I am restoring a Kessenich 36" 4 Shaft, 6 Treadle floor loom.

I have removed all the heddles, which were rusted, and soaked in vinegar.  I've wiped them down, and now am sanding each.  Many are pocked badly, with all the finish coming off.

I thought I'd hang the bad ones on string, and spray with silver rustoleum, but would that make them smooth enough to use?

So....how bad are too bad...if the eyes are rough and pocked from rust, I know to discard those...in order not to break the warp threads.  But if the eye is ok, and the shaft is rusted....should I replace them also?  

I am fairly new to weaving, and this is a project of love!  Thanks for your help!

 

Comments

Mon, 08/05/2013 - 17:44

Sara von Tresckow

If you got the loom for a reasonable cost, consider simply replacing the heddles. Kessenich still makes looms, and they can supply you with a nice shiny new set - the pocking and rust will continue and you're likely to experience less than smooth movement of heddles across the shaft bars.

If you are really short of funds, your idea of discarding those with pocked eyes is the way to go.

Mon, 08/05/2013 - 19:15

KateMuniz

I did get the loom for a great price, but it has no reed, so I want to invest in a couple of good reeds, first.

The entire loom needs stripped, sanded, and some of the hardware replaced.  I'd like to save where I can.  Bruce at Kessenich was a wealth of information.  This is an early loom from the 50s, in solid cherry and just needs lots of love!

 

 

Mon, 08/05/2013 - 19:17

SallyE (not verified)

I'd worry about using the pocked heddles with a fine warp.   But if you are weaving rugs and will use a really sturdy warp, they might be fine.  Cleaning them up is a lot of work, however, so it's also a matter of what you have the most of - time or money.   If you have the money, just replace them.  

Tue, 08/06/2013 - 12:32

sequel (not verified)

I got a (very) used cherry Kessenich as my first loom.   Made in Wauwatosa, WI with an label that had a zone and not a zip code.  I cleaned every single heddle with S.O.S. pads because I didn't know any better.  Worked fine.  Later I found out I could have just used steel wool.  You may want to replace the ropes on the pulleys deep inside the loom.  Trust me, it's a whole lot easier than trying to do it when there's a warp on the loom!

 

Edit:  Let me add that the beater has a tendency to fall out as the loom is folded and unfolded...

Mon, 08/05/2013 - 22:50

sandra.eberhar…

I removed and am throwing away about 400 10.5" wire heddles.  The eyes are fine, there's no rust, but they are rough and oxidized.  They do not slide on the heddle bars at all.  If I leave these heddles on this loom, I will be wrestling with them every single time I thread it.  That is something to think about when you evaluate whethet to keep them or not.

Tue, 08/06/2013 - 14:36

KateMuniz

All good advice.  My boss' daughter got into some trouble, so she is my "indentured servant" for the week.  I soaked them in vinegar over the weekend, and now Rachel is sanding them with steel wool, and grading them.  Yesterday, we took one of the worst, and sprayed with Rustoleum Primer, to see how smooth it became.  

That test made me see that grades A-C are salvagable, but D's and F's are not.  So today, she is sanding and sorting!  So far, only 100 or so are Ds and Fs.  I'll order new ones when I order the reed.

I think I'll do a crochet chain and catch a heddle each 3 chains or so, hang the chains up and spray while hanging.  That way they are separated and hanging.  (And they can dry.) Silly question:  What do you think about spraying the sets from each shaft different colors....to aid in threading?  (Red, white blue, yellow?)  Would that make the loom too "colorful" and not authentic looking, or does function trump form?

(btw:  I am going to replace the pulley ropes...good advice!)

Tue, 08/06/2013 - 15:08

SallyE (not verified)

That's what I need, an indentured servant!

As for using colors, lots of people color string heddles, but then if you have to move them around for a particular design, the colors can get confusing.   I've also seen looms with the shaft bars painted.   Or, you could use colored heddles only on every 4th shaft.

 

Tue, 08/06/2013 - 18:53

sally orgren

I'd like to sign up for one of those indentured servants, too! ;-)

Tue, 08/06/2013 - 19:14

sequel (not verified)

You will drive yourself crazy moving heddles around.  You can put a strip of color tape on the inside bottom of each shaft frame to remind you which shaft you're on.

Don't get involved in refinishing the loom until you decide you like weaving on it.  I always thought I'd refinish mine, but it worked just fine while it was ugly.  All I did was fix the broken beater part where it fell out. (see #4 above)  Don't know why the font changed...

Tue, 08/06/2013 - 21:30

mrdubyah (not verified)

Medieval knights reportedly cleaned their rusty chain mail by putting it in a barrel with fine sand and rotating the barrel on a spit overnight.  (Another good use for an indentured servant!)  Do you know anyone with a cylindrical rock tumbler (a.k.a. Lapidary polisher)?  Perhaps an hour or so of tumbling with polishing grit might give those heddles a "like new" shine. 

Wed, 08/07/2013 - 00:26

sandra.eberhar…

That's funny, we were listening to news when they said that prison inmates would be getting early release because of overcrowding, and I said what we need is to revive the indentured servant system.  I"ll take one for outside and one for inside.