I've had a lot of requests recently for information on building your own spinning wheel. So I thought that I'd collect everything that I could find together and put it here. I'd better say at the start that I've made spindles and...
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I've had a lot of requests recently for information on building your own spinning wheel. So I thought that I'd collect everything that I could find together and put it here. I'd better say at the start that I've made spindles and a charkha but don't have either the skill, or the woodworking and metal working equipment to try to build a 'proper' wheel myself. Anyway - do you really want a spinning wheel- I spun my first jumper from a donated Jacob fleece, using a dog comb and a hand spindle - total outlay less than 5 pounds... and I could done it for even less if I'd made the spindle. (Take some dowelling, a rubber grommet and one or two of those CDs that people keep sending you in your junk mail! try here for more info http://www.spinning.net/hints/equipment/cd.html) Beware though, spindles just as are addictive as any other sort of spinning. I collect them, even if I don't find time to use them much. There's usually one sitting on my desk at work, to remind me of the spinning waiting to be finished at home! Spindlitis, Teri Pittman's marvellous site is where you should to go for Spindles - how could I ever think to compete :-) Back at wheels - The first thing that I'd recommend, is to be a spinner or have a spinner handy to test drive the wheel, and make recommendations - also look at and try out every style of wheel that you can find. Here's a list of useful sources of info - gleaned from rec.crafts.textiles.yarn (among others). Note some of these contacts are from the bibliography of older books, and may no longer be up to date. * Antique and Woodcrafts, Box 32, Kapushasing, Ontario, Canada (A treadle type reproduction. Eight pages of plans) * A COLLECTION of workshop plans by David Bryant . Plans for 12 different spinning wheels from a charkha to a great wheel, via shetland, french, scandinavian, and Conneticut wheels. Also loom plans and various other woodwork projects. * Creativecraft Plans, at 1-800-576-9174 has several different plans. * Creative Woodcraft Plans Plans for large and small saxony wheels. * Council for Small Industries in Rural Areas 141 Castle Street, Salisbury, Wilts., SP1 3TP, England (Two Saxony types) * Darryl's Woodworking Plans for a saxony wheel * Earthwares, 103 N. Pleasant St. Amherst, Mass. 01002 (Plans for a Saxony wheel and for a Lazy Kate) * Foxfire 2, Eliot Wigginton. ISBN 0-385-02267-0 Instructions, plans and photographs for reel, spool rack, counterbalance loom, and shuttles and a great wheel.(Available from Amazon) * Earthguild says they have wheel plans, but no details given. * Fine Woodworking on Spindle Turning" ISBN#0918804736 that retails for $9.95, This is a reprint of a collection of articles that appeared in the magazine Fine Woodworking and the one for the spinning wheel is from Summer 1978. The plan is for a Shaker style (?) Saxony, single treadle, double drive band wheel.You will need a lathe and a band saw. * Foot Treadle Loom Weaving, Edward Worst. ISBN 0-88930-011-9 OOP. Plans for looms and weaving sundries. * Furniture Designs, Inc.,1827 Elmdale Avenue Glenview, Illinois 60025 800-657-7692 Large and small saxony wheel plans. * Gordon's Naturals, PO Box 506, Roseburg, OR 97470 Their catalogue, apparently lists several sets of spinning wheel plans, and a book, "Anyone Can Build a Spinning Wheel", by W.C. West. * Unicorn Books, 1338 Ross Street, Petaluma CA 94954-6502 1 800 289-9276 9-5 M-F Pacific Time lists (a year or so ago.)
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