Customer Reviews

Royal Knitting Yarn Ball Skein Wool Winder w/ clamp

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My wife got one of these a couple of years ago. It doesn't hold a lot of yarn but she shays," Good enough for most."

The plastic gear tear on the pinion often slip, which isn't a critical failure, but makes for a slighlty jerky motion when you're trying to maintain steady tension. Everyone of her fellow knitters has one of these Royal winders and the gear slippage thing happens to all of them. There's a model that supposedly works much better (The Royal Jumbo) and holds a lot more yar but costs about 6 times as much. Ah well, what's a little clunk clunk while winding? ;-)

I have used one of these for two years, and have had none of the problems others have mentioned. Gears don't slip, and it seems to function solidly when set up properly. I was a bit hesitant to purchase one of these, but I waited for a sale. Turns out it is so very useful that I shouldn't have waited so long to get one (Lots of places carry this item, so look around and look for coupons). So much yarn these days is sold in hanks that having something to make a center-pull ball is quite handy.

One thing really important about winding balls of yarn is not putting the yarn under tension. When you wind by hand, always include a few fingers under the yarn you are wrapping, so that when you pull them out, the yarn is not tight. What is good about balls wound on this winder is that there is an empty core of about 1 inch, so that when you pull the yarn off the core, it can all contract so that it is not under tension. Wait a day, and the hold for the core is no longer there, and your yarn is more relaxed.

For the first year I used it, I did not have a swift, I draped the yarn around something or my knees and wound slowly while watching tv. I was fortunate to win a swift in a lottery, having a swift has helped, but it isn't absolutely necessary if you are careful.

Two issues:
- It wouldn't mount on the edge of our table because of the decorative moulded shape of our particular table. (well, it would mount, but not securely). So I mounted it sideways on the side of a drawer pulled out part way. I really like using it in that position as it turns out, and it works well that way.

- Once I did get a work table that it would securely mount on, I didn't like the idea of the hard plastic against the wood -- it could bite into the wood, and also wasn't as secure. So I attached some rubber pads (cut up wide rubber bands) to the bottom. Now it mounts more firmly and the wood is protected. Funny that there is a rubber pad on the underside of the clamp, but not under the device itself (at least on the winder I received).

I know it is made of plastic and the gears could crack at some point. But to me the plastic seems solid, and I am pretty good at not mechanically stressing things and taking good care of them, so I hope it will work lots longer. It does not seem to have deteriorated in the two years I have used it so far.

My biggest complaint about it is size. It is great for regular balls of yarn, but if you have a big hank you don't want to cut up, you'll need something different. I just purchased their jumbo winder which makes huge balls. The first ball I made was 7" in diameter and 7" wide, 1.1 lbs of merino dk/worsted, and it looked like I could have put another inch of diameter on it. At this moment I cannot find that item on amazon in order to write a proper review of it, but I thought I'd mention it here.

I shopped around for these for a long time and the Royal seemed to be "the" one everyone was getting. My first reaction was "almost 50.00 for a hunk of plastic??" But I bit the bullet and bought it anyway. I had it for about 2 years, I took good care of it and it worked great. I just got it out tonight to wind some yarn and noticed it had a "rattle" inside and ever so often, the handle would slip as the ball got bigger. In the end, I had all these loose loops that stuck out at the bottom. I ended up starting over 3 times. Upon further investigation, I found that one of the plastic cogs inside the winder has snapped in two! I don't know how, but I'm livid. O.K. yes, it's lasted two years, but for the money I paid, it should last a lifetime! Here's the rub: I've moved from the area where I bought it, so returning it is not an option, and after 2 hours of web surfing, I cannot for the life of me find the company to send it back. I certainly don't want another Royal, so I bought the one on Knitpicks for 19.95 - its still plastic, but for 20 bucks, its a much easier pill to swallow.

A reliable sturdy winder. I bought one about 8 years ago -- it still works and it gets the job done.

We own one of these ball winders and have used it extensively along with an umbrella swift. It is quite easy to use and generally produces consistent results. We've found, however, that it works best with yarns that are not overly delicate such as sock yarn, fingering, worsted, bulky yarns. You can wind a fairly good sized center pull ball, probably about 4 oz. There are other plastic ball winders that are cheaper. We prefer the Royal line because they have a reputation for being solid performers. I also purchased a more expensive wooden ball winder Heavy Duty Ball Winder to handle larger skeins, and for better handling of delicate yarn. As for the Royal ball winder, it's small and light enough to take on trips, something we can't do with the large wooden one.

I have only had this a few days but I just love it. I should not have waited so long to buy this. I also bought a yarn swift and am having fun winding everything that I can get my hands on...