Customer Reviews

The Alden Amos Big Book of Handspinning: Being A Compendium of Information, Advice, and Opinions On the Noble Art & Craft

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book should be read with a critical eye. Some of the information in it is flat-out wrong. One example (not the only one by far, but a potentially disastrous one) is that Mr. Amos recommends winding off a drop spindle by hanging it from the ceiling and then routing the yarn down to a chair and through the top rail of the back, so that the yarn pulls off the end of the spindle. Please do not do this. Every time the yarn comes off the spindle tip, a twist will be added or removed, depending on how you've wound the yarn. This is the same principle that a Great Wheel works on. On some yarns, the extra or reduced twist won't matter. On others, it can either unspin it until it drifts apart, or twist it until it starts kinking. At the very least, winding off the end is inviting tangles and frustration. Drop spindles are best wound off from the side.

Besides incorrect information, there are also a number of omissions in the book. My personal favorite (again, not the only example by far) is when Mr. Amos is discussing umbrella swifts. He states that plans to build one are included later in the book. The book has no plans for any yarn swift, umbrella or otherwise.

The book is poorly laid out. Information on equipment is spread between 3 or 4 places at least. Similar with discussion of twist and related properties. On the other hand, the break between chapter 4 (Determining Character of Yarn) and chapter 5 (Accurate Measurements) seems completely arbitrary. Mr. Amos also has an annoying, and perhaps unethical, habit of plugging his own products -- without noting that they are his. He also often goes out of his way to avoid mentioning a competitor by name (i.e. referring to "a certain nearly ubiquitous New Zealand manufacturer" instead of using the name Ashford), UNLESS he is criticizing said competitor. Then he'll drop the competitor's name with no trouble whatsoever. I was also less than impressed when he spent the better part of two pages complaining about specific previous customers.

This is not to say that the book has no good information. It is worth reading if a spinner has enough experience or has read enough other material to be able to judge the value of each bit of information. It has the best explanation of a long draw I've seen yet, and his idea of storage bobbins is so brilliant and yet so obvious that I'm shocked it isn't standard practice. I don't think the book is worth owning, however, because of the omissions and errors. And, of course, nothing in the book should be taken at face value. See if your library has a copy, and judge for yourself before you buy a copy.

I was expecting a useful compendium of information to help me to become a better spinner and to be able to better evaluate the differences and limitations of various spinning wheels, however, Mr Amos seems to be more intent on patting himself on the back for his own achievements (footnotes abound) and gets so technical with the rest of his info such that only production spinners would find it useful. For example, in one paragraph he writes off all castle wheels as useless (his reason is that they are not useful for production). He also disses double treadle styles as being something of a morphodite set-up (as mentioned by another reviewer).

He allows a "generous" two pages each explaining bobbin-lead vs flyer-lead and scotch tension as compared to about thirty pages extolling the virtues of the double drive system (can you guess which one he prefers). He then devotes another two chapters to the mathematics of whorls, ratios, grist and twist in relation to, of course, the double drive system (without a lick of info regarding how to keep consistency using a single drive system).

All in all, though the book is full of worthy information, if and only if you have a double-drive, saxony-style wheel, the presentation was annoying and biased. I really feel that it didn't impart the knowledge that I was expecting at all. I'm glad I checked this book out from the Library, as I will NOT be purchasing it.

Whilst the writing style can be slightly overwhelming at times this book is one of those "Must Haves" that everyone will wish they had purchased once it goes out of print.

I'm still only 1/5th of the way through (it has 500 pages!!!), but I've already come across much information that I wish I had known before and have applied it to my spinning technique with great success.

One of the most interesting sections of the book contains schematics for making your own tools (niddy noddy, nostepinne, drop spindle, among others). Now I just have to find myself a woodworker to make them for me!

You can use this book several different ways. You can look up information about specific subjects -- or read it through like a really informative journel. Personally, I would encourage you to read it through and then come back to reread specific sections. This book is rather like spending a really good visit with Alden (with Stephanie adding commentary in the background).

He talks about everything to do with spinning (along with a few other topics like forging and making beer). He will explain how to make a good worsted yarn, how to sort and scour your wool, and how to figure out the grist of your yarn. If this isn't clear to you -- then you need this book.

