Excellent explanation. I have helped do this many times. I would add that it takes two people to put the quilt on the frame as well as two people to roll what is finished when you can’t comfortably reach any more. I also recommend that you use heavy duty C-clamps. I would check for a you tube video.

One other tip. Make sure the backing is three or four inched wider than the top on all sides.

Thanks very much for all the great information. It is so helpful and I know I can do this now.

This frame is not like any I have seen before but the basic idea and method should be similar.

I appreciate the help from everyone so much. Thanks again.

It appears that the frame is adjustable so when you have quilted all you can reach you need to roll the quilt and shorten up the frame.

Are you saying that with this frame you quilt towards the middle instead of from the middle out? This is an interesting thread!! I never had a grandmother so missed those experiences.

Yes, that's the way you do it.

Only one of my grandmothers quilted (that I remember). Her frame hung from the ceiling in the living room, and was set up so that it could be raised to the ceiling when no one was quilting. (It was a winter activity.) I remember my aunts and older cousins all sitting around the frame quilting and talking. They used the Baptist fan on all quilts, as Grandmother's quilts were utilitarian. That was a really long time ago, though. So, even if you had a grandmother, you may not have seen this in action.

bkay

This is the way I quilt all the time and the way my mother quilted for years. Put the quilt on the frame with thumb tacks and quilt until you can't each anymore then roll and continue , I have my own set of clamps. I did not have a board in the center of the frame. You can put a card table in center to prevent the quilt from sagging a little.

My mom had a frame like this. I used it for my first quilt, a king side sampler (35 years ago). I set it up in the yard, then used thumb tacks to get the backing on tight. Then laid the batting on and then the top. I was only basting, so I'd baste across and worked my way until I could not reach, then unclamped one bar and rolled and the basted quilt. Once I had it all basted, I took it off hand quilted it with a hoop, removing the basting stitches as I worked. I liked to sit in the big rocking chair and prop up one knee and braced the hoop so I had plenty of room underneath. I did the stab method, fully passing the needle back and forth between my hands (one on top and one underneath), but only pulling the thread tight on the upside. My cat loved to crawl in under the quilt and sleep on my lap. had to be careful so I didn't poke her with the needle!

i have one of those that i bought at farm auction in PA. mine doesn't have legs. elders at the auction said this style was meant to sit on chair backs or suspended from cieling. i use dining chairs and c-clamps to hold the corners. i replaced the original leaders that were so old they almost disentegrated when touched :). the corners of each of the polsa are densely dimpled from many decades of quilting.
i cannot sit at a frame because of back problems, so i use the frame to hand baste quilts for hand or machine quilting. remove & put frame poles away until needed again. when basting i attach the back with even tension all four sides. i then slide the outer rails a bit if needs to be tighter. then lay out the batt ..then the top. if quilt no larger than double or queen size i reach as far toward center to start the basting, then work alternating sides until i'm out to edge. i learned the technique from book. they said to do giant cross from alternate corners across surface then horizontally & vertically. i used to do that but decided it keep it square like they said it would. i thread baste about every 3-4". if you want more on how i attach & set up pm me.

My handquilting group baste the quilt before loading it..using big enough backing to attach to the leaders.