01From hook to warp end
A jacquard head sits above the loom. For every pick it selects which hooks will rise: on mechanical jacquards through needles and punched pattern cards, on electronic jacquards through selection modules controlled by the design file. The griffe, a set of moving knives, then lifts the selected hooks.
Each hook carries a neck cord, and the neck cord is tied to one or more harness cords. The harness cords run down through the comber board, and each ends in a mail, an eyelet through which a single warp end is drawn. A lingo, a long thin weight, hangs below each mail and pulls the cord back down when its hook is lowered.
When a hook rises, every warp end tied to it rises too and forms the top of the shed; ends on unselected hooks stay down. When one hook carries several harness cords, its lift is repeated across the width, which is how one design repeat is woven several times across the fabric.
The parts in the chain
- Hooks
- Vertical wires in the jacquard head; each one is selected or left down on every pick.
- Griffe (knives)
- Lifts the hooks that have been selected.
- Guide board
- Keeps the hooks aligned inside the head so they lift cleanly.We make this
- Neck cords
- Connect each hook to its harness cords.
- Harness cords
- Run from the neck cord down to the warp, one cord per mail.
- Comber board
- Spaces the harness cords in the correct order across the weaving width.We make this
- Mails (eyes)
- Eyelets on the harness cords through which the warp ends are drawn.
- Lingoes
- Weights that pull each cord and its warp end back down.
02What a comber board does
The comber board is a perforated board fixed horizontally between the jacquard and the warp. Every harness cord passes through one of its holes, so the board decides where each cord hangs across the weaving width. It spreads the cords from the compact hook area above to the full width of the warp below, evenly and in the planned order.
The holes are laid out in rows across the width and in several rows from front to back. A board is chosen so that its hole density suits the warp density of the fabric and the number of harness cords in the harness.
Because the cords slide up and down through the holes on every pick, the quality of the holes matters. Rough or worn holes fray cords and collect lint, and uneven spacing shows up as faults in the cloth.
Comber board vs guide board: a comber board spaces the harness cords below the jacquard, while a guide board keeps the hooks aligned inside the jacquard head. Both are flat perforated boards, which is why the names are sometimes confused.
03How a comber board is filled
Filling (drawing) a comber board means passing the harness cords through its holes in the right order. Methods vary between harness builders and jacquard makers, but the sequence usually looks like this:
- Prepare the harness plan (tie-up). It sets how many hooks are used, how many repeats there are across the width and the order in which the cords from each hook go into the board.
- Choose the tie. In a straight tie every repeat follows the same order across the width; in a point (centre) tie the order is mirrored about the centre, so the design comes out as a mirror image on each side.
- Mount the comber board level, square to the loom and at the correct height below the jacquard.
- Pass the harness cords through the holes, following the plan hole by hole and row by row, so each cord lands in its planned position.
- Attach the mails and lingoes to the cords.
- Level the harness so every mail hangs at the same height, then draw the warp ends through the mails in the same order.
Writing down the order and marking the board before you start makes it much easier to find a crossed or misplaced cord later.
04Common harness problems and what to check
- Harness cords fraying or breaking
- Check for rough, chipped or worn comber board holes, cords rubbing against each other or the board edge, and a board that is not level.
- Uneven shed
- Mails hanging at different heights usually mean the harness needs levelling, cords have stretched unevenly, or lingoes are missing or caught.
- Wrong ends lifting
- Look for a crossed or misplaced cord in the comber board, a mistake in drawing-in, or a hook-selection fault in the jacquard head.
- Hooks not lifting cleanly
- Check the guide board for wear, and look for bent hooks and damaged neck cords.
- Lint building up
- Clean the board and harness regularly; worn holes and rough cords collect more lint.
Replacing a worn comber board or guide board? Send us your old board, a photo with measurements or a drawing showing the hole count, pitch and outer size, and we'll quote a matching board.
