Antique spinning wheel in need of TLC...

[roguecrafter]

…from me, of course. *g* OMG I HAVE A SPINNING WHEEL.

Oh goodness, it has wood worms, or had wood worms at some point. But we figured out how to treat them (permethrin apparently works, and is easily obtainable).

I have no idea if she (because this wheel is a she, obviously) even still works, but she’s gorgeous and cleaned up really nicely. And and and she’s obviously been used, because there are bits of fluff in the bobbin.

If she doesn’t work, she’s going to sit decoratively on the porch because Certain People have always wanted a decorative spinning wheel. I, however, want a working spinning wheel and have Grand Plans for DIY fix-it-ness.

I have also never spun on a spinning wheel, with the reasoning that if I didn’t spin on a spinning wheel then I wouldn’t want one and rush out and impulsively get one. You can see how well that plan worked…ahem.
If anyone knows what this particular maker’s mark means, I’d be really grateful figuring it out because I’d love to know the provenance of my wheel.

She is obviously hand-crafted because so many things are hand-shaped and not machine made. I think something I read said that means early 1800s ish? IDEK.

What is this piece I don’t know?

I had to replace this leather piece on the treadle because the leather was brittle and came off. Good thing I randomly have deerskin in my house?

SPINNING WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEL

PS Sorry for the lack of good description for the photos, I don't know the names of many of the parts and I'm very squeeful right now, so most of my descriptions at the moment would be "the wooden thing with the metal thing and eeeeeeeeeeeee"

Comments

[alee_grrl]

Ooooo, that is very pretty!

[roguecrafter]

Thank you!

PS Love your icon :D

[squirelawrence]

Hmmm. . .well, hard to tell from the pictures, but it certainly doesn't look like it's functional now - treadle is connected to the drive wheel, but not in a way that allows it to actually be treadled (i.e., treadle is up off the ground at rest, if depressed will pull down on the drive shaft, causing wheel to spin).

Whether it can be made to work again is harder to tell, and I'm not an expert on spinning wheels or restoration - I can spin and do have a number of spinning wheels, but mostly the castle type. Yours looks like a Saxony or possibly Norwegian type. Here's a link to the Woolery page that has a pretty good summary to the different types of wheels. http://www.woolery.com/store/pc/Selecting-a-Wheel-c21.htm

There's tons and tons of info out there on old spinning wheels. There are also a number of groups on Ravelry dedicated to spinning and to specific types of wheels, including one for a guy named Carson Cooper who makes reproductions of old spinning wheels.

Should you decide to try and get it restored, great, if not, it is just lovely. Congrats!

[roguecrafter]

If I spin the wheel first to get it moving, it gets the treadle off the groudn and then it will start going. So yay!

Now to get the rest of it working ;) Which will be...a fun summer/fall project?

Thanks for the linkage!

[neotoma]

I'm not sure what that random piece you indicated is, though it might be part of a tensioner, given how close it is to the mother-of-all.

Your mother-of-all (the maidens, flyer, bobbin, etc, taken as a whole) is sitting crooked on the bench. Can you adjust it so it is perpendicular to the length of the bench?

Do you have a drive band for this wheel? I'm not sure from your photos, but I think you have a double drive wheel.

Good work on attaching the treadle back to the footman. Can you get the wheel to rotate by treadling? You might have to get your wheel started with your hand, and use your foot when you've got some momentum built up.

[roguecrafter]

Yes, mother-of-all can be adjusted.

It does not have a drive band at the moment...any tips on making/acquiring one?

The treadle will, um, tread! Yes, I can make the wheel go, and I had some fun practicing yesterday. *grins gleefully*

[ghoti]

It almost looks like TSW.

[roguecrafter]

I know, right? But the S is backwards...mysterious!

[st_aurafina]

So exciting! I know nothing about spinning wheels but all the detail is gorgeous and fascinating to me. I hope she's up and running for you soon.

[roguecrafter]

Thank you! :D

[fyreharper]

I have nothing useful to add, just eeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

[roguecrafter]

Eeeee back!