Here are a few photos about another loom built by Jim Ahrens: his 40-shaft dobby loom which he built during the second world war in the 40’s. These are just to whet your appetite for the information you’ll find on ahrenslooms.com. My apprentice, Vera Totos and I made the site because it was important to show how Jim’s looms worked.
This is part of a chain I used to weave the music notes for Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star several years ago. Over time some pegs have been removed.
Here is the backside of the dobby chain and some of the dobby mechanism. You can see it took a lot of bars for the first phrase of the tune.
Part of the mechanism has a cord with a knot for each of the 40 shafts. When a peg hits the mechanism it pushes the corresponding cord so it can’t go throought the hole, thus moving that shaft.
Here is a photo near the beginning of our restoration of the loom. Lots and lots of cords and knots!!
Peggy, Thanks so much for sharing this with us. A mechanical dobby loom is better than a computer operated loom in my opinion if one is going to be weaving the same complicated pattern repetitively. I am speaking from observation not any kind of experience but a circuit board is going to be much harder to fix (I am an electronics person from 30 plus years back ground). Dobby looms just don’t seem that complicated and a good investment in time. . I will study your new site and bookmark it as an important one. Best regards, Mike
Wow !!!