| Drive wheel diameter, what's the big
deal? Why do I want a 24" drive wheel and not an 18"? First, wheel diameter does
translate to ease of spinning. The larger your drive wheel, the more energy it takes to
get it moving, but once it is moving it is easier to keep it moving. A larger drive wheel
also gives you more ratios thus higher speed options. The ratio is figured by dividing the
wheel diameter by the whorl diameter. Why do you want higher speed options? Because the
higher speed, say 20:1 like on the Kromski Symphony, gives you the ability to spin finer
yarns, without having to treadle fast. At the 10:1 bobbin whorl ratio you can spin heavy
or medium weight yarns, but you have the option of switching to 20:1 to spin the fine yarn
you may need for a project. That doesn't mean that you can't spin a fine yarn on the
16" drive wheel Kromski Mazurka, whose top speed is 12:1, you just have to treadle
fast. The drawback with the bigger wheel is space. Big wheels take up big space. They also
aren't as transportable. This is where a castle wheel, such as the Kromski Minstrel and
Mazurka, or the Louet wheels enjoy an advantage. They take little space, are easily
transportable, and are excellent spinning wheels. Orifice. The orifice is the place the yarn enters the flyer. It
then travels around hooks or hook on the flyer and is wound onto the bobbin. There are two
types of orifice, the standard round orifice and the delta orifice. With the standard orifice, because it is round, you
can spin from any direction within ninety degrees of the orifice. The delta orifice is
most effective when you are spinning straight out from it. As you get to the side it
becomes less effective. A plus for the delta orifice is a threading hook, which can become
lost or misplaced, isn't needed.
There seems to be some controversy with regards to
which side the flyer should be on in relation to the drive wheel. On the left for people
who spin with their left hand and on the right for people who spin with their right hand.
With the standard round orifice it doesn't matter because you can spin in any direction. I
spin with my left hand in a long draw and have spun on both, so called, right and left
handed wheels, and have not had a problem with either one. In fact, spinning across your
body may be ergonomically better than spinning off to the side (I stress the
"may").
Have any questions or comments about what we've
written here? Click
here to contact us. |
