I know there are other spinners who are curious about them. They are hard to come by. Spinners who own them don’t like to let them go. I decided to write a business plan, find a female machinist/fabricator, and investigate the possibility of bringing the wheels back into production. A goal in this project is to follow the late Tom Wertenberger’s vintage-modern design, preserving this historic 1971 all-aluminum wheel. I don’t believe any of the four former producers of the wheel used the kind of modern fabrication and machining tools we have now. I’m learning fascinating things about CNC machining. This wheel is known for precision as well as versatility - it is great for art yarn as well as for teaching new spinners.

I have two social responsibility goals - one is to discover if there is an aluminum alloy made of recycled aluminum that could be used without sacrificing structural integrity. The other is to support women machinist/fabricators. It’s a male-dominated craft, but if you search Instagram, you’ll find women in several countries who own and operate successful workshops.