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This is a badge bit (BB) that is part of the PEP curriculum.  Completing this BB is part of getting the straw badge in Textiles.

In this project, you will make a simple drop spindle.  

 

spindle graphic from https://iamcountryside.com

Additional Information and Resources:



 -  Making and Using Your First Spindle (using a toy wheel)
 -  How to Make a Drop Spindle (using a CD or DVD)
 -  Search YouTube for HowTo Videos
 -  General Information on Spindles
 -  The Science of a Drop Spindle
 -  The Turkish Spindle is a more advanced option!

To complete this BB, the minimum requirements are:
  -  make a simple drop spindle
  -  it can be a top whorl spindle or a bottom whorl spindle (it can even be a Turkish spindle)
  -  spin a few yards on your new spindle to test it

To document your completion of the BB, provide proof of the following as pictures or a video (less than two minutes):
 - the materials are starting with
 - an in-progress photo (drilling a hole or assembling the spindle)
 - the finished spindle
 
COMMENTS:
 
gardener
Posts: 1568
Location: Washington State
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Approved submission
Here is my submission for the Textiles - Straw - Make a Simple Drop Spindle BB.

To document the completion of the BB, I have provided the following:
- the materials are starting with
- an in-progress photo (drilling a hole or assembling the spindle)
- the finished spindle

A dowel, a toy wheel, an eye screw


Grab a pencil sharpener and taper the top and bottom of the dowel
Grab you pliers and open up the eye screw a bit

Drill the Toy Wheel with a bit the same size or slightly smaller than your dowel


Predrill the end of the dowel for the eye screw
Slide the wheel on the dowel (I did not use any glue - it is a pressure fit)
Screw the opened eye screw into the dowel


Spin a bit - I'm pleased with how it spins
Staff note (gir bot) :

r ranson approved this submission.

 
Opalyn Rose
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For inspiration or to add your favorite, please check out this Spindle Post.
 
pollinator
Posts: 254
Location: North Island, New Zealand
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Approved submission
I made this spindle a few years back, so didn't take a huge number of photos, but hopefully it's enough!

I decided to copy the shape and size of a historical spindle from Scandinavia (can't remember which find it was, and it seems I didn't keep any notes other than a reference image which is now turning up no reverse image search results!). The spindle itself is made from Pittosporum wood, which is a NZ native which is lovely to work with, relatively strong, resistant to splitting, and easy to get a hold of when folks are trimming their hedges. The spindle was turned on an electric lathe, and finished with hand tools (carved hooks into both ends for ease of use). The spindle whorl was carved from a piece of limestone I picked up at a beach. I severely blunted a chisel, clogged my rasp, and damaged the chuck of my hand drill working this piece of stone, but I felt pretty good about it in the end. It's relatively balanced, and spins alright. I had to seal it with grapeseed oil to prevent it from shedding chalk everywhere.

It works fine to spin up a bit of yarn! I will admit that I've generally stuck to the wheel as it's faster, but I often think of a former coworker who'd knit or use the drop spindle during meetings as a way of 'getting at least one thing done!' during time that sometimes didn't seem very productive.
mb-bb-textile-straw-spin-spindle-1.JPG
A limestone chunk and pittosporum branch; drilling a hole through the spindle whorl; the shaped spindle
A limestone chunk and pittosporum branch; drilling a hole through the spindle whorl; the shaped spindle
mb-bb-textile-straw-spin-spindle-2.JPG
The spindle - finished and working!
The spindle - finished and working!
Staff note (gir bot) :

r ranson approved this submission.

 
steward
Posts: 21508
Location: Pacific Northwest
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Approved submission
My kids always want to play with my spindle. So, I made them each their own spindles. I must say, I love the large wheel on these, as I can get it spinning and it spins long enough for me to draft a few times. (Yes, I couldn't resist playing using with their toys tools).

I used a wooden dowel, wooden circles, hide glue (gelatin+water) and a lot of sanding!

The hide glue is working very nicely. I mixed it with a little sawdust from all the drilling and sanding. I've accidently dropped (and once flung) the spindle across the floor, and it's held up well. I think it will hold up well against my children's use of them, too!

