Yarn Ball Winder

If you are a serious knitter who buys hand-spun yarn or other artisan yarn in hanks or skeins, you will probably want to invest in some sort of ball winder, with or without a swift.  The ball winder has a spindle or shaft around which the yarn is wrapped, while the swift supports the yarn in such a way that it can easily be fed on to the winder.  Winders can be manual or electric, made from plastic or wood.

A popular, inexpensive model is the Lacis Yarn Ball Winder, a hand operated yarn winder which makes perfect pull thread balls up to 4 ounces without requiring tubes or cones. Its yarn feeder provides an even flow and prevents tangling.  Positive reviews point out that it is inexpensive (under $30), portable and handles all weights of yarn with equal ease.  Less positive reviews complain that it is a small capacity winder, only up to 4oz per ball, that the clamp is too small for some tables, and that you need to maintain an even tension of the yarn feed in order to get a firm ball.

Very similar to the Lacis, is the Royal Wool Ball Winder.  It is a little more expensive, but seems to be correspondingly more robust.   The Royal is designed in such a way that the yarn basically cannot get caught in the mechanism.  It also clamps to a table and works best with a swift.

Nancy’s Knit Knacks makes a somewhat pricey heavy duty wooden Ball Winder, mainly designed for the yarn industry, but great at home, too.  It is very sturdy with a large (high torque) wooden handle.  The handle is comfortable to use and very powerful, allowing it to wind fast, while making no noise.  It can wind balls up to 1 Lb. or more.

If your arm tires easily using a hand winder, the Boye Electric Yarn Ball Winder may be the answer.  It quickly and easily winds hanks of yarn into centre-pull skeins. It can wind thin yarns together to create different colours and thicknesses. Some users complain that the yarn is wound to tightly, while others say the opposite, that the ball is too loosely wound. Probably the answer to the problem lies in adjusting the turn-rate. Other users have complained that the smooth plastic causes the yarn to slide off the end of the tube but the majority of users find that the speed and ease of an electric winder outweigh other inconveniences.

There is not a large variety of Ball Winders to choose from.  Factors that influence which one is right for you include price, volume of wool you need to wind, and space you have available.  The big decision is whether or not to abandon Grandmother’s back-of-the-chair method and invest in some technology to keep your knitting projects spinning along.