Looking for some Swift Advice

I have owned two yarn swifts in my knitting life so far.  

The first was an Umbrella Swift/Skein Winder  by Lacis which was made of plastic and thin wire and it eventually started to get bent out of shape.

 I can still use it in a pinch, but it was really never meant to be a heavy duty worker - I think it was advertised as a travel tool for knitters on the road. 

Most recently I purchased a wooden swift from Knit Picks.

 Regrettably that swift did not last long either.  The wood screw (which keeps the swift in place) had a nasty habit of letting go at totally inopportune times.

 Thankfully Knit Picks allowed me to return it but now I am without a yarn swift. 

In the meantime, I've noticed that a lot of knitters have gone to the Amish-Design Wooden Yarn Swift   (even homemade versions of it).  I can see a lot of "pro's" for this design (definitely easier to set up and take down) but I'm wondering if there are any con's? 

I'm hoping you'll all share what type of yarn swift  you have and why  you chose it?  I'm going to have to make a decision pretty swiftly since I have a lot of new yarn to wind.

Comments

[Cathy]

I have the wooden swift by Knit Picks and haven't had any problems with it so far. Our local yarn shop has one of the Amish style swifts. It gets lots of use and works great every time I've used it. They do have a piece of that non-slip stuff like you would put under a rug to keep it in place while winding yarn.

Cathy
http://www.twistedtreeknitting.com/

[Beth]

I have a Hornshaw Woodworks swift and I love it!

http://www.hornshawwoodworks.com/index.php?var2=282

Only two drawbacks...first, the price...not inexpensive by any means. I saved up and bought mine as a special treat. But the design and workmanship are such that I really expect to hand this swift down to my children and grandchildren.

Secondly, the size. This swift is big and needs to be set up on a firm surface where it can turn freely without catching on stuff. I usually clear off the dining room table and set it up there to wind several skeins at a time. In a pinch I have used it on the big ottoman in front of my sofa, but it was a little trickier on that soft surface.

It does fold down to a slim profile to store easily when not in use.

[Leslie Gordon]

I did a blog post about my swift: http://morewithles.wordpress.com/2010/05/13/the-most-excellent-swift/

[Sanna]

I have an Amish-style swift and I love it, but it does have a couple of quirks. I feel like I should say some of the pros first : ) . One, ease of use; minimal amount of moving parts is always a good thing from an engineering standpoint. Two, ease of storage; it folds down very flat. Three, it just looks timeless. Four, you can move the up-spokes in or out depending on how big your skein is. I haven't used umbrella swifts, but they look like they are one-size only? Not sure. Five, I have used my Amish swift to un-cake-re-skein yarn in the past, and that's not something I've heard people say they use umbrella swifts to do. YMMV. Now, the not-so-great aspects. First, some people may be irritated by the square-footage it requires once assembled; it doesn't bother me, I have the space, but others don't. Second, the poster above is correct when they say make sure it won't slip while you're working. Mine came with four tiny 'non-slip' circular 'feet', but one broke off very quickly. Third, you can't make it run too quickly or it will... I hardly know how to describe it in text. The yarn might get twisted around one of the up-spokes or the out-spokes and then everything comes to a stop. This sort of 'tiny tangle' would never happen with an umbrella swift. If you only wind off of it at a medium-at-most speed, you shouldn't have that happen, though. I love my Amish swift and I'm happy I have it, but they're probably not everyone's cup of tea. If you do get one, I'm sure you'll like it, though : ).