Needle hit
Over the past few months I've been pestering every 2. hand stuff dealer in every town and thrift market I've been to, urging them to vacuum their shops and attics for needles with certain characteristics. I've sifted through several pounds of used industrial needles, but yesterday one shop owner called and said he had found the lot he bought many years ago because the envelopes were so pretty.
They had the numbers 339 and 285 on them, and he'd be pleased if I'd take them all off his hands. He didn't exactly give them away, but I guess I did okay.
Only downside, the needles are stout. The 339's are #16's, and the 285's are #5, which must be another number system (industrial?). They measure exactly 1 mm, which also equals domestic #16, I guess.
I know the 339 work well in the old German treadles. I tested the 285 in my - believed to be - Haid & Neu, and it seems to sit well, nice stitches. They where manufactured for the Pallas machine, both Adolph Knoch AG and Bernhard Stoewer AG made a Pallas machine. Funny detail: The word "garantiert" is spelled differently on the two packages.