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From sheep to shop A story about the process of making of pressed woollen felt. (This article is written for anyone who is interested in the varied products of felt, please feel free to copy this for teaching and information purposes.)
Growing up on a sheep farm in the Western District of Victoria, Australia I learnt a lot about sheep and wool. As a child I had no idea that the major part of my working life would be involved with it. Shearing was to me the best time of the year, it was the time when the whole farm was full of movement. The Shearer's would come, big burly fellows who always smoked role your own cigarettes, drank beer from bottles and never dressed in anything better than a dark blue ringlets and old greasy trousers. It was spring when the shearing was done, the winter was over and the thick layer of wool that kept the sheep warm through the winter would be too hot for the hot Australian summer so, off it would come in the Spring. The fleece would come off in one piece except for the wool that covered the belly and around the legs and the rear of the sheep. As the fleece was taken off the sheep it would be picked up in a special way by the man they called the rouse about and thrown onto a big table. When it landed on the table it would be all laid out like a big blanket ready for the Wool Graded to grade the wool. The Wool Grader was a specially trained person that would grade the wool into different types, the higher the grade of wool the more the farmer would get for it, it was important for the farmer to get as much for his wool as he could. When the wool had been graded is would be put into bales ready to be taken to the wool store to be sold. To me, as a child this is all that I knew about wool. What happened after it left the farm was never a question that entered my mind, we were sheep farmers and that was that. Little did I know then that I would spend the greater part of my working life involved with this very special fibre. Wool is one of the worlds oldest and most versatile natural materials, it is used in hundreds of different applications from the finest wool suits for both men and women to carpet, insulation for homes, wool for knitting and for making FELT. What is felt? Where do you use it? What is it made from? Who makes it and why? Wool is not smooth like a human hair but is scaly like a fish and this is the reason that felt can be made. These scales allows the fibres to lock together to form felt. A lot of fibres in a thick blanket can be pressed down to form felt. This sounds very simple and to make crude felt is not difficult. However to make a long even felt sheet that is the same density, thickness and width is something that requires a lot of work and uses a lot of men and machinery. The first people to make felt were the nomadic tribes that lived near the Himalayas. They would make a thick blanket of loose wool on an animal hide and roll it around a wooden pole. They would wet it and drag it behind their horses on fine days when the sun was out. The roll bounced along behind the horse and in time became a single matted sheet. This matted sheet was felt, and it was used to make blankets and clothing to keep the people warm and to make tents to shelter them from the harsh climate. The same principle is used today to make felt however the horses are not used. Instead man has made specialist machinery to control how the felt is made? There are nine main steps used to make felt. 1. Blending. 3. Flat Hardening 5. Tentering & Drying 2. Carding. 4. Milling. 5. Pressing 7. Packaging The first two prepare the wool, the next two make the felt and the last three finish the felt. Blending A special blend of different length and thickness wool is mixed up to make an even mixture of all the different fibres, this still remains a secret by most manufacturers as it is the blend of fibres that will determine the quality of the finished felt product.Carding. Although there a number of processes in the carding stage the end result is that the wool fibres are all combed and straightened out to form a thin, light blanket that is both even in width and thickness. You can do this yourself by taking a little piece of wool and brushing it with a wire brush, you will notice that all the wool becomes straight and even. Carding is one of the most important processes because it makes sure that an even blanket of wool is made. To make a sheet of felt these blankets are laid up on top of each other. The more blankets the thicker the felt. Flat Hardening. It is at the hardening stage that the carded felt blanket becomes felt. There are three essential conditions for hardening, they are. 1. Moisture. 2.Heat. 3. Friction Remember how felt was first made? By wetting the wool and rolling it up and dragging it behind a horse it was heated by the sun and the friction was made as the roll bounced on the ground. The flat hardener is two big steel plates called Platens. These platens are over 1.8 metres wide and two metres long and the carded felt blanket travels between these two platens. The bottom platen does not move and has lots of little holes in it and steam is pumped up through it. The top platen weighs over one ton and is raised and lowered on top of the wool blanket and at the same time moving backwards and forwards in a shaking motion. This shaking goes on for about a minute and the top platen is raised and the wool blanket is moved forward and the next section of the blanket is placed under the hardened. This shaking operation goes on until all of the wool blanket is treated. The heat and the moisture, together with the heavy shaking platens causes the interlocking or felting of the wool fires. There is another hardening process called Roller Hardening and is used for very thin felts, it still uses moisture, heat and friction to make felt. Milling The next step is Milling, or as it is sometimes called Stocking or Fulling The milling machine carries on the work of the Flat Hardener by further felting the wool to give it the desires strength of firmness. These machines are very strong bowls and are over a metre wide and half a metre deep. The felt sheet is folded inside the bowls and made wet, big wooden hammers then beat the felt sheet as it is turned over by the machine so that all parts of the felt sheet receive an equal pounding. This continual stretching and pounding of the fibres in the moist atmosphere, and in the heat generated by friction causes the fibres to interlace and lock together and form felt. As this process continues, the piece shrinks in both length and width and becomes firmer. This continues until the desired firmness is reached. Once this has been done the felt is then thoroughly washed and put through heavy wringers that take out over 90% of the moisture. If the felt is to be coloured it is then sent off to be dyed. Tentering & Drying Thick pieces of felt are dried on heavy steel frames called Tenter Frames The sides and ends of these frames are moveable and the felt sheet is pinned on to the frames and they are forced apart to tighten the felt and smooth out the surface. Hot air is then passes over and around the felt sheet until they are dried. They are then rolled up and taken to be finished. Finishing Each piece of felt that comes into the finishing room must undergo two or more finishing processes. The most important of these are Shearing, Brushing, Pressing and Trimming. Thin and medium felts are usually Sheared. The shearing machines have rapidly moving knives which remove all surface fibres, leaving a smooth finish. Thick felts are placed between heavy heated plates that are capable of exerting many tons of pressure. After pressing and trimming each piece of felt is laid out on long inspection tables and the entire length is measured and tested to make sure that it conforms to strict international standards. These records are kept for many years so that so that details of every detail of its manufacturing can be found, even many years after it has been sold After each piece has passed the inspection process it is given an identification number wrapped ready for delivery. _______________________________________________________________________________ Felt is made in many different countries all over the world and in each country the process of making it is the same. Felt can be chemically treated to be pest resistant and fire proofed to be used as wall linings, curtains, carpets, table clothes and for expensive jackets and coats sold in the fashion houses in Europe, USA, Australia and many other countries. Craft felt is made in many different colours for use in schools and toy making. Thick felt can be made that is so hard that it can be put in a lathe and turned down to form different shapes for industry all over the world and are used to polish metals and glass. Engineering quality felts are made in many different densities and colours and are used for dust and oil seals in machines, air and fluid filters, sound absorption, felt dots for under furniture and lamps to stop scratching, notice boards, computer printers, fashion ladies hats and mens hats, saddle blankets for horses, baby's slippers and many thousands of other uses. It is likely that felt is used in some way in every house without us even knowing it is there. It is the 100% natural, eco friendly and environmentally safe wonder product of the world and will continue to be sought after for many years to come.
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