I am to the point where I can start weaving. I cranked the front to create more tension on my yarn but if I crank too much the back warp beam seems to release a bit and then my project comes forward just a bit, so I can achieve a very tight tension. The brake is on like normal. I have done this several times until I had to crank the warp back onto the back beam because I couldn't beat with the beater, it was hitting the front warp beam. I put the warp on mostly by myself and I don't know if that makes a difference.

Comments

Fri, 12/13/2013 - 16:26

SallyE (not verified)

Remind us what brand of loom you ended up getting.

As long as the warp brake isn't letting loose, you are fine.   Just don't advance so much, so you have the extra room to tighten the cloth brake enough to get a good tension.   Note where the fell is when you "get it right" so that you can just advance to that point next time.   Your only problem is that you are advancing a little too much.

 

Fri, 12/13/2013 - 17:55

laurafry

Or the brake isn't holding properly.  Or you didn't beam with sufficient tension and as you beat the slack is coming forward.

Check to make sure the brake is actually holding and not slipping.

cheers,

Laura

Sat, 12/14/2013 - 03:14

jessiesurber

My brake was actually releasing a little bit. I tightened the clamp type thing(do not know proper name) on the left hand side of the loom by the back warp beam. Tighten the clamp seemed to help a lot but then I have to loosen the clamp to advance the warp forward and the tighten it again if I want tight tension.

Sat, 12/14/2013 - 03:15

jessiesurber

It is a LeClerc Mira model, older style.

Sat, 12/14/2013 - 03:53

laurafry

Check the Leclerc website for proper adjustment for the brake.  It might need to be adjusted or perhaps if the loom is 2nd hand it might have gotten out of adjustment at some point.

Laura

Sat, 12/14/2013 - 04:58

jlread (not verified)

Had a Mira for many years and never had that problem. The warp beam cogs would never allow the warp to let loose...why don't you post a pix of that area so we can see how it is set up...it's really not rocket science and the Mira is a very stable and dependable loom.

Sat, 12/14/2013 - 13:32

tommye scanlin

There may be a problem with the spring if this a friction brake. The Leclerc website addresses friction brake problems specifically, In the past I had to replace a spring on a loom that was no longer holding the tension-- the spring had gotten damaged on some disassembly/moves of the loom. Tommye
Sat, 12/14/2013 - 16:58

jlread (not verified)

On the left side of the Mira is something that looks like a friction device but it controls how fast the beam lets out the warp...the brake is on the right side with a heavy cog system that actually releases the warp. Clearly she needs to loosen the friction on the left so the real brake can do its job properly...it will advance to the next cog then you tighten the front beam.

Mon, 12/16/2013 - 04:16

jessiesurber

The friction device seemed to be too loose which let the warp advance a little bit every time I tried to tighten the warp at the front beam. So I didn't tighten it and it has helped.

I will take a picture and post!

Thanks everyone for your help! This forum has been so helpful and informative every step of the way!

Mon, 12/16/2013 - 16:45

SallyE (not verified)

I'm hardly a loom brake expert, but I've never seen one like this!   If you tighten down on that clamp, exactly what get's tightened?  The direction of force seems wrong. . .   And the strap of metal that wraps around the beam is wrapping on top of itself, which won't work.  All of the metal needs to make contact with the beam.   Just fixing that might make a big difference.

If if were my loom, I'd replace that brake altogether.   But since you are in the middle of a warp,  you could add either a rope friction brake or a weighted brake.

Mon, 12/16/2013 - 16:46

laurafry

Do you have a ratchet and pawl on the other end of the beam?  

Laura

Mon, 12/16/2013 - 17:02

SallyE (not verified)

Laura makes a good point.   What exactly are we looking at?   If this is the left end of the warp beam, then there is usually a brake on the right side, but there seems to be some other loom part behind the beam in this picture.   What is that?   And the warp beam doesn't usually have an apron - not usually but can.   So are we looking at the warp beam?

Mon, 12/16/2013 - 17:12

jlread (not verified)

YES..there is a rachet and pawl on the right side of the warp beam...that IS the REAL brake....the thing on the left is not a brake...it's a friction device to keep the warp from letting loose too fast......!!!!!!!

Mon, 12/16/2013 - 18:06

laurafry

Yes, the Mira and Fanny came with such devices to prevent excess let off when the tension was released on the ratchet and pawl.

