Comments about doubled-band-drive (DDB) wheels raise my interest. Most DDB spinners adjust one of the loops of the drive band so that there is minimal slip (ideally, no slip) on the drive wheel and on the large flyer whorl. The force to draw the yarn onto the bobbin is then adjusted by controlling the slippage of the other loop on the small whorl of the bobbin. This arrangement is described as DDB bobbin-lead, since the bobbin whorl turns faster than the flyer whorl. A common problem with this arrangement is unwanted---and unpredictable---slippage of the band on the drive wheel. Messy and self-defeating measures such as application of belt dressing or rosin on the drive band are often employed. But they diminish the spinner's ability to make delicate adjustments to draw-on force.
What if no slippage were allowed, at all? With no slippage, the above arrangement would still be bobbin-lead, but the the yarn would be drawn onto the bobbin at a fixed rate, dependent wholly on the ratio of the sizes of the two whorls. With no slippage, that rate---inches of draw-on per treadle---could not vary. That means that for every treadle cycle a fixed number of inches of yarn could be made---*and*---a fixed number of twists per inch would be imposed on that yarn---immutably! The beauty of this no-slip arrangement is that the spinner could select whorls to produce a yarn with a desired number of twists per inch, and then the spinner could treadle at a speed appropriate to her/his ability to feed fiber at the desired grist (density) for the yarn and be assured of unvarying twists per inch. Thus, as the spinner grew more adept, she/he could treadle faster, yet would be producing uniform yarn. The draw-on rate would vary directly with the treadling speed. I called Allen Fannin once and asked him if anyone ever spun that way (i.e., with no slippage). His answer: "That's how I spin all the time!" Of course, Allen was an exceptional spinner...exceptional in many other ways, too. I devised a compromise arrangement. I use a single nonslip, stretchable band for the flyer whorl and a soft cotton band for the bobbin whorl. I can then adjust the draw-on force easily and reliably, without my having to worry about slippage on the drive wheel. Skinny Sketti String used to be easily available but is now hard to find. The company that made SSS now markets the same material as Stretch Magic through bead stores. Get the fattest they offer, if you'd like to try my system. This system is wonderfully flexible for all but the fastest spinners, who seem to prefer scotch tension (flyer lead) and are willing to re-accelerate the bobbin after a pause to build up twist in a "long draw" style. Such a pause is completely or nearly unnecessary in DDB spinning. If I were a very fast spinner, I could test the two methods, but I must leave that to the superfast ones like Holly. By the way, did you notice the smiley face that followed her "loathe" statement. She's not all bad.<g> In fact, her writings about spinning, fiber preparation for spinning, and weaving at her website are some of the most useful for all levels I've seen. And they are a pleasure to read. - Maury
