Beam the warp with a lot of tension, more than it will be under while you’re weaving. This extra tension prevents the threads from biting down unevenly as the layers build up on the warp beam. The ideal is a solid, smooth, very hard package of yarns, the same degree of smoothness and solidness as a spool of sewing thread.
Too little tension during beaming
If you put less tension on the warp when beaming than you do when weaving, mysterious bunches of flabby warps appear randomly as you weave. The effect of the greater tension you apply while weaving is the same as pulling hard on the warp. Imagine pulling hard on a loosely wound warp: the outer layers of the warp would slip, pulling the inner layers nearer the beam tighter. On a short warp of just a few turns of the beam, the slippage would probably continue right down to the beam, tightening the whole warp, and so there wouldn’t be any effect on your weaving. But on any warp longer than a few yards, the slippage can’t go deeper than a few layers, and the tightened outer layers compress the inner layers. As they compress, the threads flex and curve. In weaving, the flexes start to straighten out the closer you get to them, but they do so randomly, not all at once. That explains that curious snaky pattern you may have seen on your beam after weaving for awhile and also the mysteriously uneven tension of the warp.
Does extra tension harm the warp?
No, not even elastic yarns like wool, and not even if you don’t weave it off immediately. In fact, Jim Ahrens once wove off a 2/28 wool warp that had been under this kind of tension for eight years. In comparing the finished fabric to the sample he had woven eight years earlier on that warp, he found no difference in hand or resilience of the two fabrics. I wouldn’t recommend you put a poor quality thread to this extreme test, but since we’re weaving high-quality cloth, you wouldn’t be using poor quality thread anyway.
Tensioning the Warp by Yourself
If you’re working on your own, without a helper, using the “jerking” method allows you to apply great tension to your warp. Every time you crank the warp beam one full turn, stop, engage the brake, and then stand where the bulk of the warp is. Starting at one side of the warp, take a 2″ section of the warp in each hand. Tension them by jerking hard, very hard. Drop those sections, and pick up the next two sections and jerk very hard again. Continue jerking, in 2″ sections, all the way across the warp. See Figure A. This tightens the warp you just wound on the beam. Then wind on another turn, and follow the same process again, starting from the other edge of the warp. Alternating right and left edges as the starting point helps prevent one side receiving less tension than the other because you may have pulled harder on the first bundles every time.
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If you begin to get blisters, though I never have, fingerless gloves, like those that golfers use, can help.Note that it is the turn of warp that you just wound onto the beam that is being tensioned. Warp that is not on the beam is slack as soon as you let go of it. If you must stop beaming and resume later, jerk all the sections of the last turn of the warp again before you start beaming. Another way to achieve good, consistent tension is to use your body weight instead of jerking the warp. Grasp each 2″ section at arm’s length, lock your elbows, and then lean back against the warp. Try this if you feel you can’t be sure of jerking with the same force all across the warp. Remember, the tension has to be not only tight, but even. |
Smoothing out the warp as you wind on
You may find it necessary to smooth out sections before tensioning to get the warp threads lined up and flat. Whatever you do, don’t comb! Combing can snag a thread or create tangles, often causing threads to break.
Often, it’s enough just to shake the warp briskly, like a horse’s reins, while pulling the warp toward you. You might also try holding a section of warp taut and slapping with your palm or flicking with your finger. See Figures B and C.
 If this doesn’t lay the warp out flat, the best way to smooth sections with the least possibility of stretching is what I call “the pinch.” Lay threads over the flats of your fingers, then pinch them gently with the thumb. Now draw thumb and fingers toward you for a few inches. Release, pinch, and draw again until the threads lie properly. By drawing the pinch along, the loose warps that have looped up are worked along the bulk of the warp; eventually all the ends are equally tensioned. See Figure D. |
This tip is an excerpt from Chapter 2, “Beaming on a Plain Beam” in Book 2,Warping Your Loom and Tying on New Warps– and Weaving for Beginners
Yes, this is correct, but it took me a minute to understand what you meant. To crank and yank easily without having to walk around the loom to the front after every crank, the warp is on the back beam with the bulk of the warp going back from the loom–away from the heddles. After beaming, the warp is taken OVER the back beam and is pointed to the heddles for threading. This is a big time saver and makes a well-beamed warp.
Peggy
this was SUPER helpful, especially as a new weaver.
Thanks for your comment–It is so important to beam the warp under tension. There are lots of tips that have information you will want to know. Much is in my book for beginners, I wrote it just for you. See the books tab.
Peggy
I have a sectional beam on my new macomber loom but I don’t want to warm it sectionally. I desire to warp the regular way back to front. Can I do this by just leaving the pegs on the warp beam and warp regularly without packing?
