Drum Carders
If you like to prepare your own raw fleece or other fiber for spinning instead of buying prepared rovings and tops, you may want to think about investing in a drum carder. Drum carders allow you to card larger quantities of fiber more quickly than hand carders, and generally speaking, the preparation will end up being more even and thorough. Drum carders come in either electric/motorized or hand-cranked versions.
When looking at drum carders, you’ll want to consider both the types of fiber you like to work with and the quantity of fiber you’ll want to prepare at any one time. If you’ll often be carding large quantities of fiber, you’ll want to look for a drum carder with a wider frame and a larger hopper so that it can take in larger quantities of fiber at once. You may also want to consider buying an electric drum carder if you do a lot of carding.
If you will be preparing fine fibers, you’ll want to make sure that carding cloth has a large number of teeth per inch. 128 teeth per inch is about right for merino wool, cashmere, alpaca and other fine fibers. If you usually spin fibers that are only medium fine, you can get away with a carding cloth that has about 72 teeth per square inch. Keep in mind that you can use a carder with a large amount of teeth per inch for coarser fibers, but it is much more difficult to get the preparation you want for a fine fiber with a drum carder meant for spinning coarser fibers.
Any current auctions for drum carders on eBay will be displayed below. Click a picture or description to get more information or to place a bid.
 |
Strauch Petite P05 Belt Drive Drum Carder Without Brush US $356.00 End Date: Saturday Nov-22-2008 10:26:57 PST Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 |
Vintage Drum Carder Machine / Wool Carding US $102.50 (12 Bids) End Date: Saturday Nov-22-2008 19:03:40 PST Bid now | Add to watch list |
 |
Vintage Inwood Smith Australian Wool Drum Carder US $130.02 (12 Bids) End Date: Monday Nov-24-2008 2:05:48 PST Bid now | Add to watch list |
 |
Clemes & Clemes Drum Carder US $217.50 (9 Bids) End Date: Friday Nov-28-2008 13:44:30 PST Bid now | Add to watch list |
 |
ASHFORD DRUM CARDER, Free Shipping special! US $415.00 End Date: Friday Dec-05-2008 10:18:15 PST Buy it now | Add to watch list |
 |
Strauch Finest 405 Super Drum Carder Free Ship, Fibers US $674.00 End Date: Friday Dec-12-2008 11:04:02 PST Buy it now | Add to watch list |
When buying a drum carder, you’ll also want to consider what accessories the carder comes with. Some drum carders actually come with interchangeable drums and carding cloths, which will add substantially to the cost. Another helpful, but not necessary, feature is an integrated clamp for attaching the drum carder to a table or other surface. If your drum carder does not come with a clamp, you can probably find one at a hardware store that will serve the purpose.