Although I gave the big loom a good refurbishing when it arrived last summer, I had not replaced the canvas aprons on the respective warp and cloth beams. They looked clean and sturdy enough at the time. But when I pulled off the high class-low maintenance throw, there was a definite musty / funky smell. There were some yellow spots at the top of the canvas:
Ew!
Time to swap out that old canvas for new ones!
I took a small square as a sample and stopped in at the local Joann's Fabric to pick up some canvas. They had some on sale, but it was much lighter weight than what was on the loom. It felt more like muslin with some sizing on it. And nothing in white/natural. So I decided to keep looking. After checking the archives of some of the FaceBook weaving groups, people have used artist canvas by the yard or they bought thicker painter's tarps for this purpose.
I opted for a 12 mil. painter's tarp. I paid about $21 for a 4 ft x 12 ft piece of canvas. This appears to be about what was on it before ...
So I cut new pieces of canvas, the same size as as the old pieces, using the old aprons as templates. I cut holes and slits where the old ones were ... It was good to have the old pieces as models / patterns. It would have been a much more difficult job without that original to look at.
The hardest part was threading the strings back through the canvas and sticks. I figured out that I had to ream some good holes through the canvas with an awl, and then tape the ends of the strings -- like a shoelace to get them through. I did not replace those strings.
Good as new!
And soon, the sectional warp will be fully installed and ready to go! Stay tuned!
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