Although I love my wheel, it has its limitations. I have a hard time spinning a fine single on it – I can’t get the high-speed whorl to do its thing well.* I spun my two-ply sport weight ridiculously slowly to get enough twist to be thin, so it took a LONG time. In addition, my wheel is a traditional, so it’s not the easiest thing to transport to spinning meetings or out and about.

I bought this little spindle to address both of those issues. Well, it doesn’t really address being able to spin a fine yarn quickly, but at least I can spin a fine yarn. I’m hoping to get a three-ply sock yarn going. It will only take me a few years to get a pair of socks, I’m sure.

What’s cool about the Turkish spindle is that the middle rod slips out, and then the crossbars slide out leaving you with a nice neat little ball.

This particular beauty is made from Big Leaf Maple by Ed Jenkins of Jenkins Woodworking. He writes the weight of each spindle on the bottom! If I were to buy this one over again, I’d probably go for a slightly heavier spindle.

I’m very happy with this little spindle. I bought it back in June, and have taken to spindling for a few minutes here and there while I’m waiting for things to happen. Now that the weather is finally cooling down, I might even take my fiber outside.

I’m ashamed to say that my wheel has been neglected for the last month or two. It’s time to sit back down to that for a while! But, its nice to know that now I have a portable way to spin, too. How about you? Do you spindle at all?

* Anyone out there have advice on getting an Ashford Traditional to spin well on the high speed whorl?