Make Lively

If you find changing yarns by hand for stripes or Fair Isle frustrating, it may be time to look into a color changer for your knitting machine. But with six different Brother color changer models out there, figuring out which one fits your machine can be confusing.

I recently went through all of them and documented the differences. Here's what I found.

The Quick Version

There are six Brother color changers. They differ in three key ways:

• Single bed vs. double bed — Does it work with just the main bed, or does it need a ribber attached?
• Number of colors — 4 or 6 yarn positions.
• Bulky and/or standard gauge — All six work on standard gauge, but only three work on bulky and two of those are pretty rare.

Here's the lineup:

Model	Bed	Colors	Gauge	Machine Range
KHC-820A	Single bed	4	Standard	KH-830 to KH-970
KRC-830	Double bed	4	Standard	KH-830 to KH-970
KRC-840	Double bed	4	Standard	KH-830 to KH-970
KRC-900 (RCC)	Double bed	4	Standard + Bulky	KH-260/270 + KH-830 to KH-970
KRC-1000E	Double bed	6	Standard + Bulky	KH-260/270, KH-965i, KH-970
KRC-1100M	Double bed	6	Standard + Bulky	KH-260/270 + KH-830 to KH-970

Understanding the Differences

Single Bed vs. Double Bed

The KHC-820A is the only single-bed color changer. It mounts directly to the main bed and works without a ribber. This makes it the simplest option if you're doing single-bed knitting on a standard gauge. The bulky machines don't have a single-bed color changer.

Every other model (KRC-830, KRC-840, KRC-900, KRC-1000E, KRC-1100M) is a double-bed color changer, meaning it requires a ribber to be installed.

Standard vs. Bulky Gauge

Most color changers only work with standard gauge (4.5mm) machines. Three models also support bulky gauge:

• KRC-900 — works with KH-260 and KH-270 (with ribber)
• KRC-1000E — works with KH-260 and KH-270 (with ribber)
• KRC-1100M — works with KH-260 and KH-270 (with ribber)

If you have a bulky Brother machine, these three are your only options.

Full Compatibility Chart

Standard Gauge Machines (KH-830 through KH-970)

All six color changers work with the standard gauge Brother machines from the KH-830 through KH-970 range.

Compatible standard gauge machines: KH-830, KH-836, KH-840, KH-860, KH-881, KH-890, KH-910, KH-930, KH-940, KH-950E, KH-950i, KH-965, KH-965i, KH-970.

Bulky Gauge Machines (KH-260, KH-270)

Only three models: KRC-900, KRC-1000E, and KRC-1100M.

Not Compatible

None of these color changers work with fine gauge machines (KH-120, KH-160) or mid-gauge machines.

So Which One Should You Get?

If you knit single bed: KHC-820A (also written as KHC-820). It's the only single-bed option.

If you have a ribber and standard gauge: KRC-830 or KRC-840. Both work with the full KH-830 to KH-970 range.

If you have a bulky machine: KRC-900 (RCC), KRC-1000E, or KRC-1100M. The KRC-1100M and KRC-1000E give you 6 colors instead of 4.

If you want maximum colors with maximum compatibility: KRC-1100M or KRC-1000E. Six colors, work with both standard and bulky. Both are rare and expensive.