Drop spindle or spinning wheel: where to start?

"Should I start with a drop spindle or buy a spinning wheel right away?" I get asked this all the time, on the phone, by email and above all at markets. That is where most people first come across spinning: someone sits at a stall, the wheel hums, a cloud of wool turns into thread, and suddenly you want to be able to do it too. In this guide I share what I have learned over the past years, what our course leader Vanessa thinks, and which path has worked best for most spinners.

In short: if you do not want to spend much, start with a good drop spindle from €12.50. You will soon find out whether spinning is for you. After that, a spinning course is well worth it, and if you are hooked, a wheel like the Kromski Fantasia. But the spindle is not easier for everyone.

Drop spindle or spinning wheel: which is easier for beginners?

Many people believe the drop spindle is the easy option and the wheel the hard one. It is not that simple. How someone gets into spinning is very individual. Some people take to the spindle straight away, others despair and are happily spinning at a wheel after an hour.

I belong to the second group. To be honest, I never really got on with the spindle. I like having a big wheel in front of me, treadling steadily and letting the wool run through my hands. Vanessa, who teaches our spinning courses, feels the same: she personally finds the spindle harder than the wheel. Even so, we both recommend that many beginners start with a spindle. I will explain why further down.

Same yarn, different movement

In the end, a drop spindle and a spinning wheel do exactly the same thing: they twist fibres into a thread. The result is yarn, whichever tool you use. Only the way of spinning is different.

With a drop spindle, the yarn hangs from a shaft with a whorl. You set the spindle turning by hand, let it hang down and draft the fibres with your fingers. Once there is enough twist in the thread, you wind that length on and start again. So spinning and winding on take turns.

At the wheel, your foot does the driving. You treadle, the drive wheel turns the flyer, and the finished yarn is drawn onto the bobbin at the same time. Your hands are free to guide the fibres. That is why the wheel is much faster once you have got the hang of it.

The real hurdle is the same for both: finding the flow

The hard part is the same with a spindle and a wheel. You have to find your rhythm. On the spindle that means: how long do I let it spin? When do I let the twist run up, and when do I draft more fibre? Let it spin too long and the yarn kinks up. Draft too early and it gets thin and breaks.

At the wheel the questions are different, but there are just as many. You need to treadle evenly, let go of the fibre at the right moment and draft at the same time. Three movements that refuse to fit together at first. Both are equally hard to learn. At some point it clicks, and then you stop thinking about it.

The spindle has one advantage that Vanessa likes to point out in her courses: the yarn does not break as easily. You have more time, because the spindle only turns as long as you have set it going, and nothing pulls the yarn out of your hands. At the wheel that happens more often at the start.

Buying a drop spindle: what matters

The biggest advantage of the drop spindle is the price. A good spindle costs a fraction of a spinning wheel. If you first want to find out whether you enjoy this calm, even kind of work, it is the cheapest way in. Vanessa says the same: start with a spindle because it costs little, and buy a wheel later.

One piece of advice matters a lot to me: do not buy a cheap plastic spindle. A spindle needs weight to spin and, above all, to keep spinning. If it is too light, it stops after a few turns, may even spin backwards, and you end up fighting the tool rather than working the wool. Many people who started with a spindle like that come away thinking spinning is not for them. A shame, because it was the tool.

I really like the Kromski drop spindles. They are a little heavier, run smoothly and you can do really good work with them. The Kromski drop spindle is a wooden top whorl spindle weighing 85 g with a 10 cm whorl. It costs from €12.50. If you would like to try different weights, go for the Kromski drop spindle set from €38.50, with three spindles for finer and thicker yarns. Over the last twelve months we have sold 69 Kromski drop spindles. For many people that was the first step.

My advice: spindle first, then a course, then a wheel

In our spinning courses I notice the same thing again and again. Almost everyone who comes has bought a drop spindle at some point. They tried it at home, with more or less success, and then wanted to learn properly. By the end of the course, every one of them had decided on a spinning wheel.

