Mastodawn

A request for dog owners and the canine-adjacent: do you have medium/long dog fur I can test fiber prep on?

I've been talking with Baruch of Bam Fiber Works, where I got my double-row extra-fine combs for working with Oni's long Tibetan Mastiff fur, and we're both interested in testing out single-row combs instead. I got the double-row combs to work, but there was more effort and waste than desired. Baruch made me an offer I couldn't refuse: if I purchased a set of single-row extra-fine combs, he'd toss in a set of single-row fine combs for free -- as long as I provided feedback on how they compared.

The problem: I don't have any more of Oni's fur left to test on until next spring!

Sure, I could go back and re-comb the finished top, but I would like to truly start fresh with un-prepared fur.

ALSO, while I'm at it, I'd like to try OTHER dog breeds and fur lengths. Baruch is interested in getting more information he can share with other customers curious about working with their own dogs' fur. This is just the kind of research project I love to do!

So, please share this post and/or contact me if you are interested in providing test samples.

More in 🧵 ...

#HandSpinning #FiberArts #Chiengora @fiberarts

Paws 2 Spindle Dec 5

Baruch has a great video on YouTube where he explains and compares the different tine widths and arrangements, and what each is best for. He prepares various fibers on each of the combs, describing how they behave during combing, and also comparing the results side by side. It's a great resource!

My goal is to do something similar, but for different dog fur samples.

🧵 ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcwQoX5t5tI

What Wool Combs Do I Need? - How to Choose the Right Combs For Your Fiber. Side-by-side Comparisons!

YouTube

Paws 2 Spindle Dec 5

So far, I've been working at the extremes of the spinnable canine range. I'd love to get more long fur, but I'm also interested in working with fur that falls in the middle of the range.

I started with our huskies' fur, which is ~2" (5cm) and too short for combs. It's even difficult to get to behave properly on a drum carder. So, I've been using cotton combs for my husky fur prep.

Oni's fur is 6-8" (15-20cm), nice and long with a touch of crimp. It's much slipperier than wool for spinning, and I was surprised to find it gripping in my combs as hard as it did.

I'd love to get my hands on other long fur like Great Pyrenees or Newfoundland, but also medium lengths. What staple length is too short for combing to be worthwhile?

Ping me if you want to share!

End 🧵 ...?

Paws 2 Spindle Dec 6

If you are the owner of this Great Pyrenees, I'd LOVE to get some fur to try spinning! It looks so long and soft.

DM me!

(Just be safe...)

https://tiggi.es/@damnbear/115663883576399746

Gremlins, Inc. (it/its) ♿ 🖕Dec 6

@Paws2Spindle I've unironically spun bear fur before (black bear though!) and while it was oh my god SO STINKY it was also pretty nice!

Paws 2 Spindle Dec 6

@gremlins That sounds like a fun project! How did you get access to the fur?

I have no idea what their coats are like. Are they double-coated, and if so, did you separate out the undercoat for spinning?

Gremlins, Inc. (it/its) ♿ 🖕Dec 6

@Paws2Spindle bears have a crapton of guard hairs but when one of my friends went hunting he saw a bunch of undercoat stuck to the trees where an itchy bear had been running around scratching itself, so he thought of me and scooped it all up mid-hunt!! it was really thoughtful 🥺

Paws 2 Spindle Dec 6

@gremlins That is an awesome friend to have! And a great way to get de-haired undercoat from a large predator! I'm jealous.

Do you post about your fur spinning? I'm curious to see this bear yarn and what you did with it!

@Paws2Spindle I've got some of that Berner fur. So far one and a half ziplock bags.

Paws 2 Spindle Dec 5

@Mehndi_tgr Sounds like a good start! But fur compresses well, so volume is a tough measure. Do you have a kitchen scale to get a weight measurement?

For reference, my recent blending experiment was 1.0 oz each fur & merino, which produced the 4 rolags seen here.

1 oz seems like a good minimum for testing the combing process, though it also depends on how much will end up discarded as waste in the process.

https://sunny.garden/@Paws2Spindle/115423913492141654

Mute Dog Brewing Dec 5

@Paws2Spindle @fiberarts I could probably convince my wife to collect the fur from our Malamute Suki over the course of a few months. Suki doesn't have the longest fur, it's definitely just medium length with the exception of her tail fur...

Paws 2 Spindle Dec 5

@Mutedog Thanks! Mal fur would be interesting to compare to our huskies' even if it proves too short for the combs.

Tail fur is often not very good for yarn because it's more stiff guard hairs than undercoat -- at least for our huskies. But if Suki has some nice undercoat in the tail too, and it's distinctly longer, that might be worth collecting in a small separate bag for comparison.

Feel free to ping me with your harvest progress! 😁

Mute Dog Brewing Dec 5

@Paws2Spindle oh, derp, yeah it's pretty much all guard hairs in the tail. Anne said she'll start putting the fur she brushes out of Suki aside in a bag for you

Paws 2 Spindle Dec 5

@Mutedog Awesome! Thanks to you both.

I'd say that 1-2 ounces is plenty for testing, especially if I go the next step and spin up the results. Fortunately, undercoat tends to pack down really well. (We call our huskies' fur "infinitely compressible.")

For reference, here's the results of two different 2.0 oz samples, spun and plied. The larger skeins are 1.7 oz each.

Note that this is AFTER fiber prep, so doesn't include waste/discards, which can be up to 50% when combing.

https://sunny.garden/@Paws2Spindle/114939607524237403

Mute Dog Brewing Dec 5

@Paws2Spindle yeah, I've got a vacuum sealer so I'm sure I can probably compress the fur down quite a lot and then send it in a padded envelope or something.

Paws 2 Spindle Dec 5

@Mutedog A vacuum sealer would be great! But I bet you could probably just stuff and squish a gallon ziplock bag down to a small enough size to ship in a similar envelope.

Gremlins, Inc. (it/its) ♿ 🖕Dec 6

@Paws2Spindle if no one has offered sheltie or collie yet I have bags and bags of both that I could ship to you if you'd like? the sheltie was blue merle and the collie was sable

Gremlins, Inc. (it/its) ♿ 🖕Dec 6

@Paws2Spindle well to be clear I'm keeping MOST of my stash as it's my favorite fiber lmao but I'd ship a couple ounces!

Paws 2 Spindle Dec 6

@gremlins I'd be happy to give a try at both! I'd only need a couple ounces of each, but I'd be happy to take a bit more if you're willing.

What's the staple length on each? And what breed is the collie (border, rough, etc.)?

And are you in Europe? Shipping to me in the US could get pricey, even without tariffs to worry about!

The friendly Samoyed across the street occasionally lets me brush him (and needs it, as his fur mats very easily, especially behind his ears). He shouldn't be generating much more loose fur until spring, though, and I haven't stashed any (though I did finger-spin & ply a wee bit of it as an experiment). Last spring the birds nabbed a fair bit of what I brushed off of him.

If you don't have a better source for Samoyed come spring, ping me & I'll see what I can collect.

Paws 2 Spindle Dec 9

@kelkyag Thanks! I don't have any other sources yet, but I would like to try Samoyed out! People seem to particularly like yarn made from it, both for texture and warmth.

Not sure if it would be long enough for combing, but I can try prepping it various ways. Do you remember how long a typical strand is (staple length)?