The Good and Basic Wool Combs

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Raising sheep looks like so much fun. Jeremy Clarkson raised some in his Amazon Prime series, Clarkson's Farm. I've also been sniped by Sandi Brock and her YouTube series. Yes, raising sheep also looks like a lot of work. What with lambs arriving at odd hours, checking ewes for medical problems, and keeping track of medical problems, there would be plenty to keep my hands full. 

However! Instead of enthusiastically starting a sheep farm, I can get a little closer to fiber production through wool and wool processing. 

Wool combs, in case you're wondering, are generally used to process raw fleece. By pulling the fleece through the combs, you can rid fleece of twigs, knots, and muck that would interfere with the spinning process. The vikings used wool combs fairly similar to the ones Joseph designed for the shop. Wool combs can also be combined with a hackle.

After spending many hours putting together a set of wool combs, Joseph set out to design his own. In this YouTube video, he talks about his prototyping and design process, and includes some tips for putting the set of wool combs together. 

After all of that prototyping, we finally have a reliable set available via the Good and Basic Etsy Shop. Well, actually, we have two sets, but one of them does not include nails. (The nail-less set ships for less.)

If you're out to buy your own nails, keep in mind that they need to be 3.5 inch 16d, bright finish nails. There's an affiliate link in the Etsy listing, but you should also be able to find a set at your local hardware store. Galvanized or vinyl nails get caught on the PLA and will give you trouble. 

The Good and Basic Wool Combs come in blue, red, and bronze. We did, at one point, have gold available, but the filament snapped under too much pressure. Which, if you think about it, is a problem if you're trying to assemble a DIY kit with a hammer. The blue, red, and bronze filaments have held up under stress tests. When you're assembling your own combs, gently tap the nails into place using a hammer. Joseph also secures his with 2-part epoxy, just to be safe. 

Happy combing!