As the drafts markedly preponderate over the doubling, so in exactly this proportion will the sliver be reduced in thickness. The flyer spinning frame is very similar to the drawing fiame, consisting of back rollers, carriers and front rollers, with the necessary spindle and flyer to put twist into the yarn and to wind it upon the bobbin.

From the two-spindle gill-box to the Splaniog.

spinning frame the spindle, bobbin and flyer combination is employed with the object just mentioned. From fig. 15 the action of this combination will be clearly understood. Drafting takes place as usual between the back and front rollers, the carriers conlrolhng the yarn between the two.

On emerging

from the front rollers the yarn usually passes through an eyelet, to centre it over the centre of the spindle, it then

takes a turn or two round the flyer leg, through the twizzle or eyelet on the flyer and on to the bobbin F. The flyer may be freely rotated by means of the whart J and through the spindle G upon the top of which it is screwed. The bobbin fits loosely over the spindle and rests upon the lifter plate I; this latter, being controlled by the lifter

mechanism,

slowly raises and lowers the bobbin during the " spin " past the fixed plane of delivery of the yarn, i.e. the eyelet of the revolving flyer.

Now, if for one

moment it be considered that the bobbm may not revolve on the spindle but may be Carding ot

medium

Bad short

wools for

worsted

yams.

the operation of carding. On first thought it might be imagined that carding would result in broken fibres and a poor yield of top. That this is not so is evident from the fact that there is a tendency to card wools from 7 to 10 in. long, this tendency being due to the relative cheapness of carding as compared with preparing If long wools were led directly on to a swift, no doubt serious breakage of fibre would occur, but it is customary to place before the first swift of a v/orsted card a scries of four opening rollers and dividers — with their accompanying " burring rollers "

— to open out

the wool gradually, so that when it eventually reaches the first swift it is so opened out that further opening out instead of breakage occurs. Some carders use a breast or small swift in place of those opening rollers —mostly on account of economy The swift is usually surI mounted with four workers and strippers and is very similar to the 1

woollen carder, save that the workers and doHer are larger, thereby effecting more of a combing action and working economically by reason of the greater wearing surface brought into play As botany wool is usually brought directly from the wash bowl to the feed sheet of the card, it is usual to clothe the first cylinders with galvanized wire clothing.

After the carding the wool is back-washed and gilled —on similar lines to English wool —and then is ready for combing The largest combers of botany wools, Messrs Isaac Holden & Co., employ the square-motion comb, in fact this comb is known in the trade as the Holden comb. Other combers, however, almost without exception employ the Noble comb with a fine " set over, " j.e, fine spinning of the comb circles Alter combing, the tops are "

finished " by being passed

Combiog

medium

and fine

wools.

Vk

Fig. 15. — Section of

Flyer Spindle.

C, Care the front rollers

of a drawing or spinning

frame, delivering the sliver

to a centring board D, containing an eye for each

sliver,

from which the

sliver passes to the flyer E

and finally to the bobbin

F, which rests on the

lifter-plate I and is traverse ti up and down by this

plate according to the

lengthof bobbin employed.

The flyer E is strewed on

to the spindle G which

is suitably held by the

sheath, bolster, &c., shown

at H, and in the footstep at

K. The spindle is turned

by a tape passing round

the wharl J and thence to

an ordinary tin-drum.

slid up and down by the lifter motion, then, if the front rollers deliver the necessary yarn, the flyer will wrap it in successive layers upon the bobbin— but no twist will be inserted. On the other hand, if the bobbin is perfectly free upon the spindle and the front rollers cease delivering yarn, then the flyer, by incans of the yarn, will pull the bobbin round at the same speed as it goes itself, and the yarn will be twisted but not wound upon the bobbin. By obtaining an action in between these two extremes both twisting and winding on to the bobbin is effected. The speed of the bobbin is suitably retarded by washers placed between it and the lifter plate, so that it just drags sufficiently to wind up the yarn " paid out " by the front rollers. The turns per inch are in proportion to the yarn delivered and the revolutions of the flyer. Thus if, while i in. of yarn is delivered, the flyer revolves twelve times the turns per inch will be approximately twelve. This in brief is the theory of the spindle, flyer and bobbin action.

Wools not more than 7 in. long are usually prepared for combing by Spindle Cone Drawing-Box.

through two finisher-boxes, the last of which " balls " the tops ready for marketing.

Short wools are drawn and spun on very similar lines to the longer wools, save that the boxes are more in number and are in some cases lighter in build. The boxes usually employed in a botany set are as follows: two double-head can gill-boxes, two Orawiag

two-spindle gill-boxes, a four-spindle drawing-box, a six*" spindle weigh-box.an eight-spindle drawing-box.twoeight*' ° °^

spindle finishing-boxes, two twenty-four-spindle second finishers, three thirty-two-spindle dandy reducers, ten thirty-two-spindle dandy rovers, with ten two-hundred-spindle cap spinners to follow. Thedoublingsasaruleareabout7,6,6,6,5,5,5,4,4,2andthe drafts 5. 6, 6, 7, 7, 7, 8, 8, Bat the respective boxes, an endeavour as a rule being made to obtain a roving of which 40 yds. =-2 drams, as this

is the most convenient size for being spun into fine botany count of yarn

Following the lead of the cotton trade endeavours have been made