crossbred wool

These are woollen cloths woven from crossbred wool yarns and this type of wool is generally classed in three qualities - fine, medium and low. Fine - The fibre has good length, is uniform, and has a spinning limit of about 48's worsted counts. These are used for coatings, and dress fabrics of a medium quality. Medium - Similar to fine, but of a lower quality and the spinning limit is about 40's worsted counts. Used for such fabrics as Cheviots, and others that require a crisp handle. Low - Spins to about 32's worsted counts, and is used for cheap low worsteds.

Mostly fine crossbred wool ranging from 50's to 58's. A fair amount of merino wool is grown, and a less amount of low crossbred. The wools are mostly very clean and attractive, and quite a large quantity is free, or nearly free, from burr.

A high-grade crossbred wool and one of the most useful wools of commerce. It is obtained by crossing merino ewes with Lincoln or Leicester rams. It has a staple of good and regular length and is soft in handle. It is used extensively for mixing with shoddy and mungo fibres to impart bulk and spinning qualities. New Zealand wools in the main are fairly free from vegetable matter, and this gives the wools a value very often more than like qualities from other countries. Merino wool is a small part of New Zealand production, probably not more than 5 per cent. The wool is generally free from vegetable matter, but is rather "lean" in character, the quality is not equal to the better-known Australian types, while the shrinkage is fairly heavy owing more to heavy grease rather than earthy matter.

English and crossbred wool, taken from the best part of the average lustre fleece; spins to 36's. It is the highest grade of combing wool according to the old system of sorting.

American term for the long, lustrous crossbred wool grown in Indiana and Kentucky. Usually spins 36's to 40s' counts.

Italian wool is not of such great production as to influence any comparison with the great wool producing areas. The chief Italian areas are the centres and southern ranges, and the Islands of Sicily and Sardinia. The wools grown are merino, fine crossbred, and part carpet wool, similar to Scottish-grown blackfaced. The merino is not of a high standard, being somewhat " lean " and lacks fulsomeness. The fine crossbred is an excellent hosiery type, and may be substituted at times or blended with English Down wools. Much of the wool is consumed in Italy, but at times a fair quantity reaches England.

The wool obtained from the skins of slaughtered sheep by treatment with lime. Through contact with the lime, which penetrates the fibre, wool treated by this means is harsh in handle and grey and dull in colour, while the operation of washing is made much more difficult and expensive. Lime is only sparingly soluble in water, it loosens the fibre quite well, but it also dissolves substance and leaves the wool drier and less elastic. The lime also combines with the internal yolk, forming a lime soap which is exceedingly difficult to get rid of. Besides this the " slipe " usually contains free lime in the form of small pellets embedded in the staple. Some wools are put on the market containing 8 per cent of free lime, while the combined lime may amount to 2 per cent of the weight of the wool, depending on the strength of the solution and the duration of the immersion. Every pound of free lime destroys 15-lb. of soap. "Slipe" wool is largely employed in crossbred top-making for serges and hosiery of medium-class types. Low qualities are also employed in the manufacture of cheap hosiery, carpets, woollen suitings, blankets, flannels, and rugs.

Tierra del Fuego is a fine wool country, and its wools are more commonly known as Punta Arenas. Although some merino is produced, by far the greater amount is fine crossbred with the 56's quality predominating. Punta wools have a character of their own, due to the crosses used, but largely influenced by climatic conditions and pasturage. Much of the wool is heavy in shrinkage due to the loose soil being blown furiously by high winds. The colour is often beautifully white, probably due to the heavy earthy matter in suspension preventing the natural grease from tingeing the wool before scouring is„ effected. The wools are very spongy and blobby, and although occasionally un-uniform in fibre diameter, have a value of their own where apparent substance is accompanied by lightness in weight. The wools are chiefly used in the United Kingdom.

