To make a basic drop spindle, I use
- a 7 mm (approx. 1/4 inch) closed eye screw that is nickel plated
- a toy wooden wheel that is 2.5 x 0.75 inches with a 3/8 inch hole, for the whorl
- a hardwood dowel that is 3/8" x 12", for the shaft
Sometimes I have to widen the hole in the wheel a little, which I do using a small piece of coarse sandpaper fitted over a pencil. I want the whorl and shaft to fit so tightly that they do not move. I use a pencil to mark the position on the shaft where the whorl is to rest. I set the whorl on a wooden block with a hole drilled in the center, and I drive the shaft into the wheel using a hammer. Sometimes the base of the shaft flares a bit from the blows of the hammer, and I roll the shaft on the block to try to smooth it down. I screw the eye screw into the shaft with my fingers, cover it with a dishrag to protect the metal, and then open the eye with a pair of needle nose pliers so that it forms a hook. The dowel needs to be smooth so that yarn does not catch on it.
The spindles look like the ones in this old photo, though now I usually set the wheel smooth side up instead:
These spindles are a bit chunky. I would rather make smaller, lighter spindles because I like to spin with a drop spindle that weighs half an ounce or less, but have never found the parts to make them with the correct proportions. On the plus side, the spindles I make are sturdy. They are suitable for using with wool.
I make them because when I bought my first drop spindle, it was an inexpensive kit from a museum gift shop and the whorl slipped terribly. I'd rather other people not go through that.
In 2014 I made some drop spindles to give away to beginners who wanted to learn to spin yarn, and I painted the whorls with woad paint. This made them rather distinctive looking.
To make woad paint, add the natural dye woad in powdered form to paint. It comes out a slate blue. This is the painted whorl photo from my original post about that batch of spindles.
I can't remember how many of these woad paint spindles I made. It might have been three. Right away I gave away all but one while out doing public demonstrations of handspinning. I kept the last one around for a long time because woad paint is cool. But I finally gave away that one to a teenager who was keen to learn how to spin yarn when I was demo'ing at a festival in 2025. I gave it away because the only other beginner drop spindles I'd made and had on hand were ones I had had laser engraved with an image of a sheep and I was even more loath to give those away.
Anyway, someone, not the aforementioned teenager, brought one of the woad paint spindles to our local handspinners guild meeting this month to get a refresher on how to use it. It was a nice surprise.
I really should make some more beginner drop spindles. For the last five years I've been having trouble sourcing the toy wheels for the whorls. For some reason stores have been selling toy wheels that are actually undersized, smaller than the stated dimensions, and they just won't do.
If you are reading this because you want to learn to spin yarn yourself, I have a page about it with some advice.
