KnitPro Zing needles have arrived – review & comparison

This is kind of my last big hurrah, since my new Wing Chun Kung Fu lessons are expensive (but I’m not complaining, it’s worth it)!  These KnitPro Zings were purchased from knitproneedles.co.uk — thank you guys for shipping to the US, or else it would have been really difficult and really expensive for me to get them!  KnitPro, Knitter’s Pride, and KnitPicks are all made by the same company, I believe, but for some reason have some differences in needle availability depending on where you are and what company officially ships to you.

Zing is a new line, I believe.  I got all 13 sizes (US 0-10, or 2-6mm) in the 30cm (12″) length, although they have other lengths available as well as fixed circular needles and double points (I’d love them all)!  As you can see, they are aluminum needles that are color coded by size.  They are very sturdy, although of course as the gauge goes down the flexibility goes up a little.

I took my crappy bamboo needles that came with my Cath Kidston needle case out and am donating them (I’ve had them for years and never use them), and I’ve put the Zings in the case to give the needles at least a little protection since they didn’t come with a case, and the Cath Kidston needle roll will get some usefulness:

I’ve taken some photos to compare the Zings with other popular brands, so you can see what they’re like and maybe decide if you want to get some yourself!

Zing vs. Boye

Boye needles are the most affordable and available aluminum metal option, at least in this area of the US, but let’s take a close look:

A US 10 Zing is on the left, a US 10 Boye is on the right.  The Zing is sharper, for sure.

You can sorta see that the Boye needle is a bit shinier than the Zing.  This is probably because the Zing needles have a bit more grip to them than Boye, which I like (although of course they’re still smoother than wood or bamboo or acrylic).  Boye needles have the size labeled on the end of the stopper, not on the shaft like the Zings (although it seems to be engraved on the Zings — I tried scratching it with my nail and it didn’t change a bit).  I think the quality difference is noticeable and that it’s worth the extra couple of bucks to get the Zings.

Zing vs. Karbonz

The Knitter’s Pride/KnitPro Karbonz have been so popular, so let’s compare those!

A US 5 Zing is on the left, a US 5 Karbonz is on the right.  The points seem similar, although it’s worth noting that the size label on the Karbonz DOES scratch off with my fingernail… Oops…  The Karbonz also has that join between the tip and the body, while the Zings don’t have a join at all, it’s just a texture/color change.  Many people say that the Karbonz joins are very smooth, but if you don’t like joins at all, there you go.  As far as the grip on these needles, they seem very, very similar.  In fact, when I closed my eyes and mixed these up I couldn’t tell which was which.  So in my opinion the Zings win, since they have no join, are color coded, and the size is engraved on the shaft, not stamped (also they’re cheaper than the Karbonz)!

Zing vs. KnitPicks Sunstruck

KnitPicks Sunstruck are made the same as their Rainbow and Caspian and Majestic needles, just minus the color, and I think the UK/EU equivalents are KnitPro Symfonie.

As you can see, the Zing is sharper, but I do have to say that I’ve used the Sunstruck needles a few times so they may not be as sharp as they once were (although I don’t think the birch wood tips are supposed to get dull easily — they’re certainly a bazillion times better than my ChiaoGoo bamboo straights which I’m not even comparing in this post because mine have splintered at the tips a bit).  Obviously the Sunstruck needles have more grip, since they’re wood.

Unfortunately I don’t have any other brands to compare with — I’ve never owned any HiyaHiya needles or good ChiaoGoo needles or any fancy brands — but hopefully that gives you a bit of an idea as to what the Zing needles are like!

I’ll probably let you know more as I use them, but my first impression is great!

That’s all for today, thanks so much for stopping by!