Three-quarters of South American wool is of a Lincoln character, due to the importation of these sheep for crossing purposes. The Argentine gives the biggest supplies of long, strong, preparing wool suitable for Bradford machinery, while a fair amount of finer cross-bred wool from 48's to 56's quality of a good combing length is grown in the Republic. Argentine wools are subject to " burr " trouble, and this varies in degree according to season. South of the Argentine there is a fair amount of wools of a merino and fine crossbred character, these being chiefly from Chubut, Santa Cruiz, Deseado, etc., but these latter are mostly unattractive and wasty owing to loose soil, often with occasional grey fibres, lacking uniformity in length and diameter, and difficult of estimation from the grease state to the clean equivalent.

The coarse matted and short skirting wool taken from English crossbred fleeces.

Large quantities of wool of various types are grown in Russia, and most of it finds its way into Russian and Polish mills, and occasionally to Germany also. The merino wools from South Russia are often very fine, but lack the elasticity of Australian merino, and appear " leaner," " weftier " and without the full crimp so prominent in good-class wools. The crossbred and carpet wools also lack character, being less uniform in fibre build, and often require to be graded down.

These are worsted yarns spun from fine crossbred wool on flyer frames and doubled. Used for making men's navy-blue suitings, etc.

A coarse, woollen cloth known as early as the 12th century, a finer quality being called " say." It was much used during the Middle Ages for all portions of attire by the poorer classes, and in the piece for the decoration of houses. ———————— The specification issued by the U.S.A. Government is as follows: - Cotton and worsted serge for overcoat lining shall be of single or 2-ply cotton warp and single or 2-ply worsted filling, the wool to be not below 46's grade; the width shall be full 36-in. exclusive of the selvedge and shall weigh from 6-oz. to 7-oz. per linear yard; it shall be woven in regular serge weave and constructed so as to give a fabric with good body and twill line on the face and containing approximately equal quantities of worsted and cotton yarns throughout; to be navy-blue, fast to the light, with both sets of threads and to be put up into bookfold. ———————— This term was formerly applied in Yorkshire to rough handling coarse wool fabrics woven in a twill design. An old 6-end serge was a simple diagonal 3 up, 1 down, 1 up, 1 down. The term serge is now almost universally understood to mean the 2 & 2 twill, and sometimes the 3 & 3 and the 4 & 4 twills. In wool fabrics it is the practice to add to the name serge, the definition of botany to distinguish fine wool serges from cross-bred qualities. A typical botany worsted serge, 2 & 2 twill weave, 21-02. per yard, 56/58-in. is made with 2/20's worsted 64/70's quality, S twist, 46 ends and 46 picks per inch, 72-in. wide in loom, woven white arid piece-dyed. The cloth is clear finished so as to obtain a well-defined twill effect. A usual weight for ladies' costume serge is 12/13-oz. per yard. Serges are made in many qualities ranging from 12-oz. to 26-oz. per yard. Crossbred worsted yarns are used in making the rougher and stronger types, while woollen yarns are also used. A serge which is extensively used in uniforms for transport workers is made with two-fold cross-bred worsted yarn for warp and single Cheviot woollen yarn for weft. The cloth is woven white or grey and piece-dyed.

