The Loom Room, yes we have given what was the back bedroom a name, is still a bit of a mess but yesterday I started the loom upgrade. The parts I ordered from Macomber arrived earlier in the week so I decided to start on the loom this weekend. 

To start I replaced the aprons. This entails removing the old apron(s) and the staples that attach it to the beam. I used a set of pliers to grab onto the staple and to pull it out but in many cases it was impossible to get a grip on it so I actually ripped the apron off the beam; thus allowing a needle nose pliers to get under it and then I could push it up a bit until the regular pliers could grab it and remove it.

Then I placed the old apron on top of the new apron and using a colored pencil, I transferred the placement of the staple. Since the line of where the apron is was to be placed was still visible on the beam, I then put the first and last staple in using a hammer and needle nose pliers to hold the staple. Then I worked my way across the beam, driving in the staples into the existing holes. 

The next task was to replace the old, crumbly pad on the beater and under the jack levers.  The pads on the beater were held by tack nails and so they were easy to remove by just pulling them out. The pads under the jack levers were glued on and with just a slight tug they peeled off. Getting to these was also easy since I had removed the heddle frames so all the jack levers were in the up position. I just laid down a line of glue and placed the new ones where the old ones had been but due to the jack levers being up, I could not use them to apply pressure to hold the pads in position until the glue dried so I used painters tape to hold them down and prevent them from sliding.

Next up was restringing the sectional beam. I put my raddle on the edge of the castle and then ran strings from each hook in a section up to the raddle and back to the hook and then tying it off. Afterwards I wrapped each string around the beam and hooked it on a post so they are tidy and not hanging loose.

The last and frustrating bit was hooking up the brake system. The loom has 2 beams one regular and one sectional, the regular beam has a ratchet and pawl break and the sectional has a drum/friction break.  The sectional beam was hooked up to the release pedal when the loom was moved to the house but I could not get the beam to rotate when the release pedal was depressed AND some of the eye bolts were bent and it just looked like it had been put together to hold it and not to necessarily work.  I pulled out a diagram from a Macomber document of how to setup a second beam with a drum break and how my loom is configured does not match; in the diagram the drum break is on the top beam and mine is on the bottom.  I worked on this for over an hour and could not get a functioning configuration with the sectional beam and drum brake hooked to the release pedal. ​

Then I decided to take the original pictures and I sent them to Macomber along with my questions about how do I get the drum break to work and do I need to move things around to accomplish this? I expect to hear from later next week.

In the mean time, I did work on hooking the regular beam to the release brake, and that works like a charm; there wasn't a chain long enough to do this so i used 2 small chains and a S hook in between.

Finally, using painters tape, taped the cable for the drum brake down so it isn't flopping around and I put the extra chains, eye bolts, wing nuts and springs in a bag until I can configure everything properly

Here is the final picture of the loom. I put the beater bar back on and put one of the new reeds in.
Today I am putting the new inset eye heddles on the frames and I will re-hang them. 

Having cleaned and de-schmutzed the loom last weekend - this took at least 4 hours on Saturday.
I then spent quite a bit of time working on that list, from last week, purchasing things I wanted/needed.

First I sent off a list of replacement parts I needed, to Macomber and after a few episodes of email and telephone tag, they are now ordered and paid for and should be here in a week or two. 

I then went looking for a raddle. Yes, I could make one or buy one from Macomber but I wanted to see what one would cost since, if it was a reasonable price; why not purchase it. I did some Googling and i found a 3D printed raddle that is in sections, so you can get as long or as short a length that you need. I bought 6 - 6" sections, 2 - 2.5" sections, and 2 ends for clamping it to the loom. 

Then I found beautiful turned Warp Weights, which I knew I would need eventually. I have in the past used old film canisters but these are just to sexy to pass up.

Then I went looking for a warping board but not a warping board. I did not want a warping board that is large, bulky and has to be hung on a wall or take up too much room when not in use. Since I also have a rigid heddle loom and it came with ONE warping peg, I went looking for more that I could use with a table. Lo and behold a large peg system does exist! Again, a hand crafted, made in America, maple warping peg set. This is enough to get me started but I might need a few extra single pegs for when I do a really long warp.

​Lastly I purchased insert eye heddles, which I think are better when doing rugs as the larger eyes are easier to slay and don't abrade the rug warp at all. To fund these I took ALL 2,000 flat, standard, heddles off the frames and bundled them in groups of 100; the counting and bundling took at least another 4 hours; and sold some of the on Facebook. Along the way I found 5 repair heddles, so they were set aside for if/when I need them. I sold over 600 of the flat heddle and I only purchased 100 insert eye heddles but that's enough to get me started.

Now, while I wait, I am playing with my weaving software, which I have not touched in 5 years, to plan my first project.

This past week I have started to assess the loom, below are lots of pictures of what I found and it basically comes down to this. It needs to be cleaned and only some minor work done to it.  YES, I could weave on it right now but with a wee bit of love and attention before I start any projects, would be beneficial.

NOTE: A lot of this information in the Sarah Haskell's Macomber Looms Manual, which is worth the $12.50 it costs. 

So here is what I am going to do. 

• Remove the eye bolts and springs which connect the back beam breaks to the break pedal, this is so I can open the back beam and lay it on the floor (done last weekend)
• Remove the treadle hooks and harnesses from the loom (done last weekend)
• Open the front and back beams (done last weekend)
• Remove the reed from the beater and remove the beater bar from the loom (done last weekend)
• Remove the old cotton warp from the sectional back beam (did that last weekend and it was very dust packed) 
• Remove the old tape from the treadles so they can be cleaned and washed
• Wipe down all the chains that hold the heddle harnesses and that connect the treadles to the jacks
• Wipe/wash all the wood with Murphy's Oil Soap as recommended by other Macomber loom owners
• Apply daubs of Vaseline to the jacks where the bronze bushings meet the metal rod known as the Jack post
• Apply silicone spray to the lamm and jack rods so they glide through the wood slots 
• Wipe down the break drum on the sectional beam and inspect the ratchet on the regular beam
• Remove the heddles on the 8 harnesses and set aside any bent heddles. Wipe the harnesses down, apply silicone to the harness tops and bottoms so the heddles, when put back on, glide smoothly.
• Remove the old bumper pads from the beater bar - these will be replaced with new ones
• Remove old pads from under the upper jacks each side of the castle
• Remove the skirts from the front and back beams - they are functional yet old, yellow and bordering on crumbling
• Remove the felt strip from the top and bottom grooves of the beater where the reed sits, need to confirm this with Macomber!
• Clean the 3 reeds (10, 12, 15 dent)

Then I have to order the following, probably next week:

• Bumper Pads for the beater
• Beater Handle (new to me) as the beater does not have one
• Felt strips for the reed holder in the beater
• Pads for under the upper jacks 
• Front and Rear Skirts
• New strings for the sectional beam - I may have to make these
• Wheels (new to me) as the loom does not have them and it would make moving it, for cleaning under it, easier
• Extra Treadle Hooks

Of course after I am done cleaning, I then get to put it all back together, after the replacement parts arrive, why do this twice!

There are things I need but I don't want to order just yet as they maybe given to me when the rest of the accessories are sorted by the person I bought the loom from

• Warping board
• Tension box
• Raddle, for use with the regular beam or I will make one
• Extra treadle hooks, there were only 10 in use when I bought the loom
• Handles for the drum and ratchet brakes
• Maybe get a 5 dent reed since rug warps are thicker and a finer dent reed can be abrasive!
• Insert eye heddles, I had them on my other loom and like them better for rug warps

Having had my second cuppa coffee, it is now time to start the cleaning