Nope, it didn't work...

Last night I tried to wind a skein of silk onto a quill which I'd placed around the axle of the zakuri.

Nope, that method did not work.  The axle, at center, does not spin quickly enough for this to be a viable method of building a yarn package in a reasonable amount of time.  So I ended up just putting on a kiwaku bobbin and winding it onto that, which worked. 

I counted all the kiwaku I own, and there are seventeen.  I could make more, and probably will do so at some point, but it's not possible now, and they're very expensive to buy.  That said, they remain one of the most useful bobbin designs ever invented, and they've been in use for thousands of years (because they work, and can hardly be improved on).  They're also quite beautiful. 

What I'm going to do for now is to wind the silk for the Ocean-Born Mary scarf project onto all the kiwaku I have with the exception of the two that hold the gold and silver bullion threads, and simply wind the silk on top of whatever is already on them.  This will actually give me enough so that I can warp the loom easily.  And it's a tried-and-true method. 

Onward...