Creelman's 6 inch circular knitting machines were designed to knit clothing for the entire family.  With Creelman's 6 inch ribber dials and cylinders, infant jumpers, children's sweaters, ladies' vests, men's long underwear and a host of other knitted items could be efficiently and easily knit for the family and common market.  Note the ribber dial and cylinder comparisons of Creelman's standard 4½ and specialty 6 inch sock machines.  Creelman's 6 inch circular knitting machines came standard with 24/72 and 50/100 combinations.

This Canadian sock machine was the Creelman Brothers' finest.  The crescent shaped, automatic needle latch opener was a standard accessory on the Banner and World Star Sock machines.  Manufactured in the 1800s, a complete outfit included a 36 slot ribber dial, a 40 slot ribber dial and 60, 72 and 80 slot cylinders.  Cost was $100.00 back then......imagine that!

The Creelman Brothers' conical knitting machines were manufactured for industrial use.  Aside from factories and industries, schools for the blind, children's homes and workhouses acquired industrial knitting machines for trade.  Most industrial sock machines were operated via the use of large, leather drive belts and industrial strength motors.  A full-length sock could be produced in a matter of minutes.

This Canadian sock knitting machine parallels the Legare 400 sock machine in design.  A typical setup included a 36 slot ribber dial, 54 slot cylinder and 72 slot cylinder.  However, additional combinations were also available.

Parts such as tappet plates, yarn carriers and cam shells were virtually identical to the Legare 400 sock machines.  One noteworthy difference is the ribber drive pin.  Creelman's pin is straight and has numbers etched in the head.  The switch pin, unlike the Legare sock machines, has a distinctive shape and is composed of steel, not brass.  A final variant is the design of the crank wheel.  It features Creelman's characteristic hub and lacks openings.

The Creelman Brothers produced a host of machines for private and commercial use.  The New K Power knitting machine was designed for "special work".  It was advertised by the Creelman Brothers as the best knitting machine for the manufacture of ribbed, seamless hosiery.

Although an industrial knitting machine, like Creelman's domestic sock machines, the New K Power knitting machine utilised flat ribber dials instead of conical ribber dials.  Robust leather belts and powerful steam motors enabled the production of socks in a matter of minutes.

Patented in 1879 as "The Great Hosiery and Family Ribber", this sock machine was the Creelman Brothers' first ribbing machine.  Creelman's plain machine did not feature a ribbing attachment and was patented the 22^nd of August, 1874.

The Harley Kay circular knitting machine was an industrial sock machine manufactured in Georgetown Ontario in the 1940s by the Harley Kay company.  Harley Kay sock machines were established in Canadian factories to produce hosiery upon demand.  Although individual stands were available, due to their tremendous weight, Harley Kay sock machines were generally mounted to wooden platforms or steel tables.  Harley Kay sock machines came standard with higher slot combinations of 36/72, 42/84 and 60/120.

A late edition, the New Improved Canadian Automatic sock machine was a novelty item for special customers.  Parts such as tappet plates, yarn carriers and yarn stands were made of solid brass.  Due to cost expenditures, brass sock machines were rarely produced.

Created for the construction of infant and children's socks, P. T. Legare's 3½ diameter sock machines came standard with 36 slot ribber dials and a 72 slot cylinders.  Other combinations such as 28/56, 30/60 and 50/100 were also available.  Noteworthy to mention, infant and children's socks can be easily knit on P. T. Legare's standard 4½ diameter sock machines.  Indeed, all instruction manuals for standard 4½ diameter sock machines have detailed patterns on the construction of infant and children's hosiery.

The P. T. Legare 47 sock machine was manufactured by the Creelman company.  Its design was much simpler than Creelman's 400 series sock machines.

In particular, the cylinder tension dials of the P. T. Legare 47 sock machines were enclosed in the cam shell.  Contrariwise, the cylinder tension dials of Creelman's 400 series sock machines were constructed separately and readily detachable.  Furthermore, the control plate centre cams were omitted from the P. T. Legare 47 tappet plates, whilst the 400 series sock machines had steel control plate centre cams.

The less number of machine parts and simplicity of design allowed the Creelman firm to produce the P. T.  Legare 47 sock machines at a cost less than their 400 series counterparts.  Noteworthy to mention, the advertising of the 47 series sock machines was virtually absent from Creelman's brochures, catalogues and leaflets.  P. T.  Legare 47 sock machines came standard with a 36/54/72 ribber dial and cylinder combination.

P. T. Legare 400 sock machines were manufactured by the Creelman Brothers.  The overall design is analogous to Creelman's 400 series sock machines.  Despite the numerous similarities, the Creelman Brothers routinely advertised in brochures, catalogues, leaflets and instruction manuals that the Creelman Brothers' sock machines were the best in the trade.

P. T. Legare 400 sock machines came standard with a 36 slot ribber dial, 54 slot cylinder and 72 slot cylinder.  Notwithstanding, Creelman's 400 series sock machines were available in 13 different ribber dial and cylinder combinations.  These included 24/48, 28/56, 30/60, 32/64, 34/68, 36/72, 38/76, 40/80, 42/84, 44/88, 46/92, 48/96 and 50/100.  Both of the P. T. Legare and Creelman sock machines were constructed of cast iron, steel and brass.

Grand and impressive, this Canadian sock machine resembles the Creelman Brothers' "Star", "New Star" and "World Star" sock machines in appearance.  Much like the Creelman Brothers' sock machines, ribber dials ranged between 28 and 50+ slots, whilst cylinders held 48 to 100+ slots.  Aside from label variations, Creelman's initial design of these large sock machines remained unchanged.

Verdun Semi-Automatic Knitting Machine

The Verdun Semi-Automatic knitting machine was designed for industrial use.  Features include a lever that raises cylinder needles out of working position at commencement of the heel or toe.  Similarly, whilst knitting heels and toes, a switch pin automatically raises cylinder needles out of work.  These aspects allowed the industrial worker to manage several knitting machines at once.  Verdun Semi-Automatic knitting machines came standard with 36/72 and 42/84 combinations.