates that yarn is in the feeder properly; however, it is possible for it to come out of the slot at the bottom. When the carriage is taken across, everything falls off. I find this happens most when the tension on the yarn has become slack. This extra yarn works its way back under the carriage and lets the yarn in the feeder make a small loop, which then slides out the bottom. It is a good practice to pull up on the yarn before knitting if the carriage has been sitting idle for a few minutes, or if you have gone too far past the last working needle.
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