Spinning Wheels and Drum carders

[jacqui]

I would be interested to know how many of you Drop spindle or what kind of spinning wheels you use. Do you use Drum carders,hand carders,combs or flick carders? What are your favourite fibres to spin? I have a Marjacraft, Suzie, wheel from New Zealand it has all the different ratios for different fibres. I used a number of different wheels before purchasing this one and i love it. I have used flicker brush to card greasy fleece and drum carder for washed fleece and blending. I've been spinning for five years almost and have spun Alpaca, wool, dog hair, camel,cotton,cat, rabbit, Soy silk, silk,mohair, polyester sparkle and blends. I'm reasonably new to spinning but i'm willing to give any fibre a try if i can get it here. I teach anyone who wants to learn the same with crochet. I will be attending a spinning camp in November and will be meeting the people who made my wheel! I'm really looking forward to it as i can't afford to go to camps further away and this one is here in my town. I taught myself to Drop spindle and find it so portable you can do it any where and i do. to spin &

[Woven N Spun]

I have an Ashford Traditional and an Ashford Joy. I started with the traditional and now almost use the joy exclusively. I have a Woolie Winder on my Christmas wish list and hubby already told me he would get it for me now if I wanted it. I also have a louet drum carder that I love. Due to wrist injuries, I had a really hard time hand carding so I was given the drum carder as a present. I love it. I have really only spun merino, coopworth, cotswold and have lincoln fleece on it's way to me now to try. I have been the lucky recipient of a little angora when I helped a lady in my old spinning group pluck her bunnies. Would definately like more of that and am looking into getting a bunny myself...still unsure about that. I will start alpaca in the spring when my brother shears his two new recent additions to their farm

I am signed up for a Masters Spinner course for the spring since I was unable to attend the one this week, however, I have been blessed to be allowed to join the discussion group and learn from the people taking the class now.

[superfurry]

i drop spindle and i'm beginning to wonder about the wisdom of getting a wheel. when i first started i thought i had to have one, but then i'd get through the fibre that much quicker so it would end up being a very expensive hobby. also we have very little room and an inquisitive toddler, so it would have to be packed away every night and maybe i wouldn't bother unpacking it that often. as it is i can pick up my spindle and just do 5 minutes here and there.

 

i've only spun wool so far: cheviot, bfl, wensleydale, shropshire and merino, plus the mystery wools that came with my spindles. i am using some angelina with my current merino and i'm wondering about roughly blending some bamboo fibre into the rest of it and plying the two together.

 

i haven't been spinning quite for a month yet, but i'm really into it. i'm in touch with our local guild of spinners and dyers and hoping to make their next meeting. one of the women from the guild gives wheel lessons (i was amazed to find someone offering lessons nearby, it really is a much rarer craft over here than in the states) but i know as soon as i lay hands on a wheel i'll be hooked, and i'd like to stay content with spindling as long as i can!

 

edited to actually answer the questions!: my favourite fibre so far is the bfl, cos its soft but sheeny too, though the merino is running it a close second, it's like spinning a cloud i don't have any other equipment and at the moment i'm very happy to leave the fibre prep to someone else, though i have been dabbling with dyeing.

[Woven N Spun]

When you feel the urge to get a wheel, look at the more compact and portable ones. My first wheel was an Ashford Traditional. Smallish, but not really portable. I bought it because I thought I would be doing more spinning demos and I still hope to along down the road...right now it's just not working that way. When space became more of an issue in our house with the addition of 4 more children, I truly needed a more compact wheel that I could put away. The Joy is great. The treadle folds up flush against the wheel and it has a built in handle to move around. I have taken it camping, to demos at schools, or just sit outside while the kids play, with ease. There are other compact wheels as well, so when you are ready to move on (so to speak) don't hesitate to try as many wheels as you can to find the one that is right for you and don't be afraid of it

[xantha]

I used drop spindles exclusively for about 7 months before I fell in love with a wheel at MD S+W (where I tried a number of wheels) and bought it a month later -- it's the folding Lendrum, double treadle, with the plying flyer and fast flyer.

