# carder question



## Christina R. (Apr 22, 2004)

Someone told me that I could use two dog hair brushes (as long as they were the wider, rectangle ones) instead of purchasing a pair of carders. Does anyone have experience with this? If I remember right, they said not only are they more frugal to purchase, but they worked better too. Thanks!


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## Christina R. (Apr 22, 2004)

one more detail... I'll be working with the fleece and seconds from my alpaca. I don't know if that makes a difference in using dog brushes.


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

They will work just fine. It will just take you a bit more time to card whatever you are carding because of the smaller size of the brushes.


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## rabbitgeek (Mar 22, 2008)

Carding wool with dog rakes and slicker brushes.

I have used dog slicker brushes as hand cards to process wool and it
can be done, if you are patient. Carding is a great excuse for sitting
in front of the TV or watching DVDs.

I would sit down with a paper grocery sack of washed wool on one side
and empty paper grocery sack on the other side. Make little mini batts
with the slickers and put those in the empty bag. Be sure to have 3 or
4 empty bags on hand because the fluffy mini batts will take up much
more room than the washed wool.

If you are really in need of obsessive compulsive activity, use dog
rakes to pick the wool first, then use the slickers to make mini batts.

You can use a c-clamp to attach one rake or slicker to a table, to
reduce the wear/tear on your hands.

Do not do this activity on the good sofa or wearing good pants.
Put down a cloth if you do it over the carpet. Much dust and
Vegetation Matter (VM) will fall out of your wool no matter how
well you washed it.

It was this activity that allowed me to whole heartedly give my lovely
wife Tracy permission to shop for a drum carder when she asked. We now
have a Strauch Petite.

But I still plan to use my rakes and slickers just to keep my hand in.
At least I have been using rakes to pick the wool before putting
through the carder.

Dog rakes can cost less than $10 each. Slickers cost around $10 to
$15 each, compared to $50 to $100 and more for a pair of regular
wool cards and/or combs.

Have a fiber day!
Franco Rios
from rabbitgeek files July 10 2008


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## Christina R. (Apr 22, 2004)

Thanks for the input. My plans are to start carding the fiber soon. With working full time, I may decide that I need something that is more efficient to get through the task before shearing time again. I think the fleece and seconds were a total of 5#. (Maybe just the fleece itself was 5#?). It was his first shearing. 

Another question as everyone has mentioned washing. I was told by someone that I didn't need to wash his fleece, just pick the gunk out. That seems contrary to what I'm reading everywhere else. Is alpaca wool different in this aspect?


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## rabbitgeek (Mar 22, 2008)

*from rabbitgeek notes 1/4/09*

Beastly Barnyard alpaca yarn smell

Okay, I had a pound of alpaca that I was spinning and the first skein
revealed a beastly, barnyard smell when I washed it the first time. I
asked on some fiber groups for help and many good replies came.

It seems alpacas like to roll in the dust, so that has to be dealt with.

I wound up washing it all in lavender shampoo, but I have heard Dawn
dish washing liquid is very good. I did not agitate the fiber, don't want 
it to felt, but carefully added water for keeping it hot and for rinsing.

Using a mesh bag with a zipper of the kind for washing delicates was
very helpful for handling.

Repost from May 31 2006
Okay, here is an update on the beastly skein of alpaca.

First of all, thank you for all your prompt responses.

I bought a bottle of Avalon Organic Lavender shampoo for two dollars
at the discount store. The shampoo had a strong lavender smell at the
store when I opened it, so I bought it.

I put some hot water in a bucket, enough to cover the skein. I added
the shampoo. I put the skein into the water. I put the bucket outside
on the patio. I warmed the water again by adding a pot of almost
boiling water to the bucket. 20 minutes later I added another pot of
hot water.

I soaked like this for about an hour. I poured out the wash water and
rinsed it many times with lukewarm water. A lot of muddy water came
and went.

As I hung up the skein to dry, I noticed the smell was mostly gone.
Now it is damp and the smell is barely there.
I hope this helps.

