Stanwood "Needlecraft Yarn/Fiber/Wool/String" Ball Winder, Metal, White, Large, 10 oz

I just received this Standwood Yarn Winder and I'm very very happy with it. It was easy to use, only one piece to assemble and it wound a worsted weight 100gr/3.5 oz skein into a "cake" of yarn into about 2 minutes. The gears and mechanisms are very smooth. (Yes, the technical term is a "cake" of yarn. Fine by me - I love a good cake!) I had bought another yarn winder, a VTECH (ASIN: B00DKW9F6A) which was cheaper - $20.00 - but the arm (the "distal" wire arm) that is supposed to feed the yarn to the bobbin would not stay up. The yarn kept getting caught in the gears. I returned it. (FYI - returning things shipped by Amazon is very easy. You just repack it, print out the return info and put it with the box. Amazon arranges for UPS to pick it up. UPS puts the actual return label on the package. And I received my refund almost immediately.) Before I bought this Standwood I watched a video on YOUTUBE which shows how to use it. After watching this I decided it was a well made machine worth the price - my total was $65.92 with tax. Here's the link to the video. I suggest you watch before you buy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8hWprCmJ_I&list=PLSiuNuWv7q4xEEaKACQm--KJZfVYrS5jc&index=75 PROS: The only assembly is having to lock on the "distal" arm. Easy. It's a well made sturdy machine. It does make large "cakes" of yarn (the VTECH I had bought first did not) and it does it quickly. On other winders the yarn winds directly from the feeder wire (the "distal" arm) onto the bobbin. But the Stanwood has another wire arm called the "proximal" arm which spins around the bobbin as you crank the machine. This keeps the yarn away from the gears. See the image above - the wire arm on the left is the "distal" arm and the one of the right is the "proximal" arm. CONS: The instructions that came with the winder could be better. The YOUTUBE video I listed above has better info. NOTE: Most yarn winders are made to be used with swifts. Swifts hold a hank of yarn and sit higher than the winder and so feed the yarn from above. The loop on the "distal" arm is made with this in mind. You can see from the picture above that the end of the loop points down. I wasn't using a swift but was winding a cake from a manufacturer skein (these always end up tangling which is why I purchased this winder). When the yarn being fed to the "distal" arm is below it the yarn can slip partly out of the loop. I initially held up the yarn to keep it in the "distal" loop. But the faster you go the better the yarn stays in the loop. SUGGESTION: The winder comes with a little piece of plastic that sits between the machine and the crank which stops it from moving during shipping. KEEP THIS. It's helpful to keep the crank in place when you are attaching the machine to the table.

I bought this for my wife, to help with storage of the massive collection of wool that she has accumulated. Well... She pretty much hasn't used this since it arrived, and I've been happily converting her healthy obsession into an organised mountain of cakes!! I don't buy cheap tools, and this certainly isn't the cheapest compared to other options on here, but like others have said, it's quality that just works. Making the cake twice is essential to ensure correct (relaxed) tension. The first cake made from a skein will naturally be too tight, the second cake made from the first cake will be larger and looser so no stretching. Be sure to keep the wool you want to wrap to the right of the winder, this will prevent the yarn guide slipping and loosening. I'd buy another in a heartbeat, if you're on the fence, just go for it, this will keep you busy for hours!!

Caked up yarn is probably the best thing ever for yarn crafts, it's easy to store and convenient to use. The stanwood does an amazing job of caking up yarn. It feels extremely well-built and cakes wound using it are practically perfect. It might be a lot pricier than other smaller yarn winders but the quality you get from this far exceed the competition at equivalent or lower price points.

If you are looking for an easy to use and quality product, look no further. Simple to assemble, stable and easy to attach to virtually any table top. Definitely worth the extra spend. The consistency and tightness of the resulting ball was ideal and with the gearing takes less effort to rewind a skein into a ball. Not a wrap out of place, no wierd loose spots, the resulting ball was a dream to work with. Originally purchased a cheaper model and you get what you pay for.. the mounting bracket was not versatile and kept coming uncliped in the middle of a job, the resulting ball was uneven and loose. After 3 skeins, never wanted to use it again. With my next project using over 20 skeins, so happy I invested in this new one and I am no longer dreading preping the wool.

I was hesitant to buy this as it is not cheap. However, when I received it, I instantly realised that it is worth every cent. It is very sturdy, and very easy to use. It flies through my unruly yarn balls and makes nice neat centre pull balls in no time. I also like to combine 2 or 3 strands of left over yarns to make colourful thick yarn balls. The Stanwood copes without any issues. I have another, smaller winder of a different brand which can only make small balls, I will be retiring it as this Stanwood is far superior! You will not regret buying one!