# My Wheel Question



## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

Told you I would be a pest.

I found this wheel but I don't know the brand or anything, it was just described as a good beginner's wheel. I haven't seen it in person yet and just have this picture. Anyone recognize anything like this?










It doesn't look like anything I've seen and I wonder about getting bobbins, parts and such.:shrug: Also the wheel looks small does that mean I'd have to treadle like crazy?

Thanks,
Deanna in WA


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## gone-a-milkin (Mar 4, 2007)

Yay, another pest! :grin:

I dont know what kind of wheel that is but it is not very different from my handmade wheel.
Her name is Annie.
She was made based on an old Shetland design by someone local to me.
This pic shows off all my bobbins the wheelwright made me to go with her.
Dont hate me but I have 12!! bobbins now. 
The wheelwright has a crush on me I think. :kissy:










It is a simple "bobbin driven" design and a great beginners wheel.
You WILL have to treadle your butt off to get a FINE singles with a wheel like this, but it is pretty versatile in other ways.
I have spun fine yarn on mine. It is not fun exactly, but not impossible either.
You can wind things onto the bobbin w/o adding any twist by not putting yarn through the orifice.
That is a feature I use all the time, to rewind singles before plying and to wind bobbins for my sock machine.

So, you dont own this wheel yet?
Are you asking whether you should buy it? Do you have spinning experience?
(see? I am a pest too! :teehee: )


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

gone-a-milkin said:


> So, you dont own this wheel yet?
> Are you asking whether you should buy it? Do you have spinning experience?
> (see? I am a pest too! :teehee: )


I'm hoping to go see it on Sunday (it's about 2 hours from me, but so is everything else and I'll be halfway there on Sunday anyway).

I'm not sure if I'm asking whether or not I should buy it, maybe just if anyone has any horror stories that would make it so they wouldn't even take it for free. The price is such that even then I think I would bring it home anyway.

I have never spun on a spinning wheel, only some on a drop spindle, enough to make a hat and scarf.

I guess I'm just curious and pesty. Oh, and I have a fleece to spin and it's cheap, cheap.:teehee:

Your wheel is so cute and it is hard to not hate you with all those beautiful handmade bobbins but since I'm new here I'll try to get to know you better before I pass judgement.


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## gone-a-milkin (Mar 4, 2007)

Oh. 

Well then, let us know when you get it home and take some better pics. 

It doesnt look like there is a driveband on it in the photo you posted.


Maybe someone else here will recognise your exact wheel.
There are some real smart folks in this forum.


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

It looks familiar for my brain isn't working right now. Could be a Wee Peggy? Looks kind of like this one http://www.nzspinningwheels.info/spence.jpg or this one http://www.nzspinningwheels.info/sbeautyur.jpg. 

Go look at this page and see what you think of the wheels posted. Click on the thumbnail pictures to see the wheels better. UPRIGHT WHEELS MADE IN NEW ZEALAND Q-Z

It almost looks like yours might be a single drive with a scotch tension but it's hard to tell much of anything with that picture. I can see the drive band on it though.


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## Chaty (Apr 4, 2008)

Looks something like mine and mine is a Upright Castle...I love mine as it dont take up lots of space. This is my first wheel and I love mine. I use mine on all types of fiber...Good luck! and Congrats if you go ahead and get it!


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

Marchwind, those do look similar.

I have definite plans to go down on Sunday and I'm 99.9% sure I'll be bringing it home and more fleece too. I'll take more pictures then. And she got back to me that standard Ashford bobbins work great on it, so that's a relief.


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## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

I have a castle, but the wheel is much larger. Bring some fleece with you and a starter string. Have a go at it. You'll want to know where you can buy more bobbins.


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

Wind in Her Hair said:


> not a Wee Peggy...
> 
> that round table is unlike any I have noticed before. Looks like a New Zealand-made wheel based on the chubbiness of the finials and spokes -and yes, the smaller the diameter of the drive wheel - the more times it has to spin to spin the flyer - *unless it has an accelerator.*


My husband said something like that but I made it clear that under no uncertain terms was he to modify my wheel! He still owes me an apple-peeler-corer-slicer.:grumble: He was only trying to help me by making it work better of course.


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

You must be married to an engineer


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

Wind in Her Hair said:


> Deanna - have you tried posting this on ravelry.com in the Spinner Central forum?
> 
> 
> http://www.ravelry.com/groups/spinner-central?
> ...


I'll have to do that after I get it home and take better pics.


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

Marchwind said:


> You must be married to an engineer


Maybe that's what he should have been, he's on his 4th or 5th career now, I'm starting to lose track after 20 years. Currently he's the welder/fabricater of our local John Deere dealer. He likes it, he can modify things all day.:happy:


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

Okay, I think it is probably homemade, there are no marks on it.