Have a good day!
Franco Rios


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## Christina R. (Apr 22, 2004)

Hi Rabbit Geek,

If I'm reading this right, I should wash it post spinning? (You mentioned washing the skein). I appreciate the input. I promise, in a decade or so when I'm no longer a newbie, I'll pass it forward.


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## PKBoo (Apr 10, 2008)

I used dog brushes for months and they worked fine. My dear DH actually noticed the tiny, small, little rolags I was making, and got me a pair of hand carders for Christmas. Now the rolags I make are about 3 times bigger! I have to admit - it's so much nicer. The amount of time I save was worth the cost, but that's something you have to evaluate.


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## rabbitgeek (Mar 22, 2008)

Christina R. said:


> Hi Rabbit Geek,
> 
> If I'm reading this right, I should wash it post spinning? (You mentioned washing the skein). I appreciate the input. I promise, in a decade or so when I'm no longer a newbie, I'll pass it forward.


The next batch of alpaca I washed before spinning. I was told previously I did not need to wash it, so I did not.

I'm just surprised that I did not notice the smell spinning the alpaca fiber when it was dry. 

And I'm glad I am not in the habit of licking my fingers when I spin. I was told to never lick my fingers when spinning because of livestock sanitation issues. 

Always wash your hands afterward.

Have a good day!


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## kyweaver (Nov 30, 2009)

If your wool is long enough, you can flick it with the dog brush. I'll flick anything over four inches. Hold the wool in one hand and lay it across your leg. Then just brush it like hair. Flip it over and brush the other end. I find it easier and faster than carding. It also removes VM and second cuts. Use small locks of wool, and don't poke yourself with the brush. I use this on alpaca and sheep's wool (Leicester Long Wool).


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## frazzlehead (Aug 23, 2005)

I have all sorts of gear for working with fibre (thanks to a generous husband who supports my addiction) - for alpaca, I actually like my combs best of all: different than carders, they are really long combs with tines, and you layer the fibre on one, then comb it off onto the other. The short bits and much of the VM (but by no means all) will fall out or be left behind on the comb you are dragging off of.

I actually have a dog comb (I believe it is called a 'rake') which would probably work for the same purpose, and is indeed much cheaper.  Two rakes and you could comb out the fibre ... it'd be a little slower, because the length of the tines on the rake is shorter than the length of the tines on the combs, so you wouldn't be able to load as much on at once, but I'm sure it would work.

Just don't be afraid to make a REALLY BIG pile of seconds - all that stuff that is leftover is short and you really don't want to be spinning it, unless you want lumpy yarn, which is sometimes what you're after. 

I also don't wash easily felted fibre before spinning - I get so mad when it felts by accident, and a little bit of dirt doesn't bother me (but like Rabbitgeek said - wash your hands!!). I greatly prefer to wash the skeins after spinning - this is how I handle Icelandic and alpaca both.

Oh, and alpaca gets really staticky (sp?) ... I spritz it with diluted hair conditioner and let it sit for awhile, then work with it after it dries. It helps a little, but a humid climate or a room humidifier might be more helpful - it's DRY DRY DRY here in the winter (you should see my cracked lips!). Putting some hand lotion on when you are spinning can help, too.


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## Christina R. (Apr 22, 2004)

I think this will be my last carder question... which works better curved back carders or flat back carders? Is there a benefit to one over the other?


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## kyweaver (Nov 30, 2009)

Its mostly just a preference thing. I prefer curved back carders because I think they are a little easier on my wrists, but if you threw flat-backs at me, I'd use them. It doesn't make that much difference.


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

One think I always though was neat and I would consider it is a ????? I just for got the name :sob: (getting old sucks sometimes). Basically what it is is a board that is covered with carding cloth (the thing with all the little wire teeth in it. You have that and then a single hand card. Oh, oh, it's called a Hackle, that's it :goodjob: Anyway it always seemd to me that one of those would make a lot of sense to have.


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