Hosiery Manufacture

William M.A. Davis

Hosiery Manufacture

EAN 8596547058328

DigiCat, 2022

Contact: [email protected]

Table of Contents

PREFACE

ILLUSTRATIONS

CHAPTER I Development of the Knitted Fabric

CHAPTER II Knitting and Weaving

CHAPTER III Latch Needle Knitting

CHAPTER IV Types of Knitting Yarns

CHAPTER V Counts of Yarn

CHAPTER VI Folded Yarns

CHAPTER VII Bearded Needle Knitting

CHAPTER VIII Setting of Knitted Fabrics

CHAPTER IX Various Knitting Yarns

CHAPTER X Hosiery Yarn Winding

CHAPTER XI Circular Knitting

CHAPTER XII Colour in Knitted Goods

CHAPTER XIII Colour Harmony and Contrast

CHAPTER XIV Defects in Fabrics

INDEX

PREFACE

Table of Contents

This work is being issued at a period of unparalleled development in the industry of knitted fabrics, when our British manufacturers are straining every nerve towards attaining a dominating position in this vital branch of the production of textile goods. It is highly gratifying and full of promise to note the spirit of enterprise which animates our younger generation of manufacturers, and the keenness and alertness which permeate the industry at the present time. Increased concentration by our machine builders on the numerous mechanical improvements being brought out in rapid succession from time to time is certain to have a great influence on the further expansion of the industry, and has the effect of considerably extending the horizon to the maker of knitted goods. With so many new firms springing up in different parts of the country, there has arisen an increased demand for books dealing with the knitting industry, and this work is presented in the hope that it will do something towards satisfying this widespread desire. The study of looped fabric structure is wide in scope, and none the less difficult because, on a first view, it appears simple and elementary. The prospect of the maker of knitted goods of all kinds, is further enhanced by the enormous production possible on the present-day knitting machinery and on the fact that the garments are made ready-to-wear. In this work an effort is made to outline the principles underlying the technology of the industry, and endeavours have been made to clarify certain problems of fabric structure which require still greater attention from the students of technology before they can be regarded as solved. Emphasis has also been laid on the fundamentals of the knitting process as performed on various mechanisms, for, if these basic principles are clearly comprehended, the foundation is securely laid for a further grasp of the industry and its technology.

Special attention is given to the structure and properties of knitting yarns, for in this texture it can be said with truth that the yarn is the fabric, seeing that the bulk of the productions are made from the single thread looped upon itself. Several problems relating to the weight of knitted fabric and similar questions are fully demonstrated, and the formulae explained from fundamental principles. A contribution is also made to the difficult subject of the setting of looped textures, generally so imperfectly understood in its theoretical significance.

That this volume may contribute towards a fuller knowledge of the technology of the knitting industry is the earnest wish of the Author,

WILLIAM DAVIS.

Technical Institute,

Hawick, 1920.

