how to spin yarn

Plying from the Pollywog Lazy Kate

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The Spinolution Pollywog comes with a built in lazy kate which is a great money and space saving feature.  The lazy kate is located on the top of the spinning wheel. First you will take the three metal pegs from the slot in the top where they are stored and then place them in the holes across the top of the wheel.  You can now use these pegs to place your bobbins when they are not in use or to ply from when you are done spinning your singles.  

Tips for plying from the top

  • Place Bobbins with the plastic white ring pointing down for better spinning 

  • Place the bobbins with the two singles on the left two rods bringing the yarn behind the right peg

  • Keep singles pulled out to the right while plying to avoid the drive band and flyer pegs. 

  • Keep a smooth treading speed and motion. 

  • These tips are great for all of our SpinOlution Wheels that have a tip lazy kate.

Which ratio should I start on when I am learning how to spin?

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If you’re a beginning spinner all of the whorl options that come with your Spinolution Spinning wheel may be both exciting and intimidating.  The whorl on your spinning wheel can enable you to easily adjust the number of rotations of the flyer head per spin of the drive wheel. The larger the whorl, the fewer times the flyer head will rotate per spin of the drive wheel.  The smaller the whorl the more times the flyer head will rotate each time you treadle the drive wheel.  

We always recommend starting on the middle whorl setting. 

For troubleshooting if you are spinning and find that your yarn is getting too twisty and not wanting to feed onto your bobbin then you should go to a larger whorl and slow down your treadling.  If you are finding that your fiber is not holding together or breaking then you need to go down to a smaller size.  By moving to a larger size and slowing down your feet you will be reducing the number of rotations that the flyer head is making on the fiber therefore it will have less built up twist.  By moving to a smaller ratio you will be speeding up the rotations of the flyer head so you will be getting more twist in the fiber which acts as the glue that turns the fiber into yarn.  

In addition to the whorl you may also want to adjust the tension if you are getting yarn that is overly twisted or not being drawn onto the bobbin.  If you have adjusted the whorl and are on one that feels comfortable for you and the yarn you are trying to create and you’re having either of the aforementioned problems then the tension block could be the issue.

We always recommend starting with the tension block loose if you are finding that the fiber is not being drawn on the bobbin as strongly as you would like then you would want to gradually increase the tension.  On the other hand if your yarn is getting pulled in faster than you would like that would be a sign to decrease the tension.  

Most of our wheels have between 5-10 speeds, however our Queen and King Bee Wheels have 15 and 12 speeds.  You can learn more about this in our users guide.  

With some practice and experimenting you will soon find that your Spinolution wheel has all of the options you need to fine tune your spinning. Follow these tips for finding your perfect setting for your favorite type of yarn. If you ever need help feel free to contact your favorite dealer.

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