Cotton duck

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Cotton duck used in a pair of heavy-duty work pants Cotton duck.jpg
Cotton duck used in a pair of heavy-duty work pants

Cotton duck (from Dutch : doek, "linen canvas"), also simply duck, sometimes duck cloth or duck canvas, is a heavy, plain woven cotton fabric. Duck canvas is more tightly woven than plain canvas. There is also linen duck, which is less often used.

Contents

Cotton duck is used in a wide range of applications, from sneakers to painting canvases to tents to sandbags. [1]

Duck fabric is woven with two yarns together in the warp and a single yarn in the weft.

By treating with wax, duck fabric can be made waterproof (see Waxed Cotton).

Cotton duck strips were the origin of duck tape, recorded in the Oxford English Dictionary as having been in use since 1899 [2] (see duct tape).

Classification

Close-up showing weave Close up of cotton duck canvas.JPG
Close-up showing weave

Duck is classified according to weight in a numerical system, with grade 1 the heaviest and grade 12 the lightest variety. Besides this, traditional names exist, which are rarely used today.

The classification system used today dates from the 1920s. A numbered duck classification system was put into effect by the Cotton Duck Association and the United States Department of Commerce [3] when discrepancies came about with various specifications and qualities of material. In a technical paper titled "Development of the Standard Numbered Cotton Duck Specification", the Department's National Bureau of Standards established a set of specifications acceptable to manufacturer and consumer. [3]

According to the Department of Commerce, [3] "The number of the duck is based on the following computation: Number of Duck = 19 − (Weight per linear yard 22 inches wide in ounces)." This numbering system is used to describe the various weights of duck cloth, based on the weight of a 36-by-22-inch (91 cm × 56 cm) piece. Weights below 19 ounces are called numbered duck. Those above 19 ounces are called naught duck. The grade of numbered duck refers to the number of ounces subtracted from 19 for a 36-by-22-inch piece of fabric. For example, a piece of No. 8 numbered duck with dimensions of 36 by 22 inches weighs 11 ounces (310 g) (19 − 8 = 11). [4]

Number duck classifications per linear yard, 22 inches wide

Numbered duck is nominally made in weights from 1 to 12, but numbers 7, 9, and 11 are no longer used. Some typical uses of various grades (with weights in ounces) are: [1]

Number duck classifications per square yard

There is often confusion when it comes to matching up weights and the correct number duck classification. The table below accurately represents the weight and number duck classification [5] per square yard instead of linear yard 22 inches wide.

See also

Related Research Articles

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Yarn Long continuous length of interlocked fibres

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Linen Textile made from spun flax fibre

Linen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant.

Denim Warp-faced textile

Denim is a sturdy cotton warp-faced textile in which the weft passes under two or more warp threads. This twill weaving produces a diagonal ribbing that distinguishes it from cotton duck. While a denim predecessor known as dungaree has been produced in India for hundreds of years, denim as it is recognized today was first produced in Nîmes, France.

Canvas Extremely heavy-duty plain-woven fabric

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Fustian Variety of heavy cloth

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Sailcloth Strong fabric of the type used to make ships sails

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Ripstop

Ripstop fabrics are woven fabrics, often made of nylon, using a reinforcing technique that makes them more resistant to tearing and ripping. During weaving, stronger reinforcement yarns are interwoven at regular intervals in a crosshatch pattern. The intervals are typically 5 to 8 millimeters. Thin and lightweight ripstop fabrics have a 2-dimensional structure due to the thicker yarns being interwoven in thinner cloth. Older lightweight ripstop fabrics display the thicker interlocking thread patterns in the material quite prominently, but more modern weaving techniques make the ripstop threads less obvious. A similar effect can be achieved by weaving two or three fine yarns together at smaller intervals.

Bolt (cloth) Roll of fabric

A bolt is a piece of cloth woven on a loom or created by a knitting machine, as it is processed, stored and/or marketed. Consequently, its dimensions are highly variable – flexible and dependent upon the manufacturing, machinery, quantity, size, thickness and quality of the product. It is a unit used in manufacturing, transport and inventory. It is also used as a descriptor for wallpaper, which uses different fabrication machinery. Being encompassing, it is by its nature a generic and ambiguous term of convenience and context, used to describe fabric and wallpaper.

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Piece goods Textile piece goods

Piece goods were the textile materials sold in cut pieces as per the buyer's specification. The piece goods were either cut from a fabric roll or produced with a certain length, also called yard goods. Various textiles such as cotton, wool, silk, etc., were traded in terms of piece goods. The prices were determined as per the fabric quality.

References

  1. 1 2 "Tough Clothing for Tough Customers: A Guide to Workwear". Sierra Trading Post. Archived from the original on March 30, 2010. Retrieved 30 March 2010.
  2. "duck tape" . Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  3. 1 2 3 "Development of the Standard Numbered Cotton Duck Specification" (PDF). National Bureau of Standards. 1934.
  4. "duck canvas; duck". Sizes, Inc. 11 August 2004. Archived from the original on 7 June 2011. Retrieved 23 June 2011.
  5. "Cotton Duck Classifications - Types Canvas Duck".