I figured if medieval kids could have spindles and yarn for toys, mine could, too!
20210119_152643.jpg
1/2 inch dowel and some wooden circles from the craft store (oddly, the hardware store had NO wooden wheels!)
1/2 inch dowel and some wooden circles from the craft store (oddly, the hardware store had NO wooden wheels!)
20210119_153942.jpg
Finding the center was hard. Trying to measure it out didn't work out well. So we ended up balancing the thing on a pencil eraser to find the center of balance
Finding the center was hard. Trying to measure it out didn't work out well. So we ended up balancing the thing on a pencil eraser to find the center of balance
20210119_192604.jpg
Our drillbit was 1/2 inch, and so the circle fell off. I tried both wax (didn't work well) as well as hide glue (from gelatin)
Our drillbit was 1/2 inch, and so the circle fell off. I tried both wax (didn't work well) as well as hide glue (from gelatin)
20210119_202214.jpg
Hide glue was a big winner! Both have hide glue to hold them together. I screwed in the little eyehooks, and they spin beautifully!
Hide glue was a big winner! Both have hide glue to hold them together. I screwed in the little eyehooks, and they spin beautifully!
kids-using-their-spindles.jpg
Here's the happy kids with their new spindles!
Here's the happy kids with their new spindles!
Staff note (gir bot) :

Opalyn Rose approved this submission.
Note: Nice use of a natural glue and physics!

 
pollinator
Posts: 56
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Approved submission
Simple drop spindle BB submission
9DA7DB9E-06A8-421A-9910-E9567D14B86D.jpeg
Materials
Materials
6D9B2C24-CEEF-4C82-8010-432F97D0114D.jpeg
Assembling drop spindle
Assembling drop spindle
A5063CAF-8206-4431-8B1F-948AE79551CE.jpeg
Complete!
Complete!
Staff note (gir bot) :

Nicole Alderman approved this submission.
Note: I hereby certify that this badge bit is complete, and congratulate you on your Textile air badge!

 
gardener
Posts: 580
Location: Pembrokeshire, UK
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Approved submission
This evening I made a drop spindle. I am currently processing some gleaned wool and wanted to make one to spin it, once I'm done carding. I've yet to finish processing it but, after spending some time on here, I noticed that there were BBs for this process and so here I am.

I used a piece of alder that I'd harvested from the local woodlands to make the whorl. I cut two chunks off of this - I wasn't sure yet which weight I wanted to use - and drilled them to 7mm. The spindle is made from a piece of commercial dowel that I had lying around, it is 7.7mm and, with a bit of persuasion, I managed to seat the whorl onto this. The brass hook I had in a box of "bits that will be useful" (and it was!)

No glue was needed for this build.

When my wool has been carded I will update this post/add another reply and submit it for certification.
alder-wood.jpg
Alder wood for whorl
Alder wood for whorl
whorls.jpg
2 whorls cut
2 whorls cut
stuff.jpg
Materials
Materials
drilling.jpg
Drilling center holes for whorl
Drilling center holes for whorl
assembling.jpg
Adding hook
Adding hook
finished.jpg
Finished!
Finished!
finished2.jpg
Another angle
Another angle
Staff note :

Hi Luke, It looks like this BB is ready for submission.  If/when you change it to a BB submission, I'll be happy to certify it.

Staff note (gir bot) :

Nicole Alderman approved this submission.
Note: I hereby certify that this badge bit is complete!

 
Luke Mitchell
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Oh great, thanks! I was waiting to spin a few yards of wool with it as I thought this was a requirement. I am intending to use it when my wool is ready anyway - and I'll be submitting that as another BB.
 
Nicole Alderman
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Yep! This BB is just for the spindle making, so I used one of the magic staff buttons to turn your post into a BB post and certified it for you. I look forward to seeing the yarn you spin!
 
Luke Mitchell
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So, the spindle works! I'm still pretty bad at using it (and I think the wool that I gleaned is pretty rough with a very "short staple") but I've managed to get some lumpy, chunky yarn. I'm going to continue practicing before I try for the other BB. I think perhaps I am going to need to buy some fleece to learn with.
drop-spinning.jpg
First yarn!
First yarn!
 
Opalyn Rose
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Luke Mitchell wrote:So, the spindle works!


