Passap Knitting Machines

Passap Maintenance

The Swiss-made Passap knitting machines are considered the true double-bed machine. The main bed (front bed) and the ribber bed (back bed) cannot be separated as on the Japanese machines. These machines can do more of a pattern and have more of an effect on the front bed patterning than the Japanese machines. There is also a non-patterning, single-bed machine.

The Knitting Machine Textbook for the Passap E-6000
Passap E-6000 to Passap DM-80 Conversion Charts
Passap Model Books

The Passap knitting machines can be purchased as a punchcard machine, the DM-80, or as an electronic machine, the E-6000 and E-8000.

• The DM-80 and E-6000 may be purchased as standard-gauge machines, with 180 needles 5.0 mm apart.

• The E-8000 may be purchased as a fine-gauge machine with 383 needles 3.8 mm apart.

• Standard-gauge machines may accommodate thicker yarns by knitting on every other needle, every third needle or variations therefof. However, as the available number of needles becomes less, the width of the actual knitted piece becomes narrower.

• A punchcard machine can produce a pattern which is 40 stitches wide. However, that pattern can be repeated across the width of the knitted piece or positioned in a specific location, which is then called a motif.

• The pattern MUST be either 40 stitches wide or a number evenly divided into 40. An electronic machine can produce a pattern from one stitch to as many stitches wide as there are needles on the machine.

Passap knitting machines can produce a wide variety of stitch patterns. You may knit a fairisle pattern; a single or multi-color tuck stitch pattern; a single or multi-color slip/skip stitch pattern; a drop lace; a blister stitch and many, many more. Using the double bed feature, you can do jacquard knitting, which is fairisle knitting with no floats.

Passap electronic machines have varying amounts of memory. The early models came with very little extra memory, just enough to allow you to read in a few cards. Next came the 8K chips which allowed you to read in more cards at a time and also allowed you to download small amounts of patterns from a computer. Now, all of the E6000 machines come with 32K of memory standard.

It's really quite simple, though somewhat intimidating if you're not accustomed to working with circuit boards, to pull out your old Program A and Muster A chips and replace with them with 8K chips, if that's where you're going and if they can still be found. And it's even easier to remove about 16 screws from the console and the old circuit board and lay in a new 32K board. But it's also more than a bit understandable that someone spending over $500 for memory, who has never even held a circuit board before, may be a bit squimish about installing a new board. But if you're nowhere near a dealer and want the added memory, a Phillips screw driver, point-nose pliers (if you are replacing chips), steady nerves and hands will work wonders.

As for plastic, single-bed machines:

• The Vario 5 mm/10 mm standard-gauge/bulky-gauge machine with 209 needles;

• TheVario-Big 5 mm/10 mm standard-gauge/bulky-gauge machine with 259 needles. Both Vario machines are perfect for hand-knitters whose preference in design is the yarn. All patterning is hand-manipulated

Using your IBM-compatible personal computer, you may scan in patterns to a program, manipulate the pattern any way you choose and, using Creation 6 or Creation 8 with the E8812 only (after June, 1997), download the pattern and/or shape, and knit it.

Additional optional accessories are available, such as a four-color changer or an automatic four-color changer, a bind-off /cast-on device, a transfer carriage, and an intarsia carriage. Each has its own function to either assist in the initial knitting or in the finishing process.

PASSAP E8812

Passap's newest machine! It's a fine-gauge, 3.8 mm machine, with 383 needles and patterning on BOTH the front and back beds. Now you can make completely reversible fabric with stitches that look more like hand-knit stockinette. No more holely, rough stitches that we are all accustomed to when doing jacquard. It is completely motorized, with 400 patterns and 180 techniques. The most fabulous feature besides the gauge and the double-bed patterning is the automatic fabric take-down. No more weights of any kind! No more knitting hitting the floor! Simply attach your knitting to the take-down unit and this is all taken care of.

The new software, Creation 8, will be help you design over 40,000 different patterns with the over 400 patterns within the console.

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