 

It gives me a lot of options on ratios so I can spin bulky or so I can spin laceweight. It also doesn't take up a lot of room and it does fold so I can stash it under a bed if I like (though I haven't done that yet) or so I can take it with me somewhere.

 

I did a lot of research on wheels before I went to MD S+W so I knew which ones I was interested in trying. Once I was able to play with them all, I knew which one was right for me.

 

Nowadays I just wish I had more time to spin!

 

I don't have a drum carder though recently I have been thinking more and more about one.

[charley6]

Hi, I am new and dont know if this is the right place to ask for advice. I have 30 female alpacas and are wondering what I am going to do with the fiber. I was hoping to card it and was wondering what sort of a carder to get, hopefully powerdriven. Thanks in advance.

[juliebug137]

*tremble*

I am imagining your 30 female alpacas and all the fiber they produce and then I imagine it spun up! *sigh*

 

I am a fairly new spinner (less than a year). I started on a drop spindle and am now on a kick spindle (from heavenly handspinners.com) and I am planning on getting one of her wheels for Christmas this year. I have been obsessing and I think my DH finally noticed and is going to do what he can to make sure I get one! YAY! My big hold up has been the investment on a wheel and coming up with all that cashola! But, HH has some great prices and I have done a ton of research on her wheels and everyone who has purchased one has really been happy with it! I am not sure about carders...I know on Ravelry there are a bunch of groups that discuss the processing. There are also companies that will process your fiber for you. Good luck!

 

Jules

[MullersLaneFarm]

Charley6,

Have you sheared your alpacas? Best bet would be to take the barrel cut and send the prime fleece to a mill that specializes in alpaca.

 

I started spindling about 10 years ago, got my first wheel 6 years ago (an Ashford Traveller), picked up an antique (late 1700's) Irish style Saxon, 1975 Ashford Traditional, late 1800's Great Wheel. Sold the Traddie to a friend who was beginning to spin and bought a Kromski Sonata with a WooLee Winder.

 

I use the Sonata for spinning, the Traveller (with Jumbo bobbin) for plying.

[crochetrenee]

I have an Ashford Traveller and love it. I have several options available for fiber prep and choose the one based upon the kind of yarn I want to end up with. I am fond of the softer wools, especially Cormo, but have spun merino, Romney, Dorset, Jacob and others. Also have spun llama, alpaca, angora, soysilk, buffalo, silk, tried cotton (not too successful with that yet). My absolute favorite yarn to make right now is to comb alpaca with angora and produce a lightly twisted two ply. I actually created such a yarn that I gifted to my mentor, Mary Jane Hall and she made a scarf from it that now appears in "Luxury Yarns One Skein Wonders" put out last month by Storey Publishing, and they actually gave me credit for the yarn! Pretty cool! It's called "Lacey Gray Scarf".

[MullersLaneFarm]

Fiber Prep:

 

About half my fiber is raw when I get it. I have a picker, drum carder, hand cards and Viking combs. I use all, depending on the fiber.

 

Favorite all around fiber is Corriedale.

[White Lotus Alpacas]

Oh my goodness! Barrel cut is absolutely not acceptable for alpacas, especially if you plan to show them or have farm visitors! Same with Lion cut or any other weird or odd cuts. We shear ours (~60) completely every year. We leave the topknot or trim it, trim the tail so it doesn't get too bushy, and the legs get shorn as well. Young animals destined to be shown at halter usually get their legs "stovepiped", since the judges prefer that look and animals with stovepiped legs tend to place higher.

 

Out here where we have so much rain and therefore lots of mud, leave excessive fiber coverage on the legs just leads to huge, heavy, painful dirt clods. Same with apron and tail, if not shorn or trimmed as appropriate.

 

On to the processing question: There are mini-mills around the country who will process your fleece to whatever degree you desire. Also, local spinning guilds are a great place to inquire. And of course there is AFCNA and a few other large coo-ops and fiber pool processors. Just takes a bit of googling to find almost anything you want!

 

And if you want to process your fleece yourself, the amount of equipment you'll need depends on how much you're willing to spend!

[MullersLaneFarm]

I was talking about the prime fleece for sending in to be processed and meant to say 'blanket' and not 'barrel'. My bad, probably doing too many things at once.