Because spinning singles on a book charkha uses the same drafting techniques as any wheel driven spindle, it is easy to master. Plying is a bit more difficult. The reasons for this are: 1) all the parts are located very close together; 2) the singles have a high twist and will easily ply back on themselves; and 3) the 45 degree angle off the tip of the spindle must be maintained for plying
while the spinner is working in a fairly confined area as dictated by the small size of the wheel.
One of the biggest problems with plying on a book charkha is that the built in kate is not tensioned. This means that the yarn being plied will feed off the spindles too rapidly and will ply back on itself and with the second strand of singles going into the ply. So the first problem to resolve is how to tension the spindles in the kate. On the Bosworth book charkhas, it is possible to rig a rubber band to tension the spindles - put the rubber band under the spindles, lock the spindles down and tension it by putting the other end of the rubber band around the piece of wood used to lock the case open. But if the kate lacks a locking device to hold the spindles in place, the rubber band will pull them up and out of the kate. This can be overcome by putting small bits of rubberized shelf liner or small snips of a rubber band down into the slots of the kate. This holds the spindles in place and gives just enough friction to keep the spindles from rotating freely. Also, the shelf liner can be left in place when the kate is only being used for spindle storage.
Once the kate has been tensioned, set the drive band for plying. Instructions for this are (here)
Insert an empty spindle into the mousetrap and either tie the singles to a leader or spit stick them to the spindle. The charkha is now ready for plying.
Pull the singles from the kate so they feed straight off from the cop. Spiral the leader out to the tip of the spindle so it’s at a 45 degree angle and turn the drive wheel clockwise. Note that this will give S twist because of the change in the position of the drive band. S twist could also be achieved by leaving the drive band in the Z position and turning the drive wheel counterclockwise.
Note that it is only possible to draw a short length of fibers from the spindles at a time to maintain both the straight feed from the cops and the 45 degree angle for adding plying twist.
Stop frequently to wind the plied yarn onto the spindle using the same motion as for spinning singles.
To wind a skein, assemble the skein winder that came with your wheel and mount it following the instructions for your wheel. Usually, the skein winder will mount either on or in place of, the accelerating wheel. Place the spindle in the kate and thread the loose end of the yarn through the yarn guild. Tie this end loosely to one arm of the skein winder and turn the skein winder by using the upright part of the arms.
In the above photo, the skein winder is positioned on the accelerating wheel and the yarn can be seen going from the spindle in the kate through the yarn guide and onto the winder.
