To answer the person who found the blog with this search, I will quote a true giant of the spinning world…
“It depends.”
What kind of yarn?
Worsted? Woolen?
Singles? 2-ply? 3-ply?
Lace? Bulky?
Lincoln? Merino?
As *really* rough estimates:
4oz is 114g, 100g is about standard for a pair of socks (in sock weight) so about… 400 yards of sock yarn.
I can get about 150ish yards of worsted weight 2-ply yarn in my standard semi-worsted method. (A hat, if you’re measuring that way).
Somewhere around 1200 yards of laceweight 2-ply is about standard…
But the real answer is, “It depends.”
Woolen will give you more, 3-ply will give you more, finer will give you more… your method affects a lot.
I’m pretty reliable with the 150 yds of worsted weight from 4oz measurement, but that really doesn’t mean you will be. Superwash I always get less yarn out of than non-superwash (I presume due to the combination of higher compaction and the weight of the coating).
EDIT:
In response to the question about why…
A singles yarn is a rod, it fills the entire space that makes the gauge of the yarn.
A 2-ply yarn has to be a little larger than the single to match up with the same gauge, but there’s also a lot of air space (on the sides). The two plies sit smoothly against eachother.
A 3-ply yarn has a central core of air, doesn’t have to be much larger than the singles yarn to make gauge, and still has some outside air.
So the short answer is: A 3-ply yarn has more air than a 2-ply yarn, and thus you get more yarn out. Same as woolen vs worsted prep.
And as to why 2-ply vs 3-ply? A 3-ply is rounder, thus more comfortable for walking on and showing a better stitch definition.
Laceweight, however, which rarely uses the stitch definition, but the negative space, is usually done in 2-ply.
Can you explain how 3-ply will give you more yardage? I stay confused about when 3-ply or 2-ply is better.
I just found your blog and have really enjoyed it. I too am a scientist (though I finished my PhD from UTexas last year) and am now doing a postdoc at the University of Minnesota. I’m not sure I could bring my spinning to work (but I’ve always got knitting in my bag) but I do enjoy your pics of rovings and FOs on your lab bench- looks just like mine!
Keep it up- and get some sleep for crying out loud- how do you get all that stuff done?
I can’t really remember what worsted weight yarn is, it’s been a loooooooong month, but I think I got 200 yards of worsted last time I tried it. So yeah mileage varies.
Thank you so MUCH for an answer I can think about. I’ve just barely begun dreaming about spinning. I knit my socks and am just doing an afghan with lacy parts in it… more complicated than my socks, but great fun.
Thank you again for your user friendly answer.