Scotch Tension

Spinning wheels also have some sort of brake or tension mechanism for controlling the speed at which the yarn is drawn onto the bobbin. If you are a beginner spinner, and your wheel seems to be eating up your roving, before you have had a chance to draft it properly, you will want to slow your wheel down a bit. Most wheels only require very small adjustments to the brake.

Tighten the Brake

Move the Drive band back to the largest setting on the whorl. Treadle slowly and spin a few yards onto the bobbin. Turn the scotch tension or brake on your wheel 1/4 turn to the right (or in the direction that tightens the brake of your wheel).
Treadle again and spin a few yards. Do you notice that the yarn is being drawn onto the bobbin more quickly?
Tighten the tension again another 1/4 turn and treadle.
Repeat the above step, tightening the tension 1/4 turn each time, until the wheel is drawing the yarn too quickly for you to handle.

Loosen the Brake

Turn the brake 1/4 turn to the left, loosening the tension slightly. Again, treadle and spin a few yards. Repeat the above steps, loosening the tension 1/4 turn each time, until the bobbin is no longer drawing the yarn in.

You should now be able to adjust the tension of the brake to a comfortable spinning speed for you. As the bobbin fills, slight adjustments to the brake will be necessary to keep the wheel spinning at the correct speed.

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