Loom Woes

I have had a problem with my warp unreeling from the back beam when I tap the brake to advance the warp. I finally put this backhoe tooth on the outside of the beam to add weight and reduce the problem. I realized that sooner or later, the dowel would break from the weight of this tooth and I emailed Gilmore looms last week.

I exchanged a couple of emails and also had a couple of phone conversations with Bob Allen, the current owner and loom builder. He explained that there were two design flaws that he inherited. Bob built Miss Millie in 2003 and by then had eliminated the notorious dipped shed that prevented taut warps, but he hadn't as yet devised a method to stop unreeling warp from the back beam. I had learned to tap the brake to keep the action to one cog tooth at a time, but I knew that wouldn't work for rugs.
When I originally talked to him a few years ago, he said that he had developed an anti-spin device and that if I would bring the loom back in, he'd install it at no cost. When I emailed him last week, he said that he had created his device as a kit and I could order one. I ordered two - one for Miss Millie and one for Maudie Mae. Ian and spend some time getting them installed this morning, but if you have a Gilmore, you know that yours doesn't look like this.

I warped like crazy this afternoon but couldn't finish before dinner. I have to spend the day in town tomorrow, so I won't get to finish and start weaving until Friday. I hate the whole thing about waiting. I am so anxious to see how this works.
Meanwhile, I've started knitting the fruits and vegetables for Alexia's toy kitchen. I'm at three tomatoes and a banana as of tonight.

And tonight, Ian and I watched an astonishing documentary from Netflix called The Hobart Shakespeareans. I was reminded of Stand and Deliver, only these were real kids with real tears, some of them mine. What a difference one person, one teacher can make, who chooses his passion to teach over the passion to make money.