(See knitting). All yarns used for knitting are termed hosiery yarns in Leicester, but in America only yarns actually used for knitted footwear come under this term. These yarns are much softer than required for weaving. Miscellaneous Yarns - Goat wools, such as llama and alpaca are employed in spinning. yarns for the knitting trade. Vicuna and camel yarns are used to a limited extent. Ramie yarn is specially employed for knitting gas mantle fabrics. Soft spun flax yams have been used for making underwear fabric. Chenille and other manufactured threads are used to a small extent in warp knitting. Composite yarns, such as union yarns - spun from a mixture of wool and cotton fibres; cordon yarns - cotton and worsted singles, doubled together; wool and rayon or spun silk, cotton and rayon or spun silk are largely used to produce self or two-colour effects. Fancy yarns, such as slub yams, voiles, and curled and loop yarns are also employed. Hosiery Yarns (Cotton) include condenser, hosiery, condenser lisle thread, mercerised and sewing cottons. Condenser yarns are spun in coarse counts from low-grade cotton, Indian and American. They are carded, condensed and mule spun, and possess little twist. Hosiery cotton yarns vary considerably in counts and qualities, practically all varieties of Indian, American and Egyptian being used in varying proportions to obtain suitable mixture for quality and price. Cheaper yarns are carded and mule spun. American and Egyptian cotton yarns are combed mainly with the object of removing seed particles. High-class Egyptian and Sea Islands cotton yarns are super-combed. The chief features of a hosiery cotton yam should be: (1) Regularity; (2) cleanliness; (3) fullness. Regularity prevents the making of cloudy fabric, showing thick and thin places. Cleanliness is essential, as the seed particles clog the eyelet hole in the yam guides and cause breakages. Fullness is desirable to cover the loop interstices. Elasticity and pliability are quite as essential as tensile strength. Yams are usually soft spun and if two-fold soft doubled, average twists in two-fold being 2/10's 6¹/₂T., 2/20's 8¹/₂T., 2/30's 10T., 2/40's 16T., 2/80's 20T. Softer twist less 25 to 30 per cent of average (T= turns per inch). Lisle thread is a comparatively hard-twisted and doubly-gassed thread in which there are no projecting fibres. It is always of a two-fold character, and the doubling twist varies from 24 to 34 turns per inch in 2/60's. It is used largely in the manufacture of ladies' hose tops and feet and for lace hosiery. Mercerised yams are used largely in the fancy trade, a comparatively soft twist again being employed. Sewing cottons for seaming, linking and making-up are specially prepared in two to six cord open and reverse twist. Woollen and Worsted Yarns include lamb's wool, wheeling, skein yarns, gala yams (woollens), worsted, crossbreds, fingering, cashmere, dry spun botany (see under each name). Worsted and crossbred yarns of various qualities are used. These yams are spun softly with " hosiery twist." The drawing may be open, cone or French, and the spinning may take place on cap, ring or flyer frames. The chief essentials of hosiery yarn are softness of fibre, fullness, minimum of twist consistent with the requisite tensile strength, regularity, pliability and elasticity. Cashmere Yarns, as used in the knitted goods industry, are spun from short, loose and weak wools as well as from better qualities by French drawing and mule spinning. A small proportion of real cashmere is used for outer garments. In recent years nylon yarns have been largely employed.

Splendid wools are now being produced in the Cape and Natal. For many years it had been recognised that the climate was very suited to the growth of high-class merino wool and the development of good types is a result of the building up from judicial infusion of better known merino types, and with the support of the South African Government, great progress has been effected. Formerly, much of the Cape merino was shorn twice yearly, and, in fact, shearing was often a matter of degree, according to the circumstance of the grower. Thus, we frequently saw designations as "4 months", "6 months", "8 to 10 months", "10 to 12 months", "12 months", and even "14 months". But of late years this early shearing is diminishing, and thus more valuable combing wools are reaching the world centres. Formerly, much of the Cape merino was unattractive, and low yielding, making it difficult of estimation. Today, we often see magnificent 64/70's warp wools and a yield of 15 per cent to 20 per cent higher than formerly. The bulk of the Cape wools are beautifully fine, soft, and of a very white colour, and the noils from these wools also have a higher value than from most other merino wools. The production has also increased materially within recent years, and the South African contribution is now a valuable one to U.S.A., Great Britain, the Continent and Japan. East African wools are still in their infancy as regards character and amount. But the climate seems to be suitable for crossbred production, and of late years importation of good breeds for crossing and improving the native types lend support to the belief in the future of East Africa as a wool-producing area.

A low quality whipcord dress fabric made from crossbred yams with 60 ends and 48 picks per inch, 2/40's T., 20's W.

Fabrics woven with fine warp and coarse weft, with a rough surface produced by an irregular crepe weave from 5 shafts upwards. The oatmeal weave is much used as a ground weave for dobby and jacquard effects. The oatmeal weave given is on 8 ends and 8 picks, but can be woven on 5 shafts. A fair quality is 76 ends and 76 picks per inch, 30's warp, 28's weft. all cotton. A coarser cloth has 50 ends and 40 picks per inch, 30's warp, 10's weft. Oatmeals are also made in wool, using crossbred yarns and a low reed and pick.