This is my third warp on my new Spring loom. I notice when I need to advance the warp, I pull the brake release handle up, but the warp hardly releases. I can get about two pulls on the ratchet before my floating breastbeam leg is back in place. So I have to do that 5 or 6 times to advance the warp. Am I doing something wrong?
It sounds like you have too much tension on your brake disc. You can loosen it off by unscrewing the whorled nut on the long brake cable screw that sticks out at the top of the disc.
I thought that might be the problem. But when I loosen it, the floating breast beam leg moves forward as I weave, and my tension gets looser . Everything I found online said to tighten the nut. Am I missing the happy medium?
That means you haven't wound your warp on tight enough. If you go to your brake and try to wind on without letting the tension off at the front your entire warp roll will probably tighten inside the paper rounds. It is kind of like loosely rolling up a roll of Christmas wrap, if you stick your fingers inside it and turn it will tighten up more and more. Let me know if that works.