Congratulations!  🎊
 
steward & author
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Approved submission
Here we go.  I submit this (the spindle is made and tested in the first 1 min of the video, but stay tuned to the end to see cute chicken)

Staff note (gir bot) :

Nicole Alderman approved this submission.
Note: I hereby certify that this badge bit is complete! I love seeing how to make a drop spindle from potatoes and apples!

 
Posts: 5
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Approved submission
I have made a drop spindle
My dad and I made 8 spindles in one night out of dowels, a piece of wood which we cut circles out of, and small hooks using a drill, sandpaper, an orbital sander for speed, and the drill attachment for making a hole for a doorknob.
They have no glue, instead we sanded down the dowel a bit and with some effort it fit in the drill hole so that it is  stuck like if it was glued
I don't have very good pictures of the process, but hopefully these are enough to show what we did.
Forgot to add: we also used a dremel to cut the little slice out for the yarn
20230518_193022.jpg
A circle of wood cut by the drill attachment, a dowel, and some store bought spindles we were looking at the dowel length of
A circle of wood cut by the drill attachment, a dowel, and some store bought spindles we were looking at the dowel length of
20230516_155011.jpg
The sander and the drill with the attachment, next to another circle that will be the top of a spindle
The sander and the drill with the attachment, next to another circle that will be the top of a spindle
20230516_222508.jpg
A handful of finished spindles
A handful of finished spindles
20230518_141424.jpg
Spinning with one of the spindles
Spinning with one of the spindles
20230518_185942.jpg
A two-ply yarn, spun on the spindle
A two-ply yarn, spun on the spindle
Staff note (gir bot) :

r ranson approved this submission.

 
gardener
Posts: 503
Location: Winemucca, NV
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Approved submission
I've never spun before. How obvious is it? Thanks to the permie who sent me some fibers.

20230903_163654.jpg
Materials take 1
Materials take 1
20230911_194649.jpg
Materials take 2, used leftover from birdhouse
Materials take 2, used leftover from birdhouse
20230911_195916.jpg
Using my anvil to pound the dowel in
Using my anvil to pound the dowel in
20230911_225816.jpg
It seems to work
It seems to work
Staff note (gir bot) :

Nicole Alderman approved this submission.
Note: I hereby certify that this badge bit is complete! Bravo on spinning your first yarn!

 
gardener
Posts: 2108
Location: Zone 8b North Texas
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Approved submission
To complete this BB, the minimum requirements are:
 -  make a simple drop spindle
 -  it can be a top whorl spindle or a bottom whorl spindle (it can even be a Turkish spindle)
 -  spin a few yards on your new spindle to test it

To document your completion of the BB, provide proof of the following as pictures or a video (less than two minutes):
- the materials are starting with
- an in-progress photo (drilling a hole or assembling the spindle)
- the finished spindle

I cut the dowel and wheel a week ago but couldn't find my sandpaper.  I do have a roll of sandpaper I use for work.  
It worked well for this job.  I'm still fiddling with it to practice...this is not intuitive to me.  lol
1-Materials-to-make-drop-spindle.jpg
[Thumbnail for 1-Materials-to-make-drop-spindle.jpg]
2-Drill-to-fit-dowel-in-wheel.jpg
[Thumbnail for 2-Drill-to-fit-dowel-in-wheel.jpg]
3-Drill-wheel-for-dowel.jpg
[Thumbnail for 3-Drill-wheel-for-dowel.jpg]
4-Sanded-and-fit-together.jpg
[Thumbnail for 4-Sanded-and-fit-together.jpg]
5-Adding-hook.jpg
[Thumbnail for 5-Adding-hook.jpg]
6-Simple-Drop-Spindle.jpg
[Thumbnail for 6-Simple-Drop-Spindle.jpg]
Staff note (gir bot) :

Someone approved this submission.

 
Posts: 229
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Approved submission
Made a drop spindle and learned how to spin. Ummmm I loved it!
20240320_174858.jpg
material I'm starting with
material I
20240320_125952.jpg
pilot hole in dowel with cup hook
pilot hole in dowel with cup hook
20240320_130159.jpg
drilling larger hole in toy wheel
drilling larger hole in toy wheel
20240320_173618.jpg
assembled and spun my first yarn
assembled and spun my first yarn
Staff note (gir bot) :

r ranson approved this submission.

 
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