Alden Amos calls himself opinionated, and he is. If you want to know all about spinning on a traditional (preferably Ashford) wheel, this book will help. If you are interested in alternative techniques and/or are not using a standard wheel, you will not get much help. I am always wary of authors who know the one true way to do anything.

I couldn't resist the pun, sorry. I'm new to spinning, but I'm already in love with it, and so my curiousity about the subject is endless. When I picked this book up at a friend's house, the heft of it told me I might have found a book that could answer all of my questions.

Truly, it's an amazing work. There's some VERY technical stuff in here, that I'm not sure I'll ever use. If I ever need to calculate the ypp of a plied yarn made from handspun singles, then I know what page to turn to.

This amount of technical information can overwhelm people. And so can Alden Amos's conversational tone throughout the book. He's a man of strong opinions and he doesn't hesitate to share them. But, given the title of the book, the manner in which he only expresses his ideas on various topics should be expected. It's his book after all.

This book will serve as a resource, and as a humorous source of inspiration, for me for many years to come, I am sure. I have yet to find such a complete (and readable) treatise on spinning anywhere else.

This is a wonderful book. Could have been called The Complete Book Of Spinning, had the namers a pedantic turn of phrase.

This is a big book, that can be read from front to back, or sampled, as one prefers. While very readable, this book has technical sections that will not appeal to all spinners, but they exist to help those who need this information. So buy the book with the understanding that while it's almost all here, you don't have to embrace any more of it than you want to.

I bought this book for any information that will help me in building wheels. There are a few chapters on the wheels themselves that will really help a builder, or spinner, understand the why's of different designs. It was surprising to come across a reference to Super Quench, a cutting edge quench for mild steel, but it does belong here. It was also surprising to see little information on band drives, even if the author doesn't prefer them.

Amos has obviously offended some readers with comments on double peddle wheels. Yet he later mentions that with enough drag the Scotch tension can get hard to push. Hello?

If there are a few phrases in the whole book in which Amos let's go a few of his preferences, all the better. This book is an important link with the craft that will do a lot to keep spinning alive. For all that it's fun to read.

I am a fiber arts enthusiast. I knit and dye a lot, however my spinning wheel has seen less use than I'd like due to the lack of a local teacher. Enter Alden Amos. His book provides more information than I could possibly use for my handspinning purposes. Starting with the major fibers used for spinning today, he takes you through every step of every process associated with handspinning, and then into the details of spinning itself. It's a great guide to have on the shelf for all the questions that invariably arise as you progress further into the craft.

If you're looking for the perfect spinning title to read from cover to cover, this is not it. The sheer amount of information makes a quick read overwhelming. It is rather a technical guide to all things relating to handspinning, meant to provide you with all the details you want on the subject of your choice. The illustrations are nicely drawn - don't expect the gorgeous, full color photos found in publications like Spin Off. It's not trendy, but rather a classic that will help you out with any and all "technical" questions you may have.

The bottom line: if you're seeking an indispensable and nearly inexhaustible resource on handspinning, search no further. This volume offers enough information to keep you informed and satisfied for years to come.

I read this book last week at my friend's house, and had to order one for myself. Any handspinning book that contains a recipe for a quench to harden steel is a book I had to have. No matter what I looked for, it was there: how to make cotton punis, how to make a coin tahkli, why to use a top-whorl spindle, spinning silk, and how to estimate the quantity of flax you need to grow to yield one skein of spun flax. In fact, way, way, too much information, for example, the calculations for the ratio of twist to gage in spun fiber. And there are marginal jokes, a few recipes, and how to temper steel. Oh, and quite a bit about handspinning, from someone who has made it his life's work.

Too wordy, only line illustrations and a flamboyant writing style ,which makes the text hard to get through, gives this book a 2 star rating. Page 16 seems to indiacate that the writer has very little confidence in your being interested enough to continue and has a paragraph entitled "Why You May Want To Read Further". The book does answer some questions about handspinning in general but, in areas where more detailed info should have been provided, there's nothing. For instance, I wanted to find out how long I should steam a skein of yarn to set the twist. Pages 199 to 201 tell me nothing (except that steaming is best for wool).
If you've done some spinning and want a book that interesting in its approach then buy this book. If you are new to spinning or want good reference books for your shelf then you'll be much better off with "Hands on Spinning", "The Ashford Book of Spinning" and a subscription to "Spin Off" Magazine.