CUTTING A WIRE HEDDLE OFF THE SHAFT

Posted by Peg in South Carolina 

A CROSSED HEDDLE

As I was threading I came across an unbelievably crossed heddle.  The heddle was attached to the top of the shaft, to the right were five more heddles, and then to the right of these was the first heddle but attached to the bottom of the shaft. I walked away.  Then I came back.  Nothing had changed.

I was not about to remove the 50 or so heddles from the shaft I would need to in order to get the mess straightened out.  On this loom it is possible but extraordinarily difficult to remove and add heddles from and to the shafts when the loom is threaded.  Or in this case, partially threaded.

WIRE CUTTERS

A wire cutters seemed to be needed to save the day.  I don’t know much about wire cutters.  But I did think that I had a pliers with a wire cutter as part of it.  Couldn’t find it.  Decided I would have to go buy one.

First, however, I decided to send an email to the WeaveTech list to see what kind of wire cutters I should buy and if anyone had guidance for using it.

SCISSORS

The response was gratifyingly immediate.  Just use a scissors and cut it straight on.  I got an old scissors and cut it off.  Doing that certainly took care of my excuse to discontinue threading the loom………….

HOW TO SAVE THE HEDDLE

I got some other answers as well. I read these after I had cut off the heddle with my scissors.  Several people told me to use a wire cutters and to cut carefully at either end so that I could just slip the heddle off for use later as a repair heddle.  I could tape the cut end so that it wouldn’t snag on things.  I will have to remember that.

I have made a note to order/buy the recommended diagonal wire cutter.  This is what I would need to make the careful cuts that would preserve the heddle for future use as a repair heddle.

“Cutting a Wire Heddle off the Shaft”  was written by Margaret Carpenter for Talking about Weaving and was originally posted on June 9, 2010. ©2010 Margaret Carpenter aka Peg in South Carolina.