Write down which width you mean
The width named on a rigid-heddle loom is its weaving width. It is not a promise about the finished cloth, and it is not the outside width of the frame. Before comparing looms, label your number: width in the reed, or desired finished width. Our planner treats these as different inputs. For a planned warp, it compares the number directly with the loom’s stated weaving width. For finished cloth, it asks you to supply a combined width-loss estimate.
Use a sample to make the allowance yours
Choose the yarn, threading and finishing treatment you intend to use. Record the width in the reed, then the width after weaving and finishing the sample. The difference gives you a project-specific estimate. Our calculation is finished width divided by one minus the estimated proportional loss. A 14-inch finished target with a 20% estimate needs a 17.5-inch planned warp. This is arithmetic under your assumption, not a forecast for every yarn. It makes the 15- and 16-inch looms too narrow for that single-width plan.
A bigger loom earns its place through projects
A narrow project can use part of a wider reed, so a larger loom does not require every piece to be full width. But you still store and handle the wider frame. Write down three projects you actually want to make, calculate each planned warp width, and compare those numbers with the space you can keep available. If only one unusual project exceeds the compact loom, consider whether joining panels is acceptable to your design before buying around it.
Keep advanced techniques out of the basic fit decision
Double-width weaving, joined panels and other construction choices change the problem. They also add technique and finishing decisions. Our first-loom selector deliberately compares a single-width warp. A second heddle does not automatically turn the catalog width into a guaranteed finished width twice as large. Start with the simple requirement; assess advanced construction as a separate project.