Category Archives: Paper Mould Making

An earlier post details the process of making a laid facing. Most of that information also applies to this post so it is worthwhile to review both to gain a fuller picture. There is also a video available showing this loom in action. A link to the video is given in the earlier post. TheContinue reading “Making a Backing on the Loom”

This post covers the remaining steps needed to prepare a double faced laid mould to receive its wire facing and backing. The topic of ledges and how they relate to backing wires in wove and laid moulds seems to need some explanation. It is important to understand the purpose of these structures so this postContinue reading “Finishing the Mould Frame”

Defining some terms may make these posts easier to understand. I have chosen some words when a traditional term was not known to me. The terms are in italics; accompanying text and photos are intended to define and explain their meaning. ~frame sides: The two longer parts of the mould frame parallel to the laidContinue reading “Definitions of some Unfamiliar Terms”

The wooden structure of the mould is complete; now the tops of the ribs are scraped level in preparation for sewing down the wire facing. I like to pre-load the mould with weights before leveling the ribs. This gives the mould a very subtle camber; an extremely shallow arch in all directions. The forces ofContinue reading “Leveling the Ribs”

Metal pins are used to improve the connection between the parts of the mould. Holes are drilled and pins are driven down through the frame and rib pegs. These are made of 1/16″ unfluxed brazing rod that I bought from a welding supply house. Ribs are not glued and the pins make certain that theContinue reading “Pinning Ribs, Corners and Brace Rods”

For these moulds both the braces and rub strips are made from polycarbonate sheet. To make rub strips narrow pieces are sawed and cut to length. Like the braces they are made slightly oversized and trimmed off later. Rub strips are attached with brass escutcheon pins. They are drilled in the same way that theContinue reading “Fitting Corner Braces”

The bottom edges of paper moulds are often protected by the addition of corner braces and rub strips. Here is an ‘old style’ brace made of brass. You can see that this one was made by soldering two pieces together. The moulds I’m working on for this series of posts have braces and rub stripsContinue reading “Making Corner Braces”

This mould has had epoxy applied to the corner joints and is secured with spring clamps while the glue cures. The dents left by the clamps poking into the wood will be covered by brass sheathing. Using clamping cauls eliminates the dents for moulds without sheathing. This mould is ready to glue and clamp. AtContinue reading “Gluing Moulds”

Before the corner joints of a mould are glued a brace rod must be fitted. It will pass through all the ribs and be anchored in the frame at both ends. Waterbars also need to be fitted along the ends of each mould. The waterbars are really just little ribs and have the function ofContinue reading “Fitting Waterbars and Brace Rods”

The first step in putting a mould together involves only the ribs and the four pieces of the frame. Other parts; a brass brace rod and extra ribs called waterbars will follow. You may recall that one edge of each frame piece was intentionally left rough. This bottom edge is now smoothed by a singleContinue reading “Assembling the Mould Frame and Ribs”