# Leicester Longwool



## PKBoo (Apr 10, 2008)

DH and I were in Colonial Williamsburg Sunday (what a wonderful place!) and I got some Leicester Longwool roving from the Artisan shop where they only sell items that are made in Williamsburg. The story of those sheep is amazing (we'd love to get one!)

Anyway, the fiber is very long, and I read in one place that it should be spun worsted. In another website, it said to spin it slowly, or else it will be like wire. Has anyone ever spun this? I'm going to go try spinning slowly now, and see what the difference is.


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

Spin loosely ... if spun with a lot of twist, it will be like wire!


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## kyweaver (Nov 30, 2009)

Yup. I spun up twenty pounds of it last year to make some 18th century cloaks. We bought it as raw wool. I flicked it and then spun from the lock. Since it was destined to be woven, I put a good bit of twist in it, then plied until it balanced. As yarn it was very strong and had a silky luster. Woven it is a bit scratchy. 
Oh, and it didn't full much. I have some scraps left that will get a more rigorous treatment, but my regular fulling techniques didn't work.

I've got more about it on the Blog section of the website in my signature.


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

What Cyndi said, spin it loosly. Because the fiber staple is so long you do not need a lot of twist in it to hold it all together. Really control your twist. 

Please post pictures so we can see your progress. What color is it?


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## PKBoo (Apr 10, 2008)

wow kyweaver - 20 pounds! You're blog is very interesting - I loved the pictures and your explanation of the process. 

I wish I could have gotten this wool raw - it seems over-processed & dry to me (although I haven't worked with many fleeces in my limited experiences!). It did spin easier when I was treadling at a slower pace. 

The fleece is white - the only sheep we saw at Williamsburg were white - so it was interesting to see the colored longwools too (thanks kyweaver!) Our batteries died in our camera, so I'll post pictures as soon as I can. I want to get some of the nekked sheep too!


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## Forerunner (Mar 23, 2007)

Now I promised GAM that I'd keep mum until I had something to show for myself, an, well, I almost do.
This thread brings my latest calamity into clear focus.
Cyndi sent me some nice rovings (I think that's what you call them)
and we won a couple at the fiber thingy at Blackhwak college last year.
I finally got the wheel out and tried spinning. The roving thickness was such that it was way to big to spin so I began splitting them lengthwise into smaller and smaller thicknesses until I had something that I thought would be quite workable.
When I started spinning (I'm after yarn about the thickness of a small pencil) it did OK for a little bit then began to twist up on itself something fierce. 
Am I spinning with too much tension ?
Too fast ?
I know there needs be some twist, but this was just balling up on the spindle (spool?).


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## Forerunner (Mar 23, 2007)

My intention is to spin and use the single.
Plying must be something discussed in the back of one of NASA's instruction manuals.

I can see how, if you and I were ever to engage in a long and uninterrupted discussion concerning our spinning wheels and experiences, all manner of new and interesting terminology may be coined and employed. 

Bobbin sounds good to me.


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## kyweaver (Nov 30, 2009)

If it's kinking up like a plate of bad spaghetti, then you have too much twist. Either slow down your treadling, increase your tension (so it pulls into the wheel faster), or draft faster. 

If what you have already done it too kinky to use, you can actually remove some of the twist. Put the bobbin with yarn on it on a kate or bobbin rack, then run the thread back onto your wheel, but treadle VERY slowly in the OPPOSITE direction.This will take out some twist. Go very slow and test the yarn often. You can rescue overspun or too thick yarn if you are careful.


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## Marchwind (May 10, 2002)

I'd say add more tension so the spun fibers are being very gently pulled onto the bobbin from your hands. You might also want to check to see if there are little loops of fibers that may be getting hung up on the hooks. If you are spinning a really hairy fiber this can very easily.


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

Balling up on the bobbin sounds like your bobbin is rotating in the opposite direction than what you first started spinning it. I will sometimes have this h appen to me when I'm plying with my double drive. Doesn't happen with my single drive scotch tension.

I forget, what type of wheel do you have? If you do have a double drive and this is what is happening, pull out the balled up yarn through the oriface and manually unwind the bobbin for a while to see which way the yarn is winding on, then manually wind on the yarn in that direction and see if you can get the bobbin to wind on in that direction by treadling.

It's one of the nuances I discovered with my double drive if I stop plying on it in the middle of a bobbin then pick it back up later.

Just make sure you put that wheel in the truck when you come up here for the Homesteading Weekend


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## Forerunner (Mar 23, 2007)

MullersLaneFarm said:


> Balling up on the bobbin sounds like your bobbin is rotating in the opposite direction than what you first started spinning it. I will sometimes have this h appen to me when I'm plying with my double drive. Doesn't happen with my single drive scotch tension.
> 
> I forget, what type of wheel do you have? If you do have a double drive and this is what is happening, pull out the balled up yarn through the oriface and manually unwind the bobbin for a while to see which way the yarn is winding on, then manually wind on the yarn in that direction and see if you can get the bobbin to wind on in that direction by treadling.
> 
> ...


It's an Ashford.....I don't remember which model.

I will definitely bring it with. What fun.


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

Does Ashford Kiwi sound right? Or is it a Joy?

http://www.ashford.co.nz/spinning/spinning-frameset.htm

Do you have it set up as a single drive with bobbin tension (scotch) or a double drive (one drive band going around drive wheel twice, around the bobbin once and the whorl once).


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## Forerunner (Mar 23, 2007)

MullersLaneFarm said:


> Does Ashford Kiwi sound right? Or is it a Joy?


I believe it is a Kiwi. 




> http://www.ashford.co.nz/spinning/spinning-frameset.htm
> 
> Do you have it set up as a single drive with bobbin tension (scotch) or a double drive (one drive band going around drive wheel twice, around the bobbin once and the whorl once).


 :shocked:


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

Thank goodness June is only 2 months away. We'll have you spinning like a pro before you leave here.


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## Forerunner (Mar 23, 2007)

Just don't make me dizzy.


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