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APRIL // MAY 2019 • IDAHO SENIOR INDEPENDENT SPOTLIGHTS PAGE 15

He wrote the 1978 Crosscut crosscut sawyer,” Halligan said. “He can
Saw Manual for the Forest Service. really do a great job on saws for us.”
Since Warren’s passing, another If you’re interested in trail maintenance
guide, Saws That Sing: A Guide and might want to learn how to use a crosscut
to Using Crosscut Saws was pub- saw this summer, check out the Idaho Trails
lished by the USFS Technical Association website where all their trips are
and Development Program and listed.
co-authored by David E. Michael And while we cut our yearly stove wood
and Brian Vachowski. supply with a chain saw, it’s hard to beat
But finding an actual person the quiet efficiency—and history—of a
who can make those saws sing is traditional crosscut saw in the backcountry
a challenge. of the West. ISI
“John Starling in
Randall, Wash., is a
great saw filer and
A four- cutter, one-raker blade is the preferred workhorse of trail clearing. metallurgist,” said
PHOTO BY HOLLY ENDERSBY. Halligan. “He can
file blades and also
“When I carry a chain saw, I also have to repair broken rakers with welding
take along five gallons of fuel, two gallons of techniques he’s developed. The
bar oil, an extra bar and chains, and all the welding temperature has to be
safety equipment required. Basically, it’s a just right, or the rakers will snap
full mule load. With a crosscut I don’t have off under pressure.”
fuel, oil, safety chaps, ear protections, etc., When Starling is too busy
so the load is easy to carry in a backpack. to help, Halligan said another
We don’t need nearly as much stock support excellent filer is Art McCory of
using crosscuts.” Springfield, Ore.
Filing and repairing crosscut saws are “Art’s a steelhead guide now,
skills few people today have. The guru of but he was a world champion A traditional one- or two-man bucking saw for small logs only.
crosscut saws, their use, and maintenance PHOTO BY HOLLY ENDERSBY.
was Warren Miller of the USFS.

Fibers First for Idaho Fiber Growers

One of the many things Karen loves
BY KATHLEEN MULROY about working with fiber is there’s
always something new to learn.
Idaho small farmers who raise alpacas, llamas, yaks, or sheep “Even the same breed of animal can
for their fiber need to have the combed or shaved hair, fur, or wool have different qualities of hair, fur, or
processed. Where can they go to have the processing done quickly, wool. So often, just when you think
efficiently, and to high standards? you’ve figured out how to work with
A growing number of them are using the services of Fibers First, a particular fiber, something changes,
Inc., in Post Falls—north Idaho’s only fiber processing plant. and you have to figure it out all over
In operation for the past six years, Fiber First washes about 500 again,” she said. “I love fiber so much
pounds of fiber each month at the company’s main Post Falls plant that sometimes it’s hard to let the Roving fed into the spinner, to create
yarn. PHOTO BY KATHLEEN MULROY.
and its Harrison, Idaho, plant. processed fiber go back to the owner,
During the washing process, the raw fiber is inspected, then washed because I want to spin it myself or knit a sweater out of it!”
using biodegradable soaps, to remove dirt and lanolin. At this point, Many of Fiber First’s regulars are local fiber growers who sell at
the fiber can be processed and made ready for hand spinners, or be farmers’ markets, craft fairs, and yarn stores. When asked about the
turned into yarn at the plant. most unusual type of fiber the plant has processed so far, Karen laughs
In addition to having their fiber washed, Fibers First’s customers and says it has to be donkey hair.
can choose a variety of other services. These include picking, carding, This, she says, definitely isn’t something they will ever do again. ISI
having rovings made, plying, yarn-making, and skeining. In the
picking process, washed fiber is laid out on the intake tray of the If you’re interested in a Fibers First plant tour, contact Karen at (208) 773-8384. The
picking machine and is then pulled through a large, revolving wheel company’s website address is fibersfirst.weebly.com. [email protected]@
with hooks. gmail.com
These hooks help to separate the locks, open up the fiber, and allow
much of the debris to fall out. At this stage—when the material looks REACH THIS AUDIENCE.
something like a cloud—the fiber is blown into a picker room where
it is sprayed with conditioner (a 10:1 ratio of water and water soluble, ADVERTISE IN THIS NEWSPAPER.
anti-static oil). The fiber is then gathered up and taken to the carding
machine, where the fiber is separated and straightened. 77.3 million people
To create rovings (a roving is a long, narrow bundle of fiber pro- born from 1946-1964;
duced during the process of making spun yarn), the fiber is processed they turn age 65 together...
through a pin drafting machine, which creates a consistently sized
roving. Plying occurs when two or more strands of yarn are twisted • One every 7 seconds
and put together to create a strong, balanced yarn. The company can • 10,900 per day
also blend different types of fiber when creating yarn. • For the next 11 years
Fibers First is managed by fiber enthusiast Karen Goodson and
her husband, Lowell. It is a corporation with 12 owners, most of them 173,750 people in two states read these newspapers
friends and family members. Karen, who has been spinning yarn for REACH THIS AUDIENCE
20 years, is the current president of the Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, Log [email protected] OR [email protected]
Cabin Spinners. She’s raised Romney sheep, llamas, Angora goats,
and Angora rabbits, so she has a deep, hands-on understanding of
many types of fiber.