Lois, Spiral Eye is a very special (and patented) type of needle and made by a different company than Clover. The "eye" is a totally different shape.

http://www.spiraleyeneedles.com/

Clover does sell a Self Threading needle, but it's not the Spiral Eye type. You can see the difference in the photos.

http://www.clover-usa.com/product/69400/2006/_/Self_Threading_Needles_Assorted

Please let us know what you think of the ones you receive.

Mrs.A wrote:
I am not even sure what brand it is I have but they all seem to shred the thread some of the time. Never thought of trying every one it the pack to see if one is better. I think there are two left in the package maybe I should try them. I have ordered the Clover spiral needles from Nancy's Notions thinking the design and fine honing of the needle eye prevents this problem. Am I right about that?

Out of a pack of John James self-threading needles that I bought only one was okay! I now have a packet of Dritz which a very kind friend sent to me and they are all working well.

As far as needle brands go, my top favourite is John James, Milwards are ok, haven't tried Clover. The ones I wouldn't touch with a barge pole are made by a company called Pony.

Googling brands is okay, I do it all the time, but I'm not particularly interested in trying out a bunch of self-threading needles and finding more duds than not. I still have sufficient Colonial self-threading needles to keep me going, but if anyone out there is super happy with a particular brand, I'd be interested in knowing about it and I'll be happy to check them out when I run across them. I probably should have said I don't know which are the good ones or which are worth looking at--sorry about that.

Thanks for the comparison info Nancy! And welcome to the forum!

I've got John James, Dritz and Bohin in my hand sewing kit. I could tell no difference between the first two brands (except that Clover might be a bit less expensive). I bought the Bohin needles because so many of their products are great but I found that their self threading needles are so fine & smooth, they unthread themselves at will.

A Google search for Self Threading Needles gives several brands to choose from.

Mrs.A wrote:
I'm glad you raised this point--when I started quilting two years ago, I purchased several packs of 6 cheater needles by Colonial because they were the only ones I had seen up to that point. They were also under $2.00 a pack. I, too, found several that would shred my thread, tossed them and kept the few good ones. I'm wondering whether all of these kind of needles are the same in quality or whether, Clover, for example, might have better quality control over their product. I don't know who else, out there, makes these kind ofself-threading needles. Of course, Spiral Eye needles have caught my interest.

I'm a thread burier...took a class w/Sue Nickels a decade ago and she recommended the same needles way back then. In my opinion, not all self threading needles are created equal. There are several brands available and I've tried them all. Basically in a pack of 5 - 7 needles, only one or two are really good (meaning that the notch is open enough to accept the thread and not shred it). I keep those in a special little pincushion and they last a very long time. I pitch out the 'bad' ones immediately to save myself the frustration. I really hope this helps. Mrs.A

I agree, Rita. Soon after we realized that DH's feet were the natural magnet for my needles and pins (somehow, I never seem to step on them), he bought me one of the retractable arm magnets with a light at the tip of it so I can actually see where the pins might be as I scan the floor with the magnet. It works like a charm because I usually know when I drop a pin--I see it fly off but it is never where I thought it should have fallen--so I go straight for my magnet and scan the floor until it picks up the pin.

Having been to the A&E with two children with needles in their feet I am not one to leave a needle lying around anymore. My solution? One of those magnets on a retractable arm like car mechanics use. You can get them in any car accessory shop.

I can never seem to find a needle or pin after dropping it, but rest assured, my DH's bare feet will find them every time!

Oh, I know that one... But generally I'll see something shine totally unexpectedly...