The flyer doesn't match the finish so I think it's a replacement but the picture doesn't show it well.








The bar that goes through the wheel is a bit lose and so it clunks dh is going to fix that and the drive band slips and not being familiar with spinning on a wheel I don't know if it's operator error or not but it does it with the slightest tension, either the tension is too lose and won't take up the yarn or the drive band slips. I bought a polyurethane drive band that is supposed to be stretchy and I'm hoping that will work better than the cotton one.:shrug:


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

That is such a tiny wheel it's highly unlikely it could warp enough to be a fatal problem.

Try all of what WIHH has suggested and then we'll see where you're at!


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

It has scotch tension I think? A little spring/rubberband thingy. And the drive band is cotton.


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

Possibly you can rig this one either way. It certainly looks like it would work as double drive ... though if the MOA doesn't move up and down then maybe not.

Bobbin lead/flyer brake or flyer lead/bobbin brake?

Close up picture of the business end of the tensioning mechanism might help...


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

frazzlehead said:


> Possibly you can rig this one either way. It certainly looks like it would work as double drive ... though if the MOA doesn't move up and down then maybe not.
> 
> Bobbin lead/flyer brake or flyer lead/bobbin brake?
> 
> Close up picture of the business end of the tensioning mechanism might help...


The MOA doesn't move, everything is fixed on this wheel. I'll try to get a a close up picture posted in a bit.


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

When you say the drive band slips do you mean it slips off or just that it slips and doesn't turn the wheel? If it is slipping, as in not turning the wheel, then run it along a bees wax candle. Bees wax will make it a bit sticky, don't put too much on it though. 

We need better, more up close pictures of the MOA, Flyer and the tensioning devise.

WIHH they make those stretchy bands for double drive wheels. I have never used one for mine so I don't know how they work of if they work.


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

Marchwind said:


> When you say the drive band slips do you mean it slips off or just that it slips and doesn't turn the wheel? If it is slipping, as in not turning the wheel, then run it along a bees wax candle. Bees wax will make it a bit sticky, don't put too much on it though.
> 
> We need better, more up close pictures of the MOA, Flyer and the tensioning devise.
> 
> WIHH they make those stretchy bands for double drive wheels. I have never used one for mine so I don't know how they work of if they work.


It doesn't slip off, it just slips and doesn't turn the wheel. I have beeswax! I'll give that a try.

Here are some close-ups for the flyer and tensioning mechanism. 




























I'll get another of the MOA.

Okay, is this what you need to see?


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

Happyhomemama that is a scotch tension. Try loosening the tension all the way then as you begin to spin and set the tension turn the tensioning knob ever so slightly. A fraction of an inch at a time until you have the take-up just right. It may need to be adjusted several times during spinning.

WIHH you mentioned that you cannot use those stretchy drive bands on doubledrive wheels, didn't you? Maybe I misread what you wrote, no unheard of. I have never used one on my doubledrive wheel, but I have thought about it since they do sell them. I was just saying that I had never heard they couldn't be used on DD wheels before.


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

Okay, that's a flyer-lead-bobbin-brake wheel. This kind can work fine with a rubber stretchy drive band - my Babe wheel uses a band like that. An advantage of the stretchy band on these is that it can stretch out of the way when you need to take the flyer out to get the bobbin off. I would definitely try the stretchy band.

The groove on that flyer whorl is really wide - This wheel can probably tolerate quite a big drive band. Maybe try going up to kitchen cotton if the beeswax on the band you're using now doesn't work and you aren't going to use the stretchy one yet.
_
ETA: That whorl looks like it is finished with something shiny, like polyurethane. Is it really smooth? If it is, then take a bit of sandpaper and just rub the inner groove a bit to roughen it up. It needs to NOT be slick or the band can't grab. You may need to sand the groove along the wheel as well, if it is also super shiny and slick._

First thing you want is to get the wheel turning the flyer. You'll need to make sure that if you spin the flyer with your hand it twirls easily - oil under the neck of the flyer and where it goes into the upright at the back, it should twirl super easily, no drag.

After that is working with the drive band turning the flyer, you'll want to string on a leader - with this type of drive, the bobbin may not do anything at all unless there's a string connecting it to the hooks on the flyer. Make sure your leader is well stuck down - one of the stick on velcro dots from the fabric store on the bobbin is a handy place to 'stick down' your leader, a piece of tape will work, or a really tight loop. Then, with the tension on the brake band completely backed off, just gradually tighten it until it will wind on JUST BARELY. That's actually all you need - not to pull it from your hands, but to accept if you offer it.

