REED IN WEAVING

Reed Description and its uses (in weaving of fabric:- 

REED:-

A reed is a part of weaving loom and resembles a comb or a frame with many vertical slits. It is used to separate and space the warp threads, to guide the shuttle,s motion across the loom, and to push the weft thread into place (beat-up).. In most floor looms with the reed is securely held by the beater. Floor looms and mechanized looms both use a beater with a reed, whereas inkle weaving and table weaving doesnot use reed .

Fig. The reed is the part in the beater that the warp threads go through.

HISTORY OF REED:-

REED PARTS:-

A=Wire or dents.

B=Wooden ribs.

C=Tarred cord.

end view of a traditional reed made of wood or cane.

a side view of reed.

Modern reeds are made by placing flattened strips of wire (made of carbon or stainless steel) between two half round ribs of wood, and bring the whole together with tarred spring.

Historically reed were made of reed or split cane. The split cane was then bound between ribs of wood in the smar manner as wire is now.

In 1738 John Kay replaced split cane with flattened iron or brass wire, and the change was gradually adopted. To make reed wire is flattened to a uniform thickness by passing it between roller. The flat wire is then straightened, given rounded edges, and filed smooth . The final strip is to cut the wire to the correct length and assemble. The tarred cord that binds threads together is wrapped around each set of woods ribs and between the dents to hold the ribs together and at the correct spacing.

The length of a metal wire varies depending on the type of fabric and types of loom being used. For a machine powered cotton loom, the metal wire are commonly 3.5 inches (89mm) long. For hand-powered floor looms and 4 inches (100 mm) is common.

DENTS:-

a metal reed on end

Both the wire and the slot in the reed are known as dent(namely teeth) . The warp thread pass through the dents after going through the heddles and before coming woven cloth. The number of dents per inch (or per cm per 10 cm) indicates the number of gaps in the reed per linear width. The number of warp thread ends by weaving width determines the fineness of the cloth. One or more warp threads may pass through each dent. The number of warp and the desired characterstics of the final fabrics, and it is possible that the number of threads in each dent is not constant for a whole warp. The number of threads per dent might not be constant if the weaver alternate two or three threads per dent, in order to get a number of ends per inch that is 2.5 times the number of dents per inch, if the thickness of the warp threads were to change at that point , and the fabric to have thicker or thinner section.

One thread per dent is most common for coarse work. However for fine work (20 or more ends per inch) two or more threads are put through each dent. Threads can be doubled in every other space , so that a reed with 10 dents per inch could give 15 ends per inch or 20 if the threads is simply doubled . Also threads can be put in every other dent so as to make a cloth with 6 ends per inch from a reed with 12 ends per inch. Putting more than one thread through each dent reduces friction and the number of reed that one weaver needs and is used in weaving mill. If too many threads are put through one dent , there may be reed marks left in the fabric, especially in linen and cotton.

For cotton fabrics, reed typically have between 6 and 90 dents per inch. When the reed has a very high number of dents per inch , it may contain two offset of rows of wires . This minimizes friction between the dents and warp threads and prevent loose fibers from twisting and blocking the shed.

INTERCHANGEABILITY:-

Reed with 5 dents per inch , separate from loom.

Hand weaving looms (including floor loom and table loom) use interchangeable reeds, where the reed can vary in width and dents per inch . This allows the same loom to be used for making both very fine and very coarse fabrics as well as weaving threads at dramatically different densities. The width of reed sets the maximum width of warp.

Common reed sizes for the hand weave are 6, 8, 10, 12, or 15 dents per inch, although sizes between, 5 and 24 are not common. A reed is with a large number of ends per inch is generally used to weave finer fabric with a large number of ends per inch . Because it is used to beat the weft into place , thread or groups regulates the distance between threads or groups of thread.

SLEYING THE REEDS:-

Sleying the reed

Sleying in the term used for putting the warp threads through the reed , which happens during the warping process (putting a warp on the loom). Sleying is done by inserting a reed hook through the reed , hooking the warp threads and then pulling them through the dent. The warp threads are taken in the order , they come from the heddles, so as to avoide cross threads . If threads cross the shed will not open correctly when weaving begins.

Ref:-https://en.m.wikipedia.org