Flick Carding

These scratches are from a mini doffer flicking Romney hogget locks held over a scrap of leather.  (Don't know what flicking is?  You flick a lock of wool to prepare the wool for spinning into yarn.  You draw a comb or flick carder through one end of the lock while holding the other, then turn the lock around and draw the comb through the rest.  Since the tines of the flicker can be scratchy and you hold the lock of wool on your leg, a scrap of leather protects your pants from being shredded.  I don't have a flicker; I'm using a mini doffer tool instead.)

I'm not sure how I feel about flick carding yet as a way of preparing fiber.  It feels more comfortable than carding with hand cards and wastes less than combing in my experience.  Each short, crimpy lock goes from a tight squiggle to an airy mass.  However, drafting from a lock and joining it with the next is tricky.  I'm getting lumpy joins and an inconsistent gauge of singles overall.

I expect that if I were preparing longer locks, I could get a better handle on them and keep the strands aligned but I don't know.

Romney hogget lock at top left,
mini doffer tool at top right,
lock after flicking at bottom