Corona

= Brand History & Overview

Corona is a Japanese brand of vintage flatbed knitting machines produced primarily during the 1960s and 1970s. Corona machines are recognized for their distinct mechanical designs, sliding selector levers, and semi-automatic stitch capabilities. They were also sold under alternative brand names, including Genie, Gracic, Janome, and Koyo.

Design and Patterning

Rather than using standard 24-stitch punchcard systems, most Corona models (such as the standard 4.5mm gauge CH-1000) use a manual or semi-automatic selector lever layout:

• Needle Selection: The carriage features a series of turn-knobs, sliding levers (including a "TC lever"), and return cam switches. Knitters configure these settings to physically manipulate needle push-buttons on the bed to create textures like tuck stitch, slip stitch, and fair isle.
• Gate Peg Design: Some Corona models feature a specialized moveable gate peg alignment, which differs mechanically from the fixed gate pegs found on Japanese competitors like Brother or Silver Reed.

Bulky Models (CN-Series)

Corona was highly active in the bulky gauge market (9.0mm spacing), producing the CN-Series:

• Corona CN-9N: A sturdy manual bulky machine featuring 9mm needle spacing.
• Corona CN-110 (Super Jumbo Knitter): A 9mm bulky model that uses unique internal dampeners (a wide fabric strip underneath the sinker plate and a specialised guidance cord for needle movement) which require dedicated maintenance during restoration.

Maintenance

Because Corona machines are vintage and have unique mechanical layouts, replacement needles, gates, and sponge bars are not directly interchangeable with Brother or Silver Reed parts. Collectors often rely on custom-cut foam strips for sponge bars and specialized resources to maintain their mechanical timing.

Corona =

Corona machines are Japanese-engineered metal-bed machines known for their robust mechanical build and integrated patterning features. They were frequently rebranded for international department stores, most notably as Sears and Montgomery Ward.

Standard Gauge (4.5mm)

• Corona CN-55 — Early manual metal-bed model.
• Corona CN-70 — Manual model with improved needle selection.
• Corona CH-1000 — 24-stitch punchcard machine; the most common model in the CH series.
• Corona CH-1500 — Updated 24-stitch punchcard model with refined carriage.
• Corona CH-2000 — Advanced 24-stitch model with integrated patterning features.

Bulky & Mid-Gauge

• Corona CN-95 — Manual bulky (9.0mm) machine.
• Corona CN-110 — Mid-gauge (6.5mm) machine designed for DK weight yarns.

Accessories & Attachments

• Corona Ribber: Second-bed attachments available for the CN and CH series (e.g., the KR-series ribbers).
• Corona Lace Carriage: Specialized carriage for automated lace transfers on the CH-series punchcard machines.
• Corona Intarsia Carriage: A dedicated carriage for multi-color pictorial knitting without floats.
• Corona Knit Leader: An integrated or add-on contour slider used for garment shaping via full-scale or half-scale paper patterns.
• Corona Color Changer: A mechanical attachment allowing for the use of up to four yarns simultaneously on the main bed.
• Corona 12-Stitch Punchcard Set: While most CH models are 24-stitch, some early Corona punchcard models used a 12-stitch format unique to their drum system.

Machine Accessory Compatibility Matrix

The following is a dynamically generated list of Corona accessories and their compatible knitting machines, populated directly from the wiki's database:

Accessory	Type	Compatible Machines	Release Year
Corona 12-Stitch Punchcard Set	Patterning punchcards	Corona 12-stitch models
Corona CH-1000	Single-Bed Color Changer	Corona machines
Corona CH-1500	Color Changer
Corona CH-2000	Double-Bed Color Changer
Corona Color Changer	Color Changer
Corona Intarsia Carriage	Intarsia Carriage	Corona machines
Corona Knit Leader	Garment Shaping Device
Corona Lace Carriage	Lace Carriage
Corona Ribber	Ribbing Bed