Long Wool Fiber Study, part 5

Shetland is a double coated fiber. In post Long Wool Fiber Study, part 4 I wrote about using combs to process Shetland locks into roving. I really liked spinning hand combed roving.

Here are my results.

Shetland - Undercoat/Down - washed - 5/8 oz. - spun 7/17/12

• locks combed on 5 pitch combs
• used large diz to pull roving
• spun back draft - woolen (drafting fingers open and close as twist move up fiber)
• thin roving wanted to spin fine
• some lanolin remains makes fibers soft and smooth feeling
• very easy to do long draw with my fiber holding hand
• lovely to spin top
• 2-ply - 105 yards - 22 wpi (wraps per inch) - size 2 fine

Top preparation made it easy to have real control of my long draw to make a smooth consistent and fine yarn. The final yarn is very very lofty and soft. I wish you could feel it.

Shetland - Outer coat - washed - 5/8 oz. - spun 7/23/12

• locks combed on 5 pitch combs
• outer coat pulled off combs by hand - aligned parallel
• top preparation is easy to draft
• fiber has a wiry feel
• definitely stiffer and less lofty than undercoat
• spun forward draft - worsted (drafting fingers smooth fibers down as twist moves up fiber)
• finished yarn is smooth and crisp
• 2-ply - 78 yards - 22 wpi (wraps per inch) - size 2 fine

The outer coat was interesting to spin in contrast to the undercoat. The fiber was very wiry and the resulting yarn is not as smooth as a worsted yarn should be, but it is more tightly spun than the undercoat. I would not make anything that would be worn next to the skin.

I Andean plied both skeins. Andean plying is a way of wrapping singles around your hand to make a two end bracelet for plying. I like using this method as it plies every inch of singles. It’s also great for sampling. Although 200+ yards of singles is a bit more than a sample. I did get tied to the wheel until the plying was finished. I like Andean plying better than using a wound ball with 2 ends as I always seem to get the two ends tangled somehow.

Long Wool Fiber Study, part 4

Processing yarn is not hard. There is fleece to wash, locks to separate and comb or card, fiber to spin into yarn, garments to make. Processing fiber is not hard.

However, it does require time, a bit of space, special equipment and desire.

I spent last Saturday morning with my gals in the Saturday Spinners guild. We shared our current Long Wool Fiber Study results with lots of show and tell. Then we watched a new video by Robin Russo, Combing Fiber (released by Interweave Press June 1st). 

Our program for the day was on how-to use combs and hackles. The organizing member showed samples and had collected enough hand combs, production combs and various hackles for all of us to practice on. There was a plethora of equipment to use.

Specifically, we were using the tools to process Shetland wool that we got from Elemental Affects.

Shetland is a double coated fiber. The fleece has a long outer coat and a shorter downy inner coat. As I worked with the combs I was amazed at how easy it was to distinguish the two types of fiber.

I got to use English production combs made by John A. Meck. They are 5 pitch (5 rows of teeth). One comb was mounted on the counter and I handled the second comb. They were very big, heavy and crazy dangerous.

After the first few tangly passes of the handheld comb, my technique quickly improved. It was easy to see the fibers straightening and detangling. I felt like I was brushing long hair very carefully. I gently pulled off the outer coat to exposed the downy undercoat.

This is my first time using a diz. A diz is essentially a large curved button with various sized holes in the center. It is used to pull fiber off the combs. What you see in the picture is the undercoat on the comb ready to pull off.

You hold the diz concave side facing the combed fiber. Then you pull the fiber through the hole to make roving. The fiber came out smoothly and easily. Also, the fibers were distinctly parallel. Just like top (combed roving) I’ve purchased. It was very cool.

Here are the various piles of the Shetland wool I ended up with. I started out with 2 oz. of washed fleece. It took me two hours to process that amount. The weight measurements shown below are after combing out the whole 2 oz. 

From the top right going clockwise: 

• Washed fleece
• waste fiber - full of noils & vegetable matter (VM) - 3/4 oz. or 21g
• downy undercoat - top roving arranged in birdnests - 5/8 oz. or 18g
• outer coat - parallel fibers pile - 5/8 oz. or 18g

It was suggested that the long outer coat is good for lace. I will endeavor to spin a fine singles for a finished 2-ply yarn. I want to spin the undercoat semi-worsted but with a soft twist to maintain its loftiness.