Sunday 20 September 2015

Wonderful Friends

Look how lucky I am!  Diane (Lace Lovin' Librarian) has very generously shared her large bobbin shuttles with me.  I started with the idea (see this post) of designing one myself… and Diane sprung into action and actually contacted shuttle makers and got some shuttles made.

I just recently received the second one and I wanted to take time to tat with both and see how they felt before I wrote a blogpost.

So here they are (as previously featured on Diane's blog).  The first shuttle is made by Banyek.  I really like the "stripy wood" effect and the shuttle has an attractive shape - although its roundness means it has a tendency to roll around when you put it down.  It is nicely made and unwinds well.  Although large, the shape around the hook still makes for easy joins as the thread slides nicely down the shuttle.  The main complaint would be its size and weight!  You'll see below in the comparison photo.




The second one I received is made by Elite Creation.  I really like it.  The finish of the wood is lovely… smooth like satin.  It is also substantially smaller than the Banyek shuttle whilst still accommodating the larger bobbin.  I could get used to working with the Banyek shuttle but the Elite Creation one feels nicer in my hand and easier to handle while tatting.  The tapered nose is great for making joins.



Here are the two shuttles side by side with an Aero so you can compare shape and size.  In fact, as you can see, there surprisingly isn't that much difference in length between all of them (I should have lined them up better in the photo!).  The Elite Creation and Aero are just about the same length and the Banyek is just a tiny bit longer.




Here is where the main difference is between the shuttles:  it's the thickness.  Of course, the thickness is not only affected by the fact that the two shuttles are made of wood but also because they contain the larger, thicker bobbins.  And to be fair to Banyek, his bobbin is 1mm thicker and a little bit wider too.


An Aero weighs a minuscule 2gms (yes, plastic is very light!)… the Elite shuttle weighs 11gms and the Banyek, 19 gms.  I think when the shuttle is heavy, you get too much tension on the thread (especially when making chains).  So for me the perfect wood-bobbin shuttle would be the lightest possible, taking the materials into consideration of course, as I'm well aware you can't make a wood shuttle as light as a plastic one.

The other reason why weight is so important to me is that if you use the "slip & slide" method of tatting, the lighter the shuttle, the better because you want the thread to slide smoothly and easily between your fingers and the shuttle as you go back and forth.  If the shuttle is light, that movement is more easily accomplished.

I am delighted to add both these shuttles to my collection - Thank you so much Diane!  But to work with, I definitely prefer the Elite Creation shuttle.  Sandi has managed to make it really not considerably bigger than an Aero whilst providing the capacity of a larger bobbin that I was looking for.

Best wishes,
Frivole

13 comments:

  1. Isn't it wonderful how your blog post has led to this collaboration and sharing between tatters and shuttle makers? - to me, it seems just perfect.

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  2. Tatters make excellent friends :-D

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  3. Isn't she sweet? I was hoping for La Cossette bog shuttles though....

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    1. Thanks Michelle… I've not abandoned the idea altogether, it's just on the back burner at the moment. :-)

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  4. They are beautiful and I too love your idea and it's nice to have shuttles that are big to handle the work you have in front of you. If you are like me you got to be in the shuttle making mood to but the ideas are there waiting for you, when you are ready!

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  5. It sounds as though your tatting shuttle wishes have come true. How wonderful!

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  6. Great report. I have an Elite Creation but never got used to the thickness. Perhaps it is time to try again. Thank you again.

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    1. Hi Bernice, I must admit for regular tatting, I will always prefer my Aeros: the size is great and really comfortable to work with and they are the lightest! But for special projects with thicker thread, I think the Elite with its large capacity will be a great addition to my collection. In this case, it has to be thicker to accommodate the bigger bobbin and I think Sandi has done a great job of not making it too big.

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  7. I'm glad that you like your shuttles! The fun was in tracking them down. I hope others who are interested in using shuttles with larger bobbins will contact these fabulous shuttle makers. Ask and you shall receive! ;-)

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  8. Those are lovely! One question, though: I went to the Elite Creations shop page, and see that they have many shuttles, both wood and acrylic. Are they all the same in terms of bobbin capacity, or is there a particular model you recommend? I normally tat with finer threads, but have been working with size 10 for a few projects lately, and could use the bigger bobbins.

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  9. This has been an amazing saga to watch unfold! I can't get over how quickly Diane acquired several of these shuttles, and blogged about them, even though she prefers 'post' shuttles! I somehow missed seeing the very large one that she already had in her fabulous shuttle collection, and didn't know such a thing existed!

    How wonderful for her to send these to you, and we certainly appreciate your excellent reviews of them - not to mention your own efforts in making one! You seemed to be on the right track!

    Of course, the shuttle makers are to be commended, as bobbin shuttles are quite difficult to create, whether in wood or plastic. The Aero/England is a marvel of perfect engineering, and the invention of the metal bobbins in the first place was, to me, a giant step forward for tatting. The internet has made this kind of collaboration possible, and I marvel at the speed at which this has transpired!

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