Another Tartan on the Loom

[Truitt]

I'm not sure my loom was designed for the rigors of weaving kilt-weight tartan. I sheared this high-test (grade 5) bolt. This is the anchor for the tension brake, so it takes the full impact of every beat. I guess I will have to drill the plate and install a bolt of larger diameter

[The Wizard of BC]

Or a shorter bolt. The bolt you have snapped at the bolts weakest point. There was so much force on the long shank it gave quite a bit of lateral pull.

Bobbie's loom has a shorter bolt. The eye of the tension cable is secured quite close to the metal side plate. There is almost no sidewards angle or tension on the bolt shank.

[Truitt]

The manufacturer provides extended bolts with their sectional beams. The brake drums are further in since the sectional beams aren't quite as wide as the regular beams. I don't know that a bit of angle on the tension chords would cause a problem, so I might try a shorter bolt before I decide to drill it out. Thanks for the suggestion. It is certainly worth a shot.