Weeeelll...you've got to have super tight tension on these warps as they go into the sections. So you theoretically should be able to do the whole warp without the dividers because you're putting it on very firmly. This is why the tension box helps.

Never known any real problems re knots twisting warp yarns, but I haven't been doing it that long.

First question- it really doesn't matter.

If you have a tension box, or raddle in place as warps run through to the beam, threads criss cross a little with-in the group all the time. Most yarns are stretchy enough, that it really doesn't cause uneveness. The time when you might pay close attention to keeping things precise, is linen. You should have less criss-crossing with tension box, than a raddle, because of the small reed in the box, if the warps are under tension, they should wrap on straight.

A Swedish trick to even up warps and keep them in order, is to insert lease sticks behind the shafts and then slide them over the back beam between the warp roll and beam. They float in the warp and tend to even out inconsistent threads before the reach the beam. It's a great trick and has saved some messed up warps for some of my students.

Second question- it isn't down, it's out.

The problem with beaming on a straight beam without packing, isn't warps sinking down, it's the whole warp roll spreading to the sides and slipping off the outside edges. You'll notice that on a warp without packing that the short warps end up in the middle and it's fairly consistent. The outside warps are sliding to the side and end up falling down to the beam, thereby not shortening as you wind. The middle warps tend to be held in position by their neighbors.

On a sectional beam, the rakes keep the warps from sliding to the side, hence no real need for packing on short amounts. There are devices for non-sectional beams called flanges. They are round flat ends, that clamp around the beam next to the warp edge and the warp is wound without any packing material. I have a friend who made some for all her looms out of wood. The effect looks something like the ends of a spool. This is a common practice for industrial looms where packing materials would take up way too much time.

Another idea is to use "L" shaped flat rods that insert into the warp on either side at 4 positions around the beam. They become like the warp flange or rakes and are easily adjusted to the width of warp.

A great book to check out is Allen Fannin's "Handloom Weaving Technology". It explains so much, and even if you don't want to follow his philosophy of applying industrial techniques to your practice, it helps understanding.

Ruthannie

Hi Cody,

I am a rank beginner with a new floor loom, so take my ideas with a big grain of salt :) The more experienced will chime in soon with better ideas, I'm sure. But it sounds like a problem with tension? The other thing that comes to mind is taping a beamed section so the order isn't lost and it's secured while you are winding on the other sections?

Thus said, I did something like you are describing only I wound mine on all at once, instead of in sections.

Long post follows......hope it helps.

This was kind of a knocked together attempt to warp. I didn't have a good raddle arrangement or tension box with which to just wind one section at a time.

My beam has two inch sections and I wound up two inch bouts on a warping board, like you said. (2" at 12 epi = 24 ends per bout of 8/4 carpet warp) My project width is only 14 inches (7 bouts). My warp is only five yards long. Also, this warp is only one color, which is a little more forgiving of my errors.

I did not use a cross and sticks but would probably do so if I used this method again (or a raddle or the reed as spreader). I tied a knot in the end of each bout and attached to the warp beam with a cinch knot. To reduce the twisting, I flattened the bout as it came over the back beam so it was spread out in order. A raddle would have helped but I did it the hard way.

I then wound all the bouts at once, with the bouts running up over the top of the front beam, flat and straight to the back beam. As the twisted bouts moved over the front beam, I'd untwist them so they were running flat to the back. I was acting as a human raddle! It was mostly successful. (One bout still has some twist but it isn't hurting anything so far.)

I could have used the Chandler method of sleying the reed to keep it straight, but with a one color warp I thought I could manage it. I'd turn the beam once, then go to the front and tug on each bout....turn one more revolution, tug again, until the end of the warp was at the front beam.

I then picked up each end for threading, in the order they are coming over the back beam. When all were threaded (a simple 1234 repeat), I sleyed the reed one end per dent.

So far I've woven all of two feet on this warp and no immediate problem has popped up. But this is a very short warp and kept very simple because I didn't have the tools to do it as it should be. If it looks like twist is traveling up over the back beam, I'll thread a lease stick into the warp to help keep things straight.

So far, so good, and I'm on my first twill placemat :) We'll see as I progress if I have tension problems or twisting problems. I have a tension box coming which should be here before I warp again (I hope!).

Steve, who is learning to pay a lot of attention to tension.

Hi Cody,

I think the raddle will help. I'm two more feet into my warp and the twist is wanting to travel upward on that one bout, in particular. Still no problem but I can see it might be a problem that using a raddle would have prevented - especially on a longer warp.

You might still want to be cautious that all 20 ends go into the same section. Just thinking out loud, but that might prevent any change in the tension?? If an end passed at times on one side or another of the section divider, that extra little bit of travel could maybe translate into slak as it comes off. Or am I just being to obsessive?

I'll be interested to hear if preserving the order and securing the section with masking tape works for you. Let us know how your next warp goes on, will you?

Steve

The loom I got was stored in a garage for some period of time and a lot of the equiptment that should have been with was evidently misplaced.

The first time I warped it, my son suggested using one of my really heavy combs (for hair) as a raddle. This worked very well and I still haven't upgraded my make-do equiptment for a raddle or a tension box.

I do warp with handspun wool and weft is also handspun. So I don't want too much tension on the project.

I put the required number of epi on the warping board for 1 2-inch section, put in popcycle sticks for lease sticks, and tape everything securely using masking tape until I have all the width I want for the project at hand. Then start sleying the heddles and reed.

One of the instructors, said to beam NOT tightly!! She said to put the warp on in a consistant manner all across the thread beam and it would work out fine! In the 3 years since I got this LeClerc that has worked very well.