There are over 300 members of this forum.  I'm sure that some of you have opinions on what makes one piece of equipment more efficient than another.  :)

So, how about it?  What loom(s) do you have and why did you purchase that one?  Obviously part of your decision will be based on the type of weaving you prefer.........

 

Cheers,

Laura

Comments

Sat, 07/25/2009 - 23:17

francorios (not verified)

I'll start.

My little rigid heddle loom, 20" Erica, is more time efficient than my 24 x 24 inch frame loom, but has more yarn waste.

Have a good day!

Thu, 08/06/2009 - 12:02

NancyD (not verified)

 I have a Baby Wolf, four harness loom.  I like the convenience of being able to fold and wheel the loom out of the way for cleaning and when I just need the space. I live in an apartment and space is valuable. I mainly weave scarves, table items, and liturgical stoles.

Sun, 07/26/2009 - 05:06

Caroline (not verified)

I have a couple of 4 shaft table looms as I'm physically unable to tie up treadles any more. Being in Australia, choice is somewhat limited by price and haulage rates and distance, and these came from close by. I used to have a 4 shaft jack-style floor loom, which is how I know I cannot manage a full size loom any more.

Do I lust after the looms I see in US magazines and web-sites? Yes and no.  I like being close to the yarn, and big multi-shaft looms don't cut it with me because I have never had the desire to weave yardage, but there is a small part of me that hankers after a big loom and whispers "just think of all the possibilities!"

So I think it has to be a trade off between what you want to do, what is available at a price you can afford, and what you actually need to do the kind of weaving you intend to do.

I like simple looms, I can do the projects I want, and I have the table looms as well. I love them all, but for sheer speed in setting up a multi-harness weave, a backstrap beats them all hands down!

Just my humble opinion.

Fri, 07/31/2009 - 04:52

blossommerz (not verified)

I have a big, old AVL and weave production with it. My current contract has me doing 60" wide yardage for at least a year.

There are a few mechanisms that make the AVL more efficient than any other loom I've used:

1. Dobby - set the pattern and forget it. I don't have to remember treadling patterns and make sure I'm at the right spot.

2. Auto-advance - I just beat to the bumpers and the cloth moves to the next position. No stopping to advance the cloth, and no uneven beat.

3. Cloth take-up - Once the cloth is fed through the loom and taking up, I weave 20 yards before stopping to cut it off. It's collected at the back of the loom, out of my way while I weave.

I know that some people think these things are "cheating". Well, I've woven for years on other looms and proven to myself that I can do beautiful work without all the niceties. When it's time to weave for sale, though, anything I can do to speed up my work shows up as a lower final price. That's my biggest motivation for finding faster ways to work.

Fri, 07/31/2009 - 06:48

laurafry

I love my AVL for all the reasons you love yours.  :)  Glad to hear you have steady work for a while.  That helps!  :)

Cheers,

Laura

Tue, 08/11/2009 - 01:57

Ludmilla (not verified)

My autodenter is a great time saver. I can move quickly and accurately.

 

Tue, 08/11/2009 - 02:21

blossommerz (not verified)

 Hear, hear! I wouldn't go back to the old sley hook if you paid me.

Tue, 08/11/2009 - 14:08

tien (not verified)

I have a 24-shaft, 24" AVL Workshop Dobby Loom, bought because I love exploring structure but have no space for a big loom.  I'm very happy with it, though it is a big finicky.

One thing I did (on Bonnie Inouye's advice) was color all the heddles, in groups of four: red, yellow, blue, green.  This lets me see if I'm on pattern when threading up something like straight draw, or network drafting on a four-end initial.  I just have to remember the sequence and select threads from that sequence.

One thing that hasn't been mentioned about computer-driven looms yet is the ability to "treadle the threading".  If I have a complex threading, I set the computer up with the threading, put a single diagonal line in the tie-up (from 1,1 to 24, 24), and tell it to "treadle as drawn in".  This makes it lift each shaft  in the sequence of the threading.  So when I'm threading something complicated, all I have to do is treadle the loom and pick the heddle from the shaft that was raised.

This is slower than threading by hand, so I don't use it for simple threadings like straight draw, but it is a lifesaver when dealing with complex, nonrepeating threadings.  You don't have to worry about getting interrupted or picking the wrong heddle accidentally - it's all stored in the computer.

