Mechanics of the 3 Types of Spinning Wheels

I recently dove down a rabbit hole of handspinning wheels when I was sitting at my Ashford Kiwi wheel thinking to myself, why does the yarn on my bobbin look all wrong? Now keep in mind that this was my first spinning wheel, the wheel I spun on for years, but as of recently I mainly use it as the wheel I ply yarn on. Well there was a reason the yarn looked different. Not because it was wrong but as I found out thru research simply because of the type of wheel it is.

I could not believe how much I didn't know about my wheels and want to share a little of what I learned with you here. Let's start with the basics, there are 3 main types of spinning wheel when it comes to mechanics.

Pictured is an Ashford Traditional spinning wheel. You can see there is one band from the drive wheel to the flyer whorl. The Scotch Tension is the metal coil and wire to the right.

1. Single Drive, Flyer lead or Scotch Tension wheels

This is the most commonly used type of wheel. The Scotch tension wheel, as it is often called, allows for the most adjustments making it able to spin a lot of different  yarn weights.

• It has a single band that connects the drive wheel to the flyer.
• The flyer rotates with the wheel when you treadle.
• The bobbin is then "drug along for the ride" when the flyer rotates.
• You can adjust the tension or uptake of this wheel with the scotch tension (cable attached to the metal coil).
  

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Pictured is a Kromski Minstrel spinning wheel. You can see the band loops from the drive wheel over the bobbin and the whorl of the flyer.

2. Double Drive wheels

This type of wheel has the ability to spin the finest yarns. This is also the most complex of the wheel types.

• There is a band that loops and attaches from the drive wheel around the bobbin and around the whorl of your flyer. This is actually one long band but doubled!
  
• Both the flyer and bobbin rotate as you treadle.
  
• You can adjust the uptake of this wheel by adjusting the whorl sizes that are attached to the flyer.
  
• The bobbin also has different whorl sizes cut into it that can be used to adjust uptake.
  
• Most double drive wheels can be adjusted to work as a single drive wheel so lots of versatility.

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Pictured is a Louet S75 spinning wheel. You can see the band attaches from the drive wheel to the bobbin. In the lower portion of the photo you can see the band over the flyer shaft to adjusting tension.

3. Single Drive, Bobbin lead wheels

This type of wheel is very simple but also the most difficult to make adjustments to.

• There is one band that connects the drive wheel to the bobbin.
  
• The bobbin turns with the wheel when you treadle.
  
• The flyer is then "drug along for the ride" when the bobbin rotates.
• You can adjust the uptake a bit by adding tension to the flyer shaft
  

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I have garnered a lot of my information from a very comprehensive book called The Big Book of Handspinning by Alden Amos. This book is densely filled with all the information you may ever need to know about the craft.

So there you have it. A brief introduction into different spinning wheel mechanics! Please keep in mind that these 3 types come in all different shapes, sizes and styles. If you aren't sure what kind of wheel you have, sit down and take a look at how many band loops you have and where they are c onnected? This should help you answer the question. I also walk step by step thru the wheels in Episode 22 of Being Ewethful  on YouTube. I will be going more in depth with each wheel over the coming months so please stay tuned for more videos that I hope will help you on your handspinning journey.

What kind of wheel(s) do you have? What is your favorite and/or what wheel do you long to own one day? I would love to hear from you!