Posted by Nora Rubinstein on Sunday, 8 July 2007, at 2:19 p.m.:
Help!!!!
I have an unidentified floor loom that I bought from a friend who was moving. I am a neophyte weaver. I put it together by looking at where the wood was lighter from the sun, and a few pieces of labeled tape. Otherwise I have no information. Weavers who have seen it have said it is probably Swedish or Finnish and is a combination jack and countermarche. They have said it looks a bit like the Glimakra or Toika but is possibly older than what I can find on the web.
I am having trouble figuring out the tie up and need help.
Here's what I know: 4 harnesses, 6 treadles, string heddles, beater attached at rectangular base (rather than overhead as Glimakras). It has 4 pairs of pieces of wood at the top of the castle that pivot on a center pin (jacks?) and are attached by metal wires to the ends of the harness frames. There are metal wires that run from the jacks through a small block of wood below the harnesses and to the lamms (16 of them in 8 pairs. There are thin pieces of metal the diameter of a coat hanger that attach the treadles through grooves in the treadles to small eyelets at the bottom of the lamms.
BUT I can't tell how to attach them.
It seems that two pairs of lamms control each harness. if I manually pull up on the wires attached between the jacks and the lamms, there is a kind of scissors action below at the lamms.
Help would be most welcome. I can send photos if that would help