that's what i've been doing - pinning pretty fast. i use the long pins with the glass round head. close together for even tension.

I think I'm leaning more toward Velcro than zippers. It seems to me like it would be less bulky, would be easier to position (since you can detach and move it just a little to one side if you need to) and it would be less expensive, at least I think it would be. You could easily have several different sizes if you want to.

One of the advantages of either Velcro or zippers with multiple sets of the add-on leaders is that you can easily take a quilt off the rack, put up another, and then re-load the original quilt later. If you're quilting for others, that would be a definite advantage, but I think it would be nice even if you're only quilting for yourself.

Right now I have a big quilt all loaded, haven't started quilting yet, and I think I would like to load a practice piece to try out some different techniques before I start on the real quilt. If I do that in my present set-up, I'll have to completely unpin the big quilt, and then pin again when I re-load it. So... will probably forego the practice and maybe be sorry in the long run.

that's the best reason i've heard so far for either velcro or zippers. i have to rethink this.

Remember, the velcro catches the lint easily & then, can slip. I first try my design out on paper many times & then on a small sample to the left of the quilt to adjust the tension. If I'm not comfortable with the design after practicing on the paper, then I load a sampler & practice - practice - practice. Good luck & happy quilting! :wink:

I know that this will sound a little silly..but i think i have seen velcro cleaners,somewhere..

found them,hook and loop cleaners
http://stores.healthyasahorse.net/Detail.bok?no=210

i pm'd jackie and she told me that she's using pins at the moment.

My leaders are velcroed to the poles, made of striped ticking and have a canvas leader atached to them (picture below). I pin the backing to the canvas part, this makes it easy to remove/replace the top if needed. The center is marked on both leaders. I roll the backing and float both the batting and top. It makes for lots less pinning/rolling and is easy to keep everything straight and centered with each advance. My setup is a Tin Lizzie.

when you pin the backing to the canvas, do you first remove the canvas? and then replace it onto the leader? or do you pin while the canvas is on the leader?

i don't take one quilt off to work on another. i work on one until i finish and then remove it. do you think there's a reason for me to need to have an additional canvas? i have the velcro and leader that the lizzie came with and just pin now.

since you float the batting and the top, do you have the velcro and canvas on the belly bar as well? i don't float the top. i tried it one time and it got away from me. i never figured out what happened.

also, how wide/long are your leaders? my poles are 120" and if i push the trolley all the way to one end of the frame, it still sits under one end of the leader and prevents it from lying straight when i'm setting up.

I don't remove the canvas to pin, it is just easier for me to pin on the frame. My belly bar has both leaders too. I have (rarely) taken a quilt off to frog when there was a lot to do. I could pin to the canvas off the frame. I find that with the heavy canvas I don't have to pin as closely to make it secure. My Canvas leaders are 8 feet long, the striped ticking part is the full 10 feet
of the frame. This leaves me room (1foot) on each side to change the bobbin/clean etc. I haven't ever had trouble with this aproach. When floating I adjust the batting and top with each turning of the takeup bar. I sew down the side (whichever is closest) and quilt to the other side , then sew down the far side to secure it when I get there. I use side clamps on the backing when I remember to. I hope this makes sense.