Welcome to another string making tutorial. Today we'll be making a
two color endless-loop string using BCY 8125G red and black. The process for
making the string is identical to making a single color string. If you're unsure
have a look at my other string making tutorial. I'll be pointing out things to
watch out for in making a two-color string. I'll be starting with the red string first.
Anchor the loose end and begin looping the string around the jig's arms. This string will
be an 18 strand string. To get an even candy cane pattern, I need to have equal
amounts of each color. In this case I'm going to do five full loops of red string.
Once that is done, tie off the other end and cut it off with a knife. Now we
move on to the second color. The secret behind making a two-color string is that
you're laying out two separate strings and serving them together.
Repeat what you did with the first color, and in this case I'm using four full loops of black.
As you can see now, I have five layers of red and four layers of black to make my
18 strand string. Throughout the rest of the process it's essential to avoid
tangling these colors together.
Turn the arm around. Again, make sure that you don't tangle the two colors together.
Although the string usually doesn't twist past the post, to make sure the
colors remain separated I use a string tool to separate them. If you don't have
one of these you can make do with a pencil or other short object. Slide it
between the two colors and you may want to bisect the string across the corner.
This will ensure that the string does not twist past this point.
I'll be using 0.019 Halo serving for the end loops. Begin the serving as normal,
laying the thread across the string and looping the jig over it a few times.
Slide the jig down to where the loop will begin, which I've already measured. Some
people have suggested overlapping the thread more times to ensure that the end does not slip.
As you probably know by now, "spin to win". Keep on going until you reach where the
loop will end. Note how the string is beginning to twist, forming the pattern
that you're aiming for. We will be removing these twists later, but for now it serves as
a nice preview of things to come.
Rotate the yolk and then cut the anchor threads.
As I said earlier, it's important to keep the colors separated so the string comes
out with a clean pattern. To do this I run the string tool down the length of
the string to push existing twists down to the end.
I do the same for the other side.
The purpose of this is too hide the twists under the serving so that the rest of
the string looks tidy. Once the twists are in place, serve the remainder of the loop.
As usual, I prefer serving towards the end.
Others have noted a preference for making two separate servings instead of
continuing the same one which is also an effective method.
As you can now see, with one loop complete, the strands are still separated.
Now serve the second loop, remembering that this is the smaller of the two loops.
As with the other end, I'm going to run the string tool down the length of
string to push all the twists to the end.
As you probably know by now, complete the end loop and "spin to win".
Since we've successfully covered the twist, the string is still a nice two-tone color.
Now for the center serving. Normally I would do this on my bow, but I've
pre-measured exactly what I need,
so I'm going to do it on the jig.
Of course by now you probably know that I use the faster method.
This is what the string looks like now.
The colors are separate, but after twisting a few times you have that nice two-tone
look. Give the string a coat of wax to give it shape and you're done.
This is NUSensei. I hope you've enjoyed this tutorial, and I'll see you next time.