Thinking Out Loud: Planning a DIY Spool Rack for Sectional Warping

 Finished Spool Rack / Creel

Someone gave me a tapestry weaving loom (Thank you Jean P.), but I decided that I don't need yet another new hobby at this point (Maybe someday when I have to downsize to a quieter smaller loom, but not now.)  If I want to do tapestry, I'd probably work that out on one of the floor looms --I'd just be working horizontally vs. vertically, and not using the treadles.   

My husband helped me re-work this Navajo frame loom into a spool rack [Sorry -- I don't have a before picture.  Just imagine the frame above without the spools.]  These racks are ridiculously expensive to purchase already made, but they look simple enough to make at home -- or to adapt from existing items.   Bonus: My Dear Husband has agreed to help with this project.

 

Here's another shot, so you can see the 24 threads being fed into the tension device.  Order from chaos!  It just amazes me that this can work at all. 

Would the plastic bobbins work better with my bobbin winder?  It looks like I'm going to be spending a lot of time winding bobbins from large spools of cotton. Another option is to just buy the spools of cotton.  Captain Yarn has about the best price for 10/2 cotton.   I wound up buying 30 1/2-pound spools of 10/2 cotton from Captain Yarn in Canada, as he had the best price (plus $36 shipping)--before Bump's tarriffs kicked in a few years ago.  I will need 24 spools to wind a sectional warp for a coverlet.  I got the extras for the tabby weft.  

I cut some lime green rounds off of a pool noodle to act as spacers between the spools.  I was worried about runaway spools, but once I started filling the sectional beam, that was not a problem.  The tension box keeps things under tension and rolls out the yarn at a nice pace -- however fast you roll it on.  

Here is some of the research I did before making my DIY spool rack, just in case it might help someone else out there: 

There are multiple options for the 4-inch spools, too.  Cardboard or plastic.     The plastic spools sell for  $3 or $4 each.  [Rosie's Plastic Spool for $3 each or Leclerc's Plastic Spools for $4 each.  The cardboard ones from Schacht are $3.75, although you can get them cheaper on Amazon -- but I suspect you get what you pay for there-- They are also smaller.  So it may be worth the investment to get the good ones from The Woolery.  The official Spools for weaving hold 8 oz. of yarn.  That seems like a good benchmark for loading the bobbins.  

It sounds like I'd need to amend my DIY electric bobbin winder to use the Schacht cardboard bobbins so that it would be secured on both ends.  Not sure if it would work for the plastic bobbins.  I suspect it's a balance thing?  Since I am using the pre-wound spools, I don't need to waste time winding my own, and since my anticipated long-warp projects will be for coverlets, I can go with the standard white cotton spools.

More thinking out loud:

Here are a few spool racks currently on the market to give you an idea of what I'm talking about --along with the crazy high prices:

Folding 24-in. Spool Rack from Ability Weavers in MI 

• It folds up flat for easy storage.
• It also has the thread guides.
• Made for 4-inch 1/2-pound thread spools.
• Holds 24 spools.
  
• $165   
• Sales at Ability Weavers go to hiring more weavers.  They really do give back to the world.  It's a good cause.
  

Here's the Schacht Spool Rack

• Holds 40 4-inch spools.
• $377 at The Woolery.
• It doesn't seem to have the thread guides. 

 

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I found this one on Pinterest, but the follow-up link did not lead to more details.

I like how the centers turn for installing/swapping out the spools.  I wonder how hard that would be to replicate?  Hubby says KISS, so I guess that's a no.

 

 

Leclerc Bobbin Stand with Thread Guide (photo from The Woolery)  which sells for $213

This DIY version is from one of the weaving groups.  They added the thread guides to hold the thread up and keep the thread from slipping off the ends.  Yes, I think we can do that!

 

Will I need the thread guides, too?  Yes-- We added them.