Why no # 12 knitting needes?

There's no 14s or 16s either. I think it has to do more with the metric sizes... 11s are 8mm, 13s are 9mm, 15s are 10mm. So there's a nice even

1mm between them. But then 17s jump to 12.5mm, though I've seen some that are 12mm. No 11mm either.

sue

Maybe for the same unknown reason that a size 10-1/2 needle is 6.5 mm and a size 11 needle is 8 mm? *shrugging shoulders in a "who knows?" type of fashion*

Then again, there are always reasons such as the following:

A little girl asked her Mom why she always cut the end off the ham before baking. Her Mom said "That's the way my Mama always did it. You'll have to ask Grandma why she did it." The little girl asked her Grandma why she cut the end of the ham off before baking? Grandma said "Because my Mom always did. You'll have to ask Great-Grandma why she did it." Finally the girl asked Great Grandma why she cut the end off of the ham before baking. Great Grandma said, "Because my baking pan was too small to fit the whole thing." :)

The US sizes follow wire gauges to an extent. The first needles were made from wire and machined in shops like bolts and things. So there were pre-set sizes that could be used, unlike today's computerized machines.

sue

thanks for the answers..now i've got to get back to my knitting job, redoing the sleeves for second time; one down, 2nd more than half done.. fronts and back done so I can finish this up today and get it in mail!

Donna in S. IN