Toika ES Upgrade

Description

The ES computer assist dobby upgrade is offered in 16 shaft, 24 shaft and 32 shaft variants. Traditional weaving looms are based on treadles, lamms, and jacks. Your Toika ES computer assist dobby replaces all of those parts with a single pedal – much like that on a sewing machine. Your loom will still look like a traditional countermarch loom and will operate in exactly the same way.  A true countermarch action creates a large shed but the difference is that there is no treadling required.

The sleek aluminium box that houses the electronics sits on the top of the castle replacing jacks, lamms and treadles with a computer connection and small pedal that changes the shed with a light tap of your hand or foot. The electronics understand the pattern you will have added to the software. Shafts that are programmed to lift, lift, those programmed to drop, drop giving a large clear shed without any need for additional moving parts or elaborate engineering.  You will  hear some folks say that it’s not handweaving! My answer is always “Yes it is” The weaver still has to wind the warp, dress the loom, thread the heddles, reed and finally throw the shuttle for every pick! Once you are weaving you will still need to wind on your warp, but you will almost certainly find that you are  are refilling your bobbins sooner. The only difference is that there is no tying up or treadling involved, just a gentle tap of the pedal (smaller than a sewing machine pedal) at a speed you choose.

The Toika ES needs software to drive it. Toika ES operates with either Weavepoint (Windows only) or Fiberworks PCW (Windows or Mac operating systems) software. Both have drivers that will operate the ES system as well as being powerful design programmes.  We don’t include  software  unless you order it with your loom. We can only supply Weavepoint for Windows with a built in Toika driver with our ES looms.  In any event we strongly encourage prospective dobby loom customers to try out weaving software before buying a loom.  All of the major weaving programmes are available to download and try free of charge. Usually the only features disabled are  save and print.

The following looms are known to be upgradable to Toika ES:

Toika

Jaana: ES16

Liisa: ES16, ES24, ES32

Eeva: ES16, ES24, ES32

Glimåkra

Ideal: (ES16 with new upper bars)

Standard: (ES16 and ES24 with new upper bars)

Öxabäck

Ulla Cyrus: (ES16 and ES24 with new upper bars)