A question for Flemish string makers

[dhaverstick]

I recently bought a couple spools of B55 and started making a string with them. The first thing I noticed was that the material on one of the spools had a much larger diameter than the other. After twisting up my first loop, the bundle of the smaller diameter strands came up about 3" shorter than the other bundle. I went ahead and finished the string but was not satisfied with the way it twisted up because the two bundles would not twist up evenly. I tried pairing up the larger diameter B55 with another spool of B55 that I have but the result was the same.

My question is, "What do you do in the situation I described?" Do you not worry about it? Do you try to pair spools of like diameter? Do you make the bundle of lesser diameter strands longer than the other bundle to make things even out?

I've made a lot of strings and rarely do the bundles come out exactly the same length after twisting up the first loop. But this case was extreme and the end result was a string that did not feel smooth when it was twisted up and ready to use.

Thanks in advance!

Darren

[McDave]

Yes, there is a fairly easy fix for this, which is to blend the two bundles together before you start twisting the string.  For example, with a string made of two bundles of 7 strands each, take the longest four strands from one bundle and combine those with the shortest three strands from the other bundle.  And then combine the ones you didn't use into the second bundle.  The resulting string looks a little odd, but all the bundles come out equal and it shoots great.  While it looks odd to me, I’ve actually had people compliment me on it.

[Orion]

Yes.  The different color strings have different diameters.  I usually just do the thicker string bundle with one less strand.  For example, on a 14 strand string, I go with 7 of the skinner string and 6 of the thicker.  Obviously, it's no longer a 14 strand string, it's 13, but that's enough.

i don't pad the loops with B-50, but I do on low stretch strings.  In that case, I put most of the padding in the thinner bundle.  For example, if I would normally add two strands to each bundle, I might add one to one bundle and three to the other.

[dhaverstick]

Thank you, gentlemen, for the two different solutions to my problem! I especially like the bundle blending idea. Way to think out of the box!

Darren

[Pat B]

Are you sure you didn't have one B50 and one B55. The B55 is slightly smaller than the B50.

[dhaverstick]

Are you sure you didn't have one B50 and one B55. The B55 is slightly smaller than the B50.

Yeah, I'm sure, Pat. They were both BCY B55 spools.

Darren

[Pat B]

If Chad Weaver(LBR) is still a BYC rep you might contact him about this. Chad is a member here on TG.

[DGW]

Made a lot of strings with B50 all different colors and never noticed a size difference .
I have not used B55, but getting low on B50 so might have to try B55.

[JR Chambers]

Is B55 considered low stretch?

[Orion]

No, B55 is not low stretch. It doesn't stretch quite as much as B50, but still much more than a low stretch string like D-97.

[dhaverstick]

Dave, I tried your bundle blending technique last night and it worked like a charm! I ended up with a smoothly twisted string that has a cool look to it with the colors mixed in the bundles. Thanks for your help!

Darren

[JR Chambers]

Thanks buys

[DGW]

Any one know if they started making B50 again?

[ROSCO]

Any one know if they started making B50 again?

Yes

BROWNELL & COMPANY

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