The Problem with Vintage Knitting Needles

My grandmother, who does not knit, gave me a lot of old knitting needles. I was happy to have them, although I tend to use circular needles and they are all straight, and so I hardly ever use them. They are pretty and shiny, after all.

Today though, I needed #4s-- a size I rarely use and so the only place to look was Grandma's needles. The first pair I grabbed with 4s on them seemed too big, but there was another pair which seemed right. Thus began the investigation.

A needle gauge, for the uninitiated, has numbered holes which correspond to needle sizes. Poke a needle through the holes until you find one that the needle fits snugly but smoothly, read the number next to it, and that's the needle size. For example:
The needle says 4, and the hole it fits is also numbered 4. Good job, Mr. Needlemaker!








Below is the photo of the one I thought felt too big. It was not off by a just few millimeters, as you can see here:
Size 10? That means it's 6 mm instead of 3.5.

Oh, well. They're still pretty.