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Geoff and Bonnie described their vertical WW TW systems, answering the question about beating upwards which I had wondered about for a while. Thanks! Bonnie also wrote: >I had a table top tablet weaving loom made for me a couple of years ago, >after I had been weaving vertically for several years. When I used it I >noticed that I didn't seem able to get as firm a beat for the same amount >of weight Interesting ... it always seemed to me that beating upwards would be more of an effort, but if you are using less weight, then perhaps not. I often use 10/2 mercerised cotton, and I was using weights of around 90g (3 oz) per tablet with a horizontal set-up and getting a fairly firm band. I needed more weights so I could use more tablets, and I couldn't get more matching ones so I bought fishing weights. I'm experimenting with different weights/tablet. My current project is using 8 oz per tablet, which is nice for weaving but a real hassle when I need to advance the warp (16lb of weight to hang onto while I am moving the band). I needed each tablet separately weighted for this project as the tablets aren't all getting the same amount of twist (mostly double- faced, but sections of continuous turning) and having 2 tablets per weight would be a nuisance) but for an all-double-faced band I'd be more likely to attach 2 tablets to each 8 oz weight. >I attribute the advantage to the fact that on my horizontal loom the warp >is in contact with the "back beam" for about 1.5 inches before it drops off >vertically to the weights. Mine is only in contact for about 1/3" at the 'beam' and the same where it goes over a rung of a horizontal 'ladder' structure to separate the hanging warps and stop the weights touching each other. > This causes the warp ends to pile up I don't understand what you mean here ... that the neighbouring warps overlap each other as they pass over the beam? If so, I use a warp spreader to solve this problem. I like using one anyway as I sometimes do patterns in which I flip tablets instead of using 2 or more packs, and the spreader makes this much easier. Have you tried flipping with your vertical set-up? >and thus >get much more disorderly (gravity-wise) then they are when hanging straight >down. The disorder increases as the tablets are turned, particularly if >they don't turn all together. That is why I started using the 'ladder', after seeing Sue Palterman's similar system. It is fairly efficient at stopping the weights (and warp ends) interfering with each other. >the >actual impact comes not when I beat, but when the (slightly-lifted, about >1/2") weights fall, causing the fell line to press quite firmly against the >beater. It seems to me (but I could be mistaken) that this action is quite >efficient. It certainly sounds good. I don't really *beat* either, just press firmly with the beater and perhaps 'wiggle' it slightly (I think I got that helpful suggestion from Linda Hendrickson - much kinder on the wrists than beating hard). I don't think I'm using the weight to help me as much as you are, just to provide a resistance, but I hadn't really thought about it. When I go back to my TW later today, I'll try to remember to think about what is happening as I beat. I've been thinking about the relative advantages of the vertical and horizontal set-ups. I can see that in many situations the vertical one is more portable, but for me, weaving almost entirely at home, I can move my table wherever I want it, instead of being tied to where I had a wall bracket or ceiling mount. On the other hand, the small 'footprint' of a vertical set-up definitely appeals. Perhaps what I need is a tall stand strong enough to take all those weights, so I could move it where I want. P.S. I'm using a cloth take-up device (TTW second edition, fig 13b; Candace Crockett, fig 9-5) and I wondered why every now and then the warp would slip and the weights would end up on the floor. Then I realised that the take-up device relies on friction. When I pressed too firmly with the beater, I was taking off enough weight to allow the band to slip, and sometimes it didn't re-grip again. Fortunately I already had a couple of bolts in place (for starting off, before the band is long enough to wrap around the device, and when moving the table), so now I tighten them up every time I adjust the warp, just to be safe. -- Jenny Kosarew from England mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Home Page: http://www.whorls.freeserve.co.uk Berkshire Guild Page: http://www.whorls.freeserve.co.uk/guild The Braid Society: http://www.braidsociety.org Send private reply to Jenny Kosarew <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> ----------------------------------------------------------- To stop receiving tabletweaving (not tabletweaving-digest), send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: unsubscribe tabletweaving. To stop receiving tabletweaving-digest, see the end of a digest.
