An Old Wheel Gets a New Twist
My parents came to visit this weekend to help me celebrate my birthday. I asked my dad to bring his toolkit with him so that he could help get Mom's Ashford Traditional (circa 1982) back into better shape. Initially the idea was to remove the hooks that had broken off in the wood, put some new wood plugs in the holes and then replace all the hooks with nice new hooks, making this wheel nicer to work with and giving it something of a new lease on life.
But then I introduced Dad to my Lendrum, and dad was as taken with that pinch clamp that slides up and down one of the arms of the flyer as I was. It didn't take him long to decide that he liked that clamp better than the hooks. So not only did the flyer on the Ashford get some spiffy new wood plugs, it also got some more significant alterations that allowed it to use that pinch clamp to feed the yarn onto the bobbin.
Of course, the process of improving and modifying the flyer led to a lot of discussion about spinning wheels and spinning wheel mechanics. It was a good discussion because the process of explaining what I knew helped me to think about what wheels do, and it led to Dad discovering some things about the Ashford that I hadn't figured out yet (like how to properly use the higher spinning ratio). From the scientist/engineer perspective, a spinning wheel is a lovely machine. It's simple enough so that you can understand all it's parts but still complex enough that you can be excited about understanding more about why something was designed the way it was. Even better, they offer much tinkering potential for a guy with some wood working skills and a few good tools.
I thought I was going to be teaching my mother to use the wheel this trip (we did get a drop spindling lesson in and she took too it like a natural), but as it turned out, someone else got a lesson in the magic of twist.
Doesn't he look like a pro? Dad figured out the basics pretty quickly and now it's just a matter of getting in some practice. He's already ordered his own pound of Blue Faced Leicester from Copper Moose so that he and my mother can play with the wheel (and I sent him home with a little extra BFL that he can work with in the meantime). It looks like I'll definitely have my wheel in the trunk next time we head off to Ann Arbor! How cool is that? Hopefully I'll be able to spin with both of my crafty parents someday!
I've been searching the web, but I haven't found many good sites that have a really good discussion of how to spin on a wheel. I did find this intro to spinning and twist from Interweave and this site which has some nice short videos of drafting techniques. But it seems like most of the "learn to spin" references on the web are for the drop spindle (which Dad didn't find very appealing). Any other good suggestions for web-based learning to spin on a spinning wheel references?
That is so funny about your dad. Actually, I think a lot of men are attracted to the wheel for its mechanical beauty. The night I put together my Majacraft, my stepson and his friends were taking showers at our house before the homecoming dance. Every time I left the room and came back, I'd find a different teenager sitting at the wheel (no fiber on it), just pumping away at the treadles, mesmerized.
I looked for some links to handspinning, but I only found the same ones as you. Time for a book?
OMG! All in the FAMILY! If the engineering content of this post wasn't enough to satisfy my Geek within, the picture of Pop spinning just tickled me to death!
He looks as if he's been doing this forever - I will be visualizing the three of you spinning tous dans la famille with great relish - the Wheels are ALIVE!
How wonderful! A whole spinning family.
Oh, that is the cutest story!
When my Geek (EE/CS) husband got me my wheel for my b-day umpteen yrs ago, he was as fascinated as I was with it. When he got me my computerized sewing machine for Christmas in '83, he sat down with the manual and figured out the auto buttonhole and all of the spiffy fancy stitches and then showed me (much less frustrating for me since I had an infant and a toddler and little free time for manuals!). And when I got the Folk Bags book, he was fascinated by the fisherman's creel pattern and sat down with a ball of cotton yarn and tinkered until he got the tricky woven pattern all figured out (then pulled it out, rewound the ball, and handed the book off to my daughter!). He and his (also EE Geeky) dad have been known to comandeer toys from the kids to figure out how they work too. (I remember a "croaking" frog stuffed toy that they played with for over an hour until they were both satisfied that they had successfully determined the size and shape of the "croaker" and diagrammed it on graph paper while my then 4yo son watched patiently- perhaps that's why he is now an English/Philosophy major?) The mind of an engineer is truly a unique thing! Do you think your Dad will be designing patterns for his handspun before long? :)
How cool is that! Sounds like you had a nice birthday weekend!
That sounds like a very nice weekend, and your Dad looks great in front of that wheel! I've HEARD that men can be handy and entranced by mechanical doo-dads, of course, but it's not a sight I've ever seen in my house except on the occasional visit by my brother-in-law. My father is not the least bit handy and while he can turn a screwdriver, asking him to do anything more elaborate than "Can you hold this for me?" or "Can you tighten this, please?" just isn't going to end well. Oddly enough, I have some mechanical aptitude myself--but no idea where it came from, unless it skipped a generation from my grandfather to me. Go figure. But I love that you're getting your family hooked!
I talk about spinning and spinning wheels when we talk about simple machines--especially since my Great Wheel has a Minor's Head on it. And kids think they never will use physics!
My toddler loves to sit there and treadle!
There are several spinning videos out. I have only seen (and own) the one by Patsy Zawistoski, there are several more on this site: http://www.fiber2yarn.com/video/fiber.htm
Great instruction, but I find myself falling asleep whenever I watch it. It isn't boring, she just has a very calm voice. I would love to learn from her in person.
And your improvements on your Ashford look really cool. I have both the Traditional and a Lendrum too.
when I saw the picture of your dad at the wheel, I thought that that was SO cool. I'm glad he got the chance to learn.
I'm glad it's not just me having issues using the higher ratios. :) I got an Ashford Traditional for christmas, I'm still VERY learning. I'm sticking with the lowest ratio right now because, well, it's easiest. Oi.
Wow, you enabled your own mom and dad! Damn, you're good.
I loved reading your post today, quite interesting. And what a great idea for your tRaditional. I'm going to have to study that picture.
That is way cool - your parents spinning!!! And great idea for the improvements.
The Yarn HArlot did a long post a while ago on how to spin - worth looking up the archives for!
Rock on, Dad! Or should I say, spin on..?
For the engineer I highly recommend Alden Amos' Big Book of Spinning. It's really technical and goes into all the mechanics of the wheel, ratios, twist, etc.
Also Mabel Ross--her spinning video is very good and she was a very technical spinner. I've never been able to work through her books--I'm a zone-out, do it by feel kind of spinner.
Theresa, you can rent by mail all the spinning videos you want from Paradise Fibers and they charge under $5 each.