Yes. Watch out that no warp threads ride up on the pegs. Peggy
Peggy, I have a question about applying the brake while warping. I have the DVD Warping the Loom Back to Front which I have watched many times–I always get so nervous when putting on the warp. My question is: while winding the warp beam do you take the brake off when winding a revolution-stop-apply the the brake-then yank the yarns-release the brake-wind another revolution-apply the brake-yank? I have a wolf pup LT that I am warping this weekend. I really like the DVD, it helps me calm my warping anxiety. Thank you, Deborah Belmaggio
I think you are talking about a tension brake–not a ratchet brake. Yes, release the brake while winding; engage it while yanking. You were right when you figured it out.I’m glad to calm your warping anxiety. We don’t want anxiety–we want to KNOW what to do. I’m glad my video is helping out.I hope this answers you. Try again if not, until I get it right for you.
Peggy
I hi Peggy I just started a project on a loom I just purchased and after I worked on my threads one side of my loom the threads are a lot shorter than the other side not sure why that is. Do you have any suggestions. My email is fmaui2011@gmail.com. Thank you Faith
Often this just happens. I could never pin down anyone to explain why–even my Jim Ahrens said it happens, don’t worry about it. It was never too much a few inches or so longer on one side and my warps weren’t very wide. It might be some more than a few inches if it’s a wide warp. this is the best I can do. I think it was the only problem I couldn’t get an answer/solution for. I never factored it in on my planning calculations and never got caught short but never needed precise measurements, either.
I have watched weavers (new weavers esp.) wind warp onto the warp board & see the warp getting tighter, shorter, as the wind on. Actually see the pegs bending, this is how you get one side shorter. More noticeable when using fine threads & they feel they must get an entire warp in one chain.
I am weaving an harness pattern scarf in tencel and find the end threads on the right side are breaking at the fell line about every 5-8″. I’m also finding some resistance lifting a couple of the harnesses with five tied together on one treadle. Any suggestions?
I think your cloth is drawing in too much—how much narrower is it than the width in the reed—on the right side and the left? Putting more thread into the weft could help—more diagonal. I hope you are NOT putting in the weft as in Figure 19 on page 13. Are you changing the shed at the right time? Read the first paragraph on page 27. Follow the weaving motions carefully beginning on page 11. These motions may be new to you but are important—be sure you understand why to change the shed after the beater has hit the fell. Read the pages 11-30 carefully and thoughtfully.
I don’t think raising the heavy shafts has anything to do with your breakage. Often the left edge is better than the right for right handed weavers—that may be why your left side isn’t a problem.
You might use a stronger thread for the selvedge threads on this warp.
Let me know what happens. And what works. I’m glad you have the book. Have you read the chapter on selvedges? Have you read about shuttles? I notice there is a troubleshooting chapter, too. I don’t think the chapters are too long or dense—in the beginning book the information is less technical.
thank you
reading this gave me additional information!
I just finished winding on an 8.5 yard warp of 2/8 wool. I ended up seeing a bulge as it was being beamed. I use sticks. I also saw some spreading at the ends, as confirmed by measuring. At the end of the warp, I had the middle loops shorter than selvedge loops, by about 4 inches. I cut the ends, removed them from the raddle, and looked in your “Weaving for Beginners” book for the photo that I recalled seeing…”poorly beamed warp”. It resembles a cigar. I believe I needed more tension during beaming. Can I unwind the warp, rechain, re raddle, and re wind? Or with wool of this length, would I risk trashing the warp?
Hi, Peggy,
Thank you for the wealth of information you share with us.
I recently purchased a 4-shaft Dorset Loom. The front ratchet and pawl is somewhat loose, in such a way that I cannot maintain the proper tension when I advance the already woven fabric before continuing my weaving. Is there any way I could adjust this without pulling everything apart? Do you have suggestions of how I could tighten this.
This ratchet has a lever, not a crank and the break that bites to the gear of the ratchet. (In the back beam there is a crank that tensions the back beam threads but that is fine.)
Hi Peggy,
Thank you for your tips. It explains a problem I had with tension for some bags I was weaving. I had to use finer threads and thread three to a dent. One side began to have less tension than the other and threads at one end began to snap. I realised this was because some end threads had roll off the paper so the ends weren’t evenly tensioned.
rolling the warp onto the paper to loose. Can I move the whole warp forward to the front of the loom and then slowly reverse it back over the paper to get a better tension
Yes. When you bring it forward, gently wind it up on the cloth beam just so the threads don’t get too messed up. Put it under a lot of tension as you wind it back onto the warp beam. Slowly isn’t the issue; it is tightly.
Peggy
I finished weaving my project only to find that when I cut the piece off my loom, it had several places where the weave was literally pulled apart as it went over the front apron bar.This is my first project with 12 picks per inch. I have been weaving for a few years now and never had this happen. What happened?
This can happen, especially with double weave projects when the two layers don’t go over the bar evenly as the warp is stretched as it goes over the bar. I’m thinking perhaps it happened this time for you because the wefts were farther apart than for a usual cloth. I don’t know. I wish you had noticed it earlier and could have eased the cloth over the cloth beam or put siticks under the cloth as it goes over the bar. I know my fine silk fabrics (loosely woven) need several flat sticks under the cloth to help ease it over the beam without stretching and separating the wefts. So, I’m not sure what to tell you. Can you tell me if the cloth was loosely woven? That’s what I can think of.
