Meet Wobblyboi.

Wobblyboi is the second “model” from my Supported Spindle Fashion Show. (See the first post in this series for information on how to view the fashion show!)

Few of my spindles have names, but Wobblyboi is special. He’s so photogenic! Any fiber, any background, Wobblyboi is my go-to for photography projects and signs. If you follow me on Instagram, you’ve definitely seen him before!

This bead-style spindle measures 11.25″ and weighs 25 grams; this length and weight are almost ideal for me, in terms of spindle specs. The shaft is ebony, and the whorl is Asian ebony, aka black and white ebony. (If you search the internet for “Asian ebony”, make sure to include the word “wood” or you get some surprising search results … trust me on this one!) Unfortunately, the different colors in the wood have different densities, meaning different weights, meaning – you may have guessed – sometimes the spindle wobbles. This little guy had too much thrum to be sold as a Spanish Peacock spindle. So I adopted him as part of The Peahen’s Second Chance for Seconds program!

(It’s good to be the Peahen! I would guess approximately half of my spindle collection are “seconds”, aka spindles which didn’t have the impeccable balance demanded by the Spanish Peacock!)

Luckily, once a small amount of cop has built up on the shaft, the wobble becomes much less noticeable. The extra weight next to the shaft has stabilizing effect. And Wobblyboi is so pretty, and so perfect otherwise, I can easily overlook any imperfections in the spin!

In addition to a great weight, length and looks, Wobblyboi has great physics. Yes, I used the P word. The relatively dense whorl, so small and close to the shaft, creates a wicked fast spin. Spindles with larger, wider whorls tend to spin lower, although they have more momentum and spin longer.

All in all, it’s no wonder Wobblyboi is second only to The World’s Most Beautiful Spindle when it comes to my favorites!