In a comment on this post, Dianne in NZ asked, "Could you tell me does the shuttle race at the base of the beater not
hit the clamps as you beat? A friend has gone back to LA for a couple
of months and I gave him a pen drawing of these clamps and a mission to
get me some."
Two points to consider:
First, my AVL has an overhead beater. It is designed so that the shuttle race only touches the "floor" of the shed when in its rearmost position. The underside of the beater describes a small section of the bottom of a very large circle; when I pull the beater so the reed touches the fell, there is at least 1/4 inch (maybe more, I've never measured) between the warp and the shuttle race. So, no, there is no interference between clamps and beater. When I advance the clamps, I place them right at the fell, or within a couple of picks of the fell (which is a very small distance, given I'm weaving with fine threads).
Second, the clamps are sold here in the US as "tarp clamps" so the best place to find them is a camping or sporting goods store (either online or brick-n-mortar). The whole setup consists of 2 clamps, 2 lengths of strong cord, 2 paper clips and some weights. I use fishing weights, about 2.5 pounds on each side for a total of 5 pounds (YMMV). These weights, also from a sporting goods store, usually have a metal loop on one or both ends, which makes it easy-peasy to connect them to the loop in the end of the cord.
Depending on how your loom is constructed, you might need 2 eye-bolts to route the cords through, or 2 sticks to hang the cords over.
Here's a link to the best photos I have that show my setup.
Let me know if you have more questions. Happy weaving!
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3 comments:
Hi Sandra, I appreciate your answering my question and all the other information. I don't have a warp on my dobby at present but I'm sure I don't have a gap between warp and race. Inspired to put a warp on just to find out (after I finish an exhibition piece on the table loom. Another question, would the system help at all if the clamps are positioned away from the beater, eg 5cm(2") away? Will pass the shop info on to Bob, thanks.
Hi, Diane, I think that 2" might be too far from the fell to do any good, but it's worth a try. The parts of the system are all inexpensive, so not much lost if you buy 'em and find it doesn't work to your satisfaction.
happy new year!
your persimmon crop is impressive. you could dry some and make persimmon leather.
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