Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Haldane Orkney.

I'll post a couple of pictures later but...is anyone looking for a Haldane Orkney spinning wheel? No, it's not mine, I'm selling it on behalf of my local spinning group, as a fund raiser. It's a standard upright castle wheel, double drive, two ratios, three bobbins, orifice hook and a lazy kate that can either be used attached to the wheel or freestanding. It's practically brand new, as in it's been assembled but not finished in any way, so would need stained or varnished or waxed or even painted. The manufacturers oiling instruction stockers are still on it, that's how little it's been used. Near new condition too...there's one tiny dirt mark on it, plus half a dozen very small water spots and some faint sticky tape marks. It came with a leader attached and about three feet of spun singles, and I've done a few yards on it just to make sure it spins well, and it's entirely possible that this is all that it's ever spun. So think shop soiled new, rather than second hand.

Haldane wheels were made very close to here, just over in Fife. They stopped production in the late nineties but their wheels were famous for their quality, materials and good workmanship. The Orkney makes the very similar Ashford Traveller look like it was built out of matchwood, tbh. They were made to last for generations.

Anyhooo, it's going on Ebay this weekend. But if any of my friends reading here is interested please email me and we could possibly deal direct. As I said, we're selling it to raise some cash for the spinning group funds so it's not going to be dirt cheap..we'd be looking for at least £150 for it, plus postage. (Or collection direct.) But belive me it's worth it at that price. It's a fabulous wheel and given that Haldanes haven't been made for ten or more years now, how often do you get the chance of one in almost brand new condition?

5 comments:

Shan said...

I would certainly buy it, but I believe the post to Canada would be prohibitively expensive, not to mention I believe our dollar is at half of the pound at the moment.

Darn!

Juno said...

What Shan said.

zippiknits...sometimes said...

Hope that it grabs a great price for the society. It's a beautiful wheel. I live on West Coast USA and we sit on a bad $ right now, so ..what shan said, too.

KathyR said...

If only I didn't live in New Zealand! Sounds like a real bargain to me.

artistberg said...

I just purchased a brand new Haldane Orkney, and can't await to use it after it has been stained and varnished. It was a steal at $175.00. I'm thrilled!