Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Big Bobbins, My Gal's Got'em

Yesterday I had the chance to try out the bobbin capacity on my new spinning wheel. What? did I just write that? A new spinning wheel?? Yes, it's true. I found a used Suzie Pro at a very good price that came with 12 bobbins, a tensioned lazy kate, book and 1/2lb of fibre and I couldn't resist. The Suzie Pro is what is known as a "production wheel" in that it is meant for production spinning such as I hope to acheive for Wee Ball Yarns. Since we returned to NYC, I haven't had much time to really try her out but with the unexpected lull in our schedule enforced by Finnian's barfing on Monday, I had a chance to whip up the fibre that came with the wheel. And whip I did--this wheel is fast and smooth and low maintenance while spinning. And those bobbins! Check it out:



This 260 yards of two-plied yarn (I actually have no idea what the fibre content is, some kind of blend that includes little bits of silvery stuff). 260 yards! This is double the capacity of my Ashford Travellor, which is very exciting as one of my main frustrations with that wheel (in terms of making yarn for Wee Ball Yarns) has been the tiny amount that fits on the bobbins. But please do not mistake this frustration for anything like disenchantment with my Travellor. I love her dearly.

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