So far so good!


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

As for stretchy bands and double drive - it is my understanding that they *will not work in double drive mode*.

Some of the wheels are double drive or Scotch tension - some of the Ashfords in particular - and I suspect that the stretchy bands you've seen for dd wheels are not meant to be used in dd mode. Just look at the length of it - if it's a loop as big as you are tall, then it's for double drive, and I've never seen a stretchy one THAT long!


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

Okay with all your help and suggestions I was able to spin a yarn. :happy:










Toothpick, tighten and wax band. Voila! Still need to oil and it's still a little rough but I'm getting somewhere!:grin:

Speaking of rough my dh says the wheel needs a bearing then it will spin smoothly forever but should I let him?:huh: He promises a new wheel if he ruins it so :kiss:. Then again it's been years since the apple-peeler-slicer incident.:bored:

p.s. What type of oil?


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

NO! NO to the bearing!

Open bearings have some real advantages. 

A CPW will keep going and going and going after you let your foot off the treadle - and all it's got are the metal stems of the axle sitting in lead grooves.

More practice treadling will get you smoother spinning. Also more oil, and perhaps some small adjustments to the attachment between treadle and footman.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. My wheel is over a century old and she spins just fine without sealed bearings!


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

frazzlehead said:


> NO! NO to the bearing!
> 
> Open bearings have some real advantages.
> 
> ...


Oh, that sounds bad, no good for control I would think. I guess I'll have to whack his hand if he tries to modify my wheel.:grin:


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

Actually it's not bad - you learn to stop the wheel with your foot on the treadle. What it tells you is how easily the wheel itself turns - it has so much momentum, it just keeps going (this is due to the design and size of the wheel - it is huge and rim weighted so centrifugal force keeps it going around and all your foot has to do is gently help encourage it to keep going, much less work than most wheels to treadle).

My point is that it's not the bearings that make things go more smoothly (not really) - metal on wood or metal on metal or metal on bone, all appropriately oiled, works just fine and has for centuries. Easy to maintain, easy to clean, easy to see if it's gone weird. Sealed bearings are fine ... until something needs fixing. 

But yes - whack his hand if he tries to modify the wheel. It was designed to do what it does, and unless you are really sure what you're doing, changing one thing can have far reaching consequences.

Yay for yarn! 

Now, oil that baby up and practice treadling and you'll find it smooths itself out without any mechanical modifications at all.


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

What your DH is hearing may be that the wheel needs oiling. It is amazing what a bit or oil will do for your spinning experience. Look on the wheel hub as you slowly spin it. Is the a small hole in the hub? If so a few drops of oil in there will do the world of good for your wheel. Oil it before you spin on it again.

I use mineral oil, it's cheap and it's odorless. You can us about anything except cooking oil


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

Marchwind said:


> *What your DH is hearing may be that the wheel needs oiling.* It is amazing what a bit or oil will do for your spinning experience. Look on the wheel hub as you slowly spin it. Is the a small hole in the hub? If so a few drops of oil in there will do the world of good for your wheel. Oil it before you spin on it again.
> 
> I use mineral oil, it's cheap and it's odorless. You can us about anything except cooking oil


I oiled it with sewing machine oil and ordered some spinning wheel oil. You can't just hear it though, you can visibly see it "clunk" down on every turn. The toothpicks helped quite a bit but he still thinks it needs work  and I think, "hey, this thing spins yarn, awesome.":grin: Though I think I misunderstood what he wants to do because he said it would stop when the treadle stopped, idk he knows more about metal/mechanical/wood working type stuff than I do so the jury is out as to whether or not I'll let him touch it.:spinsmiley:


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## Happyhomemama (Jul 13, 2005)

Wind in Her Hair said:


> my little Haldane Shetland wheel clunks too.
> 
> At first it worried me, and I corrected it with a wooden match stick jammed under the axle pin to level out the axle. Eventually I just left the matchstick out and got used to the "ka-thunk". My husband thinks its endearing and he likes to hear the rhythmic sound as I spin.
> 
> To me - odd little quirks of older wheels is part of what makes for a special relationship with your wheel. That odd little ka-thunk becomes that wheel's own special voice.


I also think about all the yarn that must have been spun on it, to have it worn out like that. Must be a good little wheel.:grin:


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

Where, exactly, is the clunk?

Is the treadle thwapping into the footman (the stick between treadle and axle)? Is the wheel itself jumping around, bumping the axle in the hole it rides in?

Good idea to find the source of the clunk and see if it is readily fixable. Sometimes a clunk is just a comforting sound, but sometimes it is the sound of a misplaced piece that will rub and cause problems if not dealt with.


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