[Louise Gaunt]

I am thinking if asking my OH for some wool combs for Christmas. I have an alpaca fleece I bought some time ago that needs preparation, and it am likely to get Zwarbles fleece from my nephew. What type of combs would be suitable, bearing in mind I am looking at a fairly limited budget? Thanks.

[Stellan Vert]

Hi Louise,

Do you know anyone locally that cards and spins wool? You may be able to get advice/help from them.

If you live near to Ludlow, Shropshire, I would happily show you how to use hand carder or a drum carder. Plus there is a carder manufacturer in Bridgnorth.

SV

[Fleecewife]

Err - SV, Louise wants combs not carders.


Combs can be very expensive (I know, I got mine from Canada and they cost a bomb).  Winghams does their own brand but I'm not sure where they fit on the budget map.
I prefer combs which have one fixed comb clamped to the table, plus a second hand held one.
The less expensive combs are both hand held, so presumably they need a different technique to use.
Have a look at some of the Youtube clips of people using wool combs to see which looks closest to what you want.

[Louise Gaunt]

Thanks both. I have had a look at the Wingham ones, the mini hand held may be the way I go, as I don't want to commit to huge expenditure in case I do t get in with combing..

[SallyintNorth]

Louise, you really must try a few types, they are all so very different.

I have wee Louet 2-row mini combs, and love them to bits.  You can't comb much fibre at a time, but they weigh nothing, are balanced perfectly for my hands so I can use them for hours without getting tired.  And I can spin directly from them too.  But some people really don't like them, find them not robust enough.

Next up in size is the Majacraft.  These can be used in the hand or with one clamped to a table, and are not too heavy but much more robust than the Louets.  But I don't like them, I find them unbalanced in my hands so I am having to work just to hold them flat.

Next is the Valkyrie range.  There are three called 'mini' combs but which are much much bigger than the Majacrafts.  'Fine' are for coarser fibres; 'Extra Fine' for anything that isn't extremely coarse and isn't incredibly fine and 'Superfine' for the very very finest fibres - bunny, merino, cormo, etc.  Each can have one row or two rows of tines, I think.  You can use them in the hand, and in my hands they feel beautifully balanced so that is less work than using the much smaller Majacrafts, but I would need to clamp one to the table to use them for any length of time.  Then they have 'Viking' combs, which are bigger again, nearly the size of full English combs.

I am not sure which of the Valkyries you would want for alpaca - Ravelry user Trencherwork wrote a comprehensive review of all the Valkyrie combs for a wide range of fibres, here

Valkyrie combs are imported, the importer is Donna, aka WidowTwankey on Ravelry.

I haven't seen FW's Forsyths, but I think they are probably similar size to the Valkyrie Vikings, or maybe a little bigger

Finally there are the full-size English Wool Combs.  Tremendous capability, make the most delicious slivers, but are big beasts and take rather a lot of arm-power to use.  I can't manage them at the mo, with a gammy shoulder.  The original make was Peter Teal, you can sometimes get these 2nd hand, or Winghams make new ones to Peter Teal's original design.

If you look at Winghams' Wool Combs page, you will see that they also make some 'mini combs', which can be used in the hand or clamped, and some 'hand combs'.  I haven't seen or used either of these.  Reading the dimensions, I'd say the hand combs are similar in overall size to the Louets but have much thicker tines, so would not be as good for other than fairly coarse fibres.  Confusingly they describe them as Viking combs, which name is used for the largest of the Valkyries! 

[Louise Gaunt]

Sally, you have encapsulated all my different views there ! I think I shall start with some hand held mink combs and see how I get on. I like the sound of the Louet 2 row minis as I have small hands and I'm not sure I could manaage full size English combs.

[Lesley Silvester]

Just followed the link to Winghams. They're not cheap are they? I think I'll be sticking to my drum carder.

[Stellan Vert]

Hi

Thank you Fleecewife, Until today, I had not come across combs only cards.

SV

[Fleecewife]

Hi

Thank you Fleecewife, Until today, I had not come across combs only cards.

SV

Combs are great for certain fleeces, and for worsted yarn, but many cost a bomb.  Mine came from Canada and I had a whole load of problems importing them.  Once I set my mind on something there's no changing it, so I had to sit it out.  I love the things now, although they do look like an instrument of torture 

I had gone for many years without even contemplating combs, so you're not the only one 

[Stellan Vert]

Hi Fleecewife

Had a look on youtube, I see what you mean,
Thank you

"Maybe" I need a set of combs

SV

[Fleecewife]

Hi Fleecewife

Had a look on youtube, I see what you mean,
Thank you

"Maybe" I need a set of combs

SV

This section of TAS is very bad for the bank balance 

[FiB]

I can't get over how dear they are! Has anyone found any good substitutes (I can't help thinking some of them look like a row of nails banged through a plank :-).  I am quite  pleased with my teeny cat brush as a flick carder...... I was wondering about a strong metal Afro comb?

[SallyintNorth]

A dog comb is a perfectly usable alternative - I've a very experienced friend uses little else, and she gets through quite a bit of fleece.  You can do less at a time, is all, and it doesn't work for the very short fibres (like Castlemilk Moorit.)  But for fleece with a staple length of 4" plus, a dog comb works fine.

[SallyintNorth]

I can't help thinking some of them look like a row of nails banged through a plank :-).

Well, that's basically what they are, yes.  But nails of the right diameter, and smooth and strong, with a slight bend at the tips to allow the two-handed action, and set at the right distance apart to handle fibres of the appropriate thickness

The Peter Teal type aren't rounded tines, either, they are an elipse in cross-section, which allows them to slice through the fibres even more deftly than the rounded-tine type.

[Fleecewife]

A dog comb is a perfectly usable alternative - I've a very experienced friend uses little else, and she gets through quite a bit of fleece.  You can do less at a time, is all, and it doesn't work for the very short fibres (like Castlemilk Moorit.)  But for fleece with a staple length of 4" plus, a dog comb works fine.

Unless you have any tendency to RSI.  I wrecked my thumb joints using dog combs     This is the reason I like combs where one is clamped to a table, then the other comb can be wielded with two hands and no strain on the thumbs.