When we 'adopted' my Fanny, we removed that device and added a friction cable type system instead of the ratchet and pawl.  Leclerc sells the parts and it was a fairly easy up-grade, making the loom more efficient to weave on.

IF (and I'm just guessing here) you have the ratchet and pawl brake system and your warp keeps getting looser as you beat it, I'm going to take a stab in the dark and diagnose that your problem is that the warp was beamed without sufficient tension.  The 'slack' in the warp threads keeps coming forward as you beat. 

Did you use some sort of tension system while beaming?  How long is your warp?  (if you said I don't recall).  A short warp beamed without tension usually doesn't cause much grief, but longer warps will continue to give up their 'slack' as you weave causing issues with tension.

Like I say, I'm just guessing....

If you are a new weaver you may find the video clips I've loaded to You Tube helpful.  My user name is lauraannfry1

cheers,

Laura

Mon, 12/16/2013 - 21:41

jlread (not verified)

Even if the warp wasn't wound on with enough tension....she can still advance the cloth beam to create the proper tension....the pawls on the cloth beam advance by 1/2 cog at a time [there are 2 of them]...that allows for fine tuning.

Mon, 12/16/2013 - 21:46

laurafry

If the warp has not been wound on with sufficient tension, it will keep on slipping, and slipping, and slipping....

cheers,

Laura

Mon, 12/16/2013 - 22:09

kerstinfroberg

- but one answet to that is: tighten it at the warp beam - taking up the slack at the warp end.

My example may not be applicable to other materials, but: many years ago, I was weaving both for demonstration and for "production" - I was weaving a reproduction upholstery fabric in cotton and horsehair. I was doing 2 warps, each 16 metres long, and had to beam with a helper. She (also a weaver, of, at that time, more experience that I had) did not believe in high tension beaming. So, what could I do but "go with the flow". On several occasions, I saw suspicious-lookong loops on the warp beam, but they never gave me problems, they just disapperaed. Now and again, I had to tension the warp "backwards" - still no noticeable tension problems.

After those warps, I have a more relaxed attitude towards beaming... (but I still prefer tightly beamed warps - nowadays, I use a valet, not to have to argue with helpers)

(I was using merc cotton 40/2 at about 65 ends/inch, in a 2/2 basket weave, with 2 horesehair fibres/pick, for a total of 30 metres of cloth. It can still be seen on the chairs in the Skogaholm building at Skansen, Stockholm)

Moral: don't be afraid, it may not be a problem.

Tue, 12/17/2013 - 14:22

jessiesurber

I took several pictures but didn't know how to upload multiple ones. My warp is 8 yards long. I think I didn't wind my warp on with enough or even tension and as I beat a little keeps slipping foward. This is just going to be for practice anyway. I am learning a lot for what to do next time! lol.

I did tighten the friction brake on the left (as in the picture) and it is now not really slipping too much.

Tue, 12/17/2013 - 23:07

jlread (not verified)

You never did answer the question...is there a rachet and pawl brake on the right/rear of the loom?.....the friction device on the left is NOT a brake....It's exhausting to not get answers or pix

Tue, 12/17/2013 - 23:37

Marianne88 (not verified)

Last year, for my very first warp on my Fanny Loom, I have a problem of tension who suddenly occurs when a few ends of threads of the warp lost their tension.  I try to put a more tension with the brake, but nothing works correctly, as Laura said, some of the  threads continue to lost their tension and became really slacks.  Finally, I decided to undid all the warp and wound the ends of threads with more tension on the front beam (I warp from back to front). I understood that this has allows me to not tighten the warp to much with the brake but just the right tension on all the warp and to move forward the warp before beginning weaving with the shuttle . For me  it was the right thing to do. 

Wed, 12/18/2013 - 02:27

jessiesurber

@jlread Yes there is a rachet and pawl on the right side. I simply had the friction device all the way loose. So tightening definitely helped. I don't know how to load multiple photos or I would! Thanks!

Wed, 12/18/2013 - 02:54

jlread (not verified)

The friction device has nothing to do with actual brake or the weaving tension.....the weaving tension is gained through the front and rear rachet and pawls aka  [warp and cloth beams]...both can be adjusted forward and backward