Homemade Weaving Jig By David Dosser Items needed for a 100 thread weaving jig: 1. 8x10 -.080 Plastic sheet (Optix brand or Lexan). Clear or white Plastic is easier to work with and can be found at most home improvement stores and some hobby stores. http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgibin/wti0001p?&i=lxdl96&p=ml You may also use thin hobby wood, but plastic looks better and you can use dry erase markers for re-numbering if needed. 2. EVA foam, 6mm. Sheets can be glued together if needed to equal 6mm. This can be sheet foam found at a hobby store or the big auction website, even EVA grip foam will work if not too stiff. 3. Foam mounting tape or plastic glue. 4. Plastic u-channel (1/4 ) or other material such as brass or aluminum ¼. This example is plastic Plastruct styrene 1/4 deep u-channel from Tower Hobbies. http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgibin/wti0001p?&i=lxdm41&p=7 5. NEW razor blades or scalpel. Dull razor blades do not cut the foam as good and then the slots will not hold thread tension as well.
6. Your choice of tool for cutting plastic. I use a rotary tool with a thin diamond cutting wheel. Instructions 1. Cut the plastic according to the schematic. Both pieces, exact same size. Round the edges and sand any sharp or rough areas to protect the rod blank. 2. Cut the foam strips 6mm wide x 9mm high with razor or good scissors. 2 pieces, 14cm; 2 pieces 11cm. Note: You can cut the foam strips about 1 or 2mm longer than the u-channel. This will allow you to place a rubber band from one end to the other after you have placed it in the u-channel in order to squeeze the slots together for better thread tension. 3. Cut the u-channel with razor, rotary tool or hobby saw. 2 pieces 14cm; 2 pieces 11cm. 4. Mark out where the u-channel will be on the plastic bases with gel pen or wax pencil. 5. Cut and apply foam mounting tape to the bottom of the u-channels and press them onto the bases. Make sure to place them according to the diagram. 6. Optional: Apply thin strips of double sided tape to one side of the foam strips and insert them into the u-channels with an equal distance of foam slightly sticking out of both ends of the channel (for rubber bands to grab onto). 7. Cut the slots in the foam to the top (or close to the top) of the channel in each strip with a NEW razor or scalpel. Make the slots as straight and level as possible. The long strips need 11 slots per inch and the short strips need 10 slots per inch. This will give you
at least 60 slots on the long side and 40 slots on the short side. I used a fabric ruler with marks for different threads per inch to mark the foam. If you do not have one of these, you may have to do the math. A pencil will mark the foam for the slots, unless you use black colored foam. I use a silver gel pen for black foam. 8. At this point you can mark the plastic with a paint pen or something similar, mark the slots, or cut paper to match angles and lengths and mark numbers on the paper. I marked on graph paper every 5 th slot, cut it to fit the underside of the jig, then taped it underneath with the marks showing through. This way I can renumber the jig for smaller weaves by using a dry erase marker on top. I also dotted the every 5 th slot with a marker directly on the foam just to help me see a little better. 9. The rubber bands can be installed with half of the band on the channel and half on the foam and stretched from one end to the other on each channel. This will help pull the slots together and therefore give you a little more tension on the thread while in the slots. 10. I recommend marking each jig Left or Right (L or R). Tape the weaving jigs to the rod weave! You can make a weaving jig that holds any amount of threads you need by simply changing the number of slots per inch or shortening the whole thing. This wasn t meant to limit anyone to a 100 thread jig. I have made several of these and they work well. I use a 60 thread jig most of the time that was made the same way, just a little shorter. I use the 100 thread jig for large patterns. I have included a picture of a 100 thread jig with brass channels and graph paper taped underneath and a 60 thread jig on white plastic using equal size channel pieces and foam strips. The slots in this one were cut at 8 slots per inch. Enjoy!