That is where my recommendation comes from:

• Start with a drop spindle: it costs little, and you quickly find out whether spinning grabs you.
• Then take a spinning course: you sit at different wheels, get help with finding the flow and see what suits you.
• Then buy the wheel: now you know what you want and can choose with confidence.

You will find our courses on the spinning courses page. And the spindle does not become redundant afterwards. Many people take it travelling or to spinning meetups, because it fits in any bag.

When you can start straight away with a spinning wheel

The spindle is not compulsory. If you already know you want to spin, because you have tried it at a friend's or have been dreaming about it for years, you can start directly with a wheel. The same goes if you want to spin larger amounts of yarn for jumpers or blankets. A wheel is simply faster.

Our best-selling and most popular beginner wheel is the Kromski Fantasia from €479. Around 40 percent of all the wheels we sell are Fantasias. It has a double treadle, solid wood and runs very evenly, even for beginners. If you prefer to treadle with one foot, the Kromski Prelude from €489 is a great choice, and it is our best-selling single treadle wheel.

For a detailed comparison of beginner models, read Spinning wheel for beginners: 6 models compared. What a good wheel costs and how much our customers spend is covered in Buying a spinning wheel: what a good wheel costs.

Bulky yarn and art yarn: better at the wheel

If you dream of thick, fluffy yarns or novelty yarns with slubs and loops, I would point you towards a spinning wheel. Art yarn is much harder on a spindle. The thick yarn quickly gets heavy, the spindle loses momentum, and large amounts barely fit on the shaft.

At the wheel, what you need most is a large orifice. The Lojan Buddy from €455 has an open 18 mm orifice and large bobbins, which makes it a good wheel for bulky and art yarn. With Kromski you can upgrade your wheel later: for the Fantasia there is the Fantasia and Sonata Jumbo Flyer Set from €169, with a bigger bobbin and a larger orifice. To fit the jumbo flyer on the Fantasia, you also need the Fantasia Jumbo Orifice Set for €26. So you do not have to decide everything at the start.

Drop spindle and spinning wheel compared

	Drop spindle	Spinning wheel
Price	from €12.50	from around €400
Learning	spinning, letting the twist run up, drafting	treadling, letting go of and drafting the fibre
Speed	slow, spinning and winding on in turns	much faster, the yarn goes straight onto the bobbin
Bulky and art yarn	difficult	good, with a large orifice or jumbo flyer
Portability	fits in any bag	only folding wheels are truly portable

What else you need to get started

Not much. Besides the spindle or wheel, you need some wool to practise with. And as soon as your first yarn is finished, a Kromski niddy noddy from €15. You use it to wind your yarn into a skein so you can wash and measure it. You will need it whether you spin on a spindle or a wheel.

If you already know it will be a wheel but are not sure which one, our page Which spinning wheel is right for me? will help.

Frequently asked questions

Is a drop spindle easier than a spinning wheel?
Not necessarily. It is very individual. The hurdle is the same for both: finding the rhythm between spinning, twist and drafting. Some people manage better with the spindle, others with the wheel.

Which drop spindle is good for beginners?
A wooden top whorl spindle with enough weight to keep spinning for a long time. The 85 g Kromski drop spindle is a good start. I would advise against light plastic spindles.

How much does it cost to start spinning?
From €12.50 with a drop spindle or €38.50 with a spindle set. A good new spinning wheel starts at around €400, and our most popular beginner wheel, the Kromski Fantasia, at €479.

Is yarn from a spindle different from yarn spun on a wheel?
No. Both twist fibres into yarn, only the movement is different. A wheel is faster, and very thick yarns are easier to spin on it.

Do I need a spinning course?
Not necessarily, but it helps enormously. In a course you get help exactly where it is hardest, finding the flow. And you can try out different wheels before you buy.