Monday, June 22, 2009

Sectional Beaming



I'm setting up the AVL for an experimental warp for Diversified Plain Weave.

With DPW, you need two different warp threads - two very fine ends to every thick end. Since I'm beaming a 20 yard long warp, and the fine threads are very fine compared to the thick ones, it's much more sensible to beam them separately.

When I'm doing two warps, I usually beam the bottom warp first, then the top one.

My beams have 1" sections. There are times when I wish I had 2" sections in order to halve the time required to beam, but generally, 1" makes more sense for me.

I like to work with fine threads, and a 2" section would mean twice as many yarn packages, so twice as much spool winding (if I'm using spools) or buying twice as many tubes (which can get to be expensive).

My loom is old. It doesn't have a directional roller for the bottom beam - the warp just comes off the top of the actual beam, straight through the heddles to the front of the loom.

One of the things required before I could beam this warp was have Karena make a bunch more leader strings. :}

I'm about 2/3's done the fine warp, and hope to finish beaming and start threading tomorrow.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

My husband says I have to add more threads than my set on my sectional beam to adjust for the amount of area the sectional pegs take up on the warp beam. Is this true? I have never heard this anywhere. I want to make a 10 epi warp so I believe I just put 10 threads in every 1" section. He says I have to put 14. Please Help me understand this.

Laura Fry said...

If your set is 10 epi and you have one inch sections, you wind 10 ends per section. The pegs do nothing be separate the sections.
Cheers,
Laura

Unknown said...

So, if I am doing a weft-faced rug at 8 epi, do I only put 16 ends in my 2" section? I'm confused because I read that each section should be filled fully from side to side so that each successive layer will remain flat with no chance for threads to cut down into lower layers. Wrapping 8/5 linen warp around a ruler gives me 28 ends (fitting in the space between the pegs of my sectional warping beam).
PriscillaE

Laura Fry said...

Yes, you would put 16 ends per 2 inch section. Beam under high tension so that there is no danger of upper layers cutting down into lower layers. How successful the warp will be will depend on how long the warp is, how tightly you beam. A 'short' warp of 10 yards or so should not give you particular problems imo.
cheers,
Laura

Unknown said...

Well, I decided to try it, but I am finding the 8/5 linen doesn't fill the sections tight enough from side to side (peg to peg). The upper layers are cutting down into the layers below. I'm sure it's going to be ok for this short warp (3 yds), but I sure would like to get more information for when I do longer warps. I've written to AVL tonight and will try contacting Schacht (my sectional warp beam brand).

Peggy Osterkamp's book on warping stresses the fact that the layers have to be tight and flat, but she doesn't discuss calculating those threads.

Thanks so much for your help. If I find out anything good I will let you know. I'm on a quest. : )
Priscilla

Unknown said...

Hi Laura,
You say if you were warping 2 inches at a time you would need 74 threads. Isn't that 64 threads - or am I missing something. I only wondered as sometime in the (hopefully not to distant) future I will use my sectional warping beam for the first time and need to know how to do it all.
Many Thanks
Paul

Laura Fry said...

My bad...typo!

Cheers
Laura