ILLUSTRATIONS

Table of Contents

HOSIERY MANUFACTURE

CHAPTER I

Development of the Knitted Fabric

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There has been in recent years an extraordinary development in the scope and application of the knitted fabric which may be traced to a variety of causes. The chief explanation of this growth is to be found in the structure of the knitted fabric itself, the qualities of which have made it pre-eminently suitable for special departments of textiles. In its most elementary form the knitted texture is composed of a series of loops hung in rows one upon the other and constructed from the curvings of a single thread which runs continuously through the fabric. One set of loops is formed on the preceding row and any particular stitch is dependent for its support on neighbouring stitches above, below, and on either side of it; if the thread becomes severed at any point the loops lose contact all round and a considerable opening is incurred. This is its chief defect, but also its outstanding advantage as a texture; it is a defect to have the structure destroyed with the severance of the single ground thread, but it is the mutual interdependence of loops which accounts for its valuable stretch and elasticity. By virtue of this elasticity it becomes eminently suitable for articles of underclothing which have to be worn in close proximity to the cuticle; the fabric is enabled to yield to the slightest movement of any part and thus prevents the wearer becoming uncomfortably conscious of the garment. An inherent yielding quality of the loops causes the article to stretch and adapt itself to minor irregularities of size and shape; if a garment is not exactly to dimensions, it contracts to a smaller or expands to a larger form. This property of stretch must not be unduly taken advantage of to cover up indifferent systems of manufacturing, but within certain limits the property is of great value for certain discrepancies. The knitted fabric is essentially a weft fabric, the thread being inserted crosswise into the texture after the manner of filling so that the entire structure presents a horizontal appearance which is most evident with ground-coloured stripes when the different colours show themselves crosswise. This proves a serious limitation to the scope of the plain knitted texture, for the clothing trades have small use for horizontal effects as compared with vertical coloured stripes. The knitted structure is quite different in property to woven cloth where one has two series of separate threads, one being termed the warp and running longitudinally in the fabric, whilst the other series is named the weft and is intersected with the warp in the process of weaving. The warp threads are pre-arranged to the correct length and in order of pattern on the warp beam whilst the threads of weft are inserted consecutively during the operation of weaving in the loom. This mode of intersecting separate series of yarns at right angles to each other causes the threads to exert a much firmer grip on each other and the resulting fabric is remarkable for its strength and rigidity. It is firm and durable in structure, and possessing comparatively little stretch, it does not yield to the ordinary strains to which it is subjected. It is pre-eminently the fabric to be used for garments of outer wear which have to stand the rough service of every-day life, where a combination of friction, bending and abrasion subject the fabric to a severe test of endurance. In the case of a knitted texture there is a right and a wrong side, or face and back, the face comprising the straight portions of the loops whilst on the back the curved loop portions predominate. Fig. 1 gives a view of a plain knitted fabric showing the right side or the face of the texture where the loops may be distinguished by a characteristic V-shape, these Vs fitting into each other in a vertical direction. This side of the fabric is always worn outermost, as it presents the most even surface whilst it is also the most perfect as all imperfections such as knots, etc., are drawn on to the back of the cloth. Fig. 2 shows the same fabric on the wrong side where it will be noted that the chief feature is a series of interlocking semi-circles which have a distinctly crosswise determination given to them. The appearance on the back is decidedly raw and uninteresting, the straightened V-shaped portions of the loops presenting a much more attractive aspect. On the other hand, most rotary frames work their fabrics with the back in full view of the worker, and in case of analysis it is the wrong side of the fabric which will yield the most definite results to the analyst, for by examination of the curved loops one can discern more easily the character of the pattern and the nature of the ornamentation.

Figs. l and 2

Peculiarities of Knitted Structure.—An examination of the photo-micrograph of the plain knitted fabric (back view) shown in Fig. 3 will demonstrate that the loops are intimately dependent on each other and that the slightest dislocation at any part will at once affect the adjacent area. The knitted fabric is extremely difficult to make absolutely perfect, because each stitch is worked on its own needle distinct from its neighbour, and the slightest irregularity of yarn delivery affects the whole stitch area concerned. If a loop is drawn tighter than the normal at any point, then it is curtailed in size and the adjacent loops have to enlarge themselves to fill out the allotted space. In the woven fabric a missing thread usually influences that portion of the fabric only, but if the main thread of a knitted structure be broken, the entire cloth may be disintegrated with the slightest pull. The interspaces between the loops shown in Fig. 3 are intimately connected with the elastic property, because if the spaces are closed up by tight knitting, the elasticity is considerably reduced, if, on the other hand, the spaces are too large, the fabric loses its equilibrium and a slight pull will cause it to lose its form. An exception to this may be found in the light-weight fabrics so much in demand in recent seasons for wearing in an intermediate position in winter whilst in summer they are worn outermost for lightness. These are purposely knitted flimsy in texture so as to economize material and for summer they are quite elegant and serviceable when manufactured in attractive colourings. For winter use they are possessed of a heat-retaining property which would not be expected from their