Tien

Tue, 08/11/2009 - 15:36

Sara von Tresckow

 Treadle the threading doesn't have to be one thread at a time.

Reduce your threading to small bites - like 4 threads and develop a file that picks the right order - 1-4, 5-8, 9-12.... and then put that in the right sequence.

That way, each time you treadle, the correct shafts lift for the next 4 threads.

Naturally this is a file that you don't use later for weaving, but I've found it to be quite efficient when threading the dobby.

 

Tue, 08/11/2009 - 16:31

ilaine (not verified)

Efficiency of space was the primary driver in my loom selection.   My Louet David fits the bill perfectly - it packs a lot of the features I want (8 shafts, hanging beater, 2nd warp beam option) into a (relative for a floor loom) tiny package. The cost is some operational efficiency - it doesn't operate well at high tension, it doesn't accomodate really long warps well since cloth roll space is limited.  While I yearn for a big heavy sturdy loom with all the bells and whistles, this is  still the right loom to match my current life.

Tue, 08/11/2009 - 16:47

kerstinfroberg

I have given up on mine - no matter how many times I tried, I could not get the hang of it. Either I had to handle the threads twice (both putting them on the hook, and then taking them off again, at the other side) - or I had to have the ends so short that they easily fell out again (if I had to blink, or something).

Can someone please describe the process?

To compare, here is a picture sequence of how I do it now.

Kerstin

Tue, 08/11/2009 - 19:53

doreenmacl (not verified)

I have 3 looms: 1) 45" 8 shaft Leclerc old jack which I found it second hand and like its history. It works fine for me. 2) 24" Leclerc Minerva also 8 shafts, also purchased second hand and I know its history too. I like it for smaller projects eg scarves. 3) 10" Woolhouse tableloom 8 shaft- purchased new at ANWG in Red Deer 2 yrs ago because I wanted a smaller portable loom for demos and workshops. I was happy with it until I saw Louet's Jane last summer- almost wish I had waited but I didn't know it was in the works. Be happy with what you have,Doreen! (I have an inkle loom  but I have only done one project on it. I don't feel too guilty because it was second hand as well) I am sure that 8 shafts will keep me busy for years. I try to always have something on each loom but am not always successful!

Sun, 08/16/2009 - 04:51

blossommerz (not verified)

Boyce Weaver's Knotter

I know of several other weavers who use a tool called the "Boyce Weaver's Knotter". It's from between the wars, and used to tie tail-less warp knots quickly and efficiently.

I had to just take their word for it and buy one on eBay if I wanted to know how it works. Last night I sat down with the camera to document it. Now other people can see exactly what this nifty little device does before they buy one of their own. I wrote it all up and put it on my blog:

Boyce Weaver's Knotter, How It Works

Enjoy!

Fri, 08/28/2009 - 18:34

kerstinfroberg

Well, I just (re-)discovered the most important equipment for efficiency: concentration.

When I wove something I had dome before, I stopped thinking - and created a disaster.

So I started over - still not really thinking. Which is why I had to re-thread the whole warp, from the very beginning...

Will this teach me?  We'll see...

Kerstin in Sweden

 

Fri, 08/28/2009 - 19:01

laurafry

Ouch!  That hurts when it happens...........  :(

Laura

Sat, 08/29/2009 - 00:20

tien (not verified)

I just discovered a new way to tie the cross!  (Well, new-to-me anyway.  I'm sure someone's thought of this before!)

I was tying with string as usual and getting annoyed with having to stop to break off a length of string (ball rolls away, pick up ball before breaking off another length, ball rolls away, you know how that goes).  My eye hit upon some ponytail-holders sitting around, and voila! a brief trip to the supermarket later, I have a bunch of those no-damage (no metal bits) hair ties.  I've been looping them into a lark's-head knot around the yarn and pulling tight.  They stay put and are easy to take off later, and you can use the colors to color-code the top and bottom yarns in your cross!

Sun, 08/30/2009 - 15:44

Lois S (not verified)

In addition to Tien's use of ponytail-holders:

I had a bag of old pantyhose sitting in the closet.  Cut them into rings and cinch them the same way Tien does.  Sped up my warp stay-tyes unbelievably, both putting-on and taking-off, and no cost at all.

Fri, 09/04/2009 - 00:23

Peg in South C… (not verified)

Guess I'm not the only one that happens to!  But I find it really hard to concentrate when repeating something.