Peggy
My problem when warping a loom with a warp of around 8 yards it gets tangled. I have tossed warps because of this. I tie the warp every 3 feet on the warping board.
Any suggestions how not to get warp tangled?
I think I can help you but I need to know more. Are you warping back-to-front or front to back? Do you have my book Weaving for Beginners? If so, perhaps I can refer you to pages but that isn’t required. Can you explain a bit when or where the tangles begin and where they are located? I assume you are talking about when you are beaming the warp the threads tangle. And I assume the ties you make every 3 feet are choke ties: tight ties around the warp. Now I’m thinking you are warping back to front. Are you using a raddle and how big are the spaces? Are you chaining your warps? Is that where the threads tangle? What kind of threads are you using–extra fine or something out of the ordinary?
That’s all for tonight, I’ve got some ideas. Until I hear from you,
Peggy
Sally, I hope I didn’t overwhelm you. I’m looking forward to figuring out your tangled warps. We could have a phone conversation if you like. I’m in califormia at home at 415-464-1402. or my cell at 415-306-2635. I’m likely to see a message on my home number. Let me know when would be goodtimes to talk. I don’t have Zoom account, but if you do, we could zoom.
Peggy
Hi Peggy,
Thank you so much, this is very helpful. I have had issues like Sally, the last person to comment, with my warp tangling. I have ordered your book but it hasn’t arrived yet. I’m new to multi-shaft looms and had to throw away my first warp because of too many tangles (I started with 8/2 cotton, which was too small for a beginner, I think; I’m using 3/2 now). I got the second warp on the loom, and I followed what I read on your blog – I used the kite method instead of chaining to remove from my warping board (including twisting it occasionally to keep all the threads as taut as possible), I made a group and individual cross, and I warped back to front using a raddle (starting with the group cross, obviously). I also used choke ties where you used them in your article on warping with two crosses. The tangles happen when I’m beaming. I did manage to get everything beamed onto the back beam, and today I’m going to attempt threading, but there’s a mass of tangles at the end of the warp right before the individual cross (I’m going to play around with it right after I post this). And more importantly, the tangles made the warping process exhausting and dispiriting. I have to imagine it can go more smoothly than it did…it seems as though the yarns are actually not all the same length. I’ve read about being careful that the last yarns on the warping board are not actually shorter than the first ones, because the tension can pull the ends of the pegs in, but that doesn’t seem to be my issue. For one, I’m using a Schacht weaving board (14 yards) with sturdy pegs, and also, the threads that look uneven lengths to me don’t follow that pattern. It seems more like the longer threads are near where I changed colors, like despite a lot attention and effort, I didn’t keep the tension even enough when ending one color and starting another. But even the areas where I had big blocks of the same color would get quite tangled, and it didn’t seem like shaking them out or slapping them was sufficient. I would love any feedback you have. Is it just a matter of practice, and it’s likely that I don’t have even enough tension on the warping board? Is there something else I may be doing wrong? It’s making me long for the direct warping I would do on my rigid heddle, except I love the idea of being able to do 14 yard warps! Thank you so much in advance.
I’m trying to imagine how your tangles got there and have some thoughts for now. When my book arrives, we can talk more specifically e.g. on page xx look at figure xx. For now, your threads should ALL HAVE BEEN THE SAME LENGTH FORM THE GET-GO. So we have to wonder why they aren’t. I wonder how wide your warp is planned to be in the reed. I wonder, since your warp is terribly long for trying a new thing, if you also have a wide warp and perhaps you should not have warped all the threads on the warping boaard together–rather than warping in 2 or more separate groups (which we call bouts). What I’m tryig to say is that you might have needed to make 2 or 3 smaller separate warps, rather than one humoungous one on the warping board. I’m thinking, yes the pegs didn’t bend but did the threads build up on the pegs to cause some threads to be longer than others? I’m just guessing here. They should have been in a nice bundle as you wound them on the kitstick–perhaps some twisting but that doesn’t sound like what you experienced. (If your warp would have been wound in bouts, you would then have a kite stick for each bout.) They should then have been the same length as you beamed as well. What do you think about these first thoughts? And let’s go on froom here as I am only guessing. Exhausting and disperiting we don’t want so don’t give up. The book will be much more in detail, step by step with lots of illustrations you can check to see if you are understanding what the words are telling you.
Peggy
Hi Peggy,
Thanks so much for the response! My warp is 150 threads wide (for a 12 dent reed), and I divided it into two sessions on the warping board, and took it off onto two separate kites. I was careful to keep the threads all directly on the peg, not building up on top of each other. I keep wondering if the issue was that I was somehow not keeping good enough tension when I changed colors, making those parts of the threads longer than other parts. One reason I suspect that is because I tried putting a few stripes in with colors I only had a little yarn of, and those are some of the longest ones (like a few colors where I only had enough to go down and back once on the warping board, so a bigger proportion of their length is near the beginning and end of the thread). But I don’t know how to improve that, as I was trying to be quite careful. Thanks again for your help, and I would love any thoughts you have in response to this. I don’t think your book is scheduled to arrive until early December, unfortunately.
December is almost here. I think working step by step with y book will help.
Peggy