Hello all- I am weaving a blanket in 8/4 cotton. Occasionally I would like to introduce a few picks of different coloured thread which I only have in 8/2 cotton or bamboo. I tried winding a bobbin holding two threads of 8/2 cotton in my hand, so that when I throw the shuttle across the warp, a double thread equivalent to one 8/4 cotton thread is produced. However, I have found that after a while, a difference emerges in the lengths of the two threads so that one is longer than the other and needs to be 'tidied up' by drawing it through the shed by hand until it matches the length of the other thread, after which the beater is used etc. When I am winding on the bobbin, it seems like each thread is being fed on at the same rate, but it must not be! My next approach was to revert to a single thread bobbin, which is fine ....I just do a double pick in the same shed, but quite time consuming. Can anyone suggest what I am doing wrong when winding on the pair of threads? The bobbin winder is a Louet hand operated one and the bobbins are for the Schacht boat shuttle. Thanks.
Winding a bobbin with pair of threads
Hi Katherine,
While I’ve never been in your situation or tried this potential solution….here’s my two cents…..can you throw the 8/2 shuttle twice thru the same shed, wrapping the second pass around your floating selvedge (if you have one)? Just a thought. I’m anxious to see what advice the wise experts have for this situation.
Thanks,
Marty
Thanks Marty - it looks like that is the recommended approach alright, with the only alternative being a double bobbin shuttle. I need to keep reminding myself that as I am not weaving to make money, it shouldn't matter if things take a little longer than expected....where am I rushing to anyway?! I should just enjoy the intriguing process of becoming a weaver! It is a wonderful craft no doubt about it!
Well I just googled this issue and...surprise! surprise! .....the answer was right there in the JST Knowledge base all the time! :-). I'm not doing anything wrong as such, it just one of those things that is the way it is! Looks like I will just have to resign myself to that double throw instead of the hoped for double threaded bobbin approach. Maybe the double bobbin shuttle might be worth considering if I find myself doing a lot of this double thread weft.
Hello Katherine,
I also had the same issue & then one day I read a solution that has worked beautifully for me.
I have an end feed delivery shuttle. I start two ends of 2/8 on a pirn keeping a finger between the two strands, keeping a slight amount of tension. Once the two strands go through the tension device on the shuttle, it keeps them nicely together. Adjust the tension with the Allen key provided with the shuttle if necessary.
Hope this works for you as well as it did for me. A real game changer.
Thanks very much for that useful information. The end feed shuttle is definitely something I'll consider investing in. At the moment I am using the Schacht open bottom boat shuttle which is a thing of beauty, but maybe for this particular issue, not quite the best thing for the job. Thanks again. Always good to hear first hand advice and recommendations from fellow weavers!