Counting of reed count:
Reed determines the spacing of warp threads. Ordinary reed used for weaving cotton fabrics is made of rustless steel wires. They are bound at each end on balks by pith bands, whose thickness determines the spacing of dents. Sometimes brass wires are used instead of rustless steel. In this article, counting of reed count and heald count in weaving will discuss below:
Required Count,
…….Dents Per inch in the known system
= …………………………………………………………. × count in a known system
……Dents Per inch in the required system
Counting of Reed Count and Heald Count in Weaving
The following two tables will be used during counting Reed & Heald’s count in weaving.
A system based on the number of dents in a given space.
| Name of System | Basis Of numbering |
| Stockport | Number Of dents per 2 inches |
| Radcliff | Number Of dents per 1 inch. |
| Huddersfield | Number Of dents per 1 inch. |
| Metric | Number Of dents per 1 decm. |
The system based on the number of groups or beers in a given space.
| Name of System | Basis Of numbering |
| Bolton | 20 dents per 24.5 inches. |
| Bradford | 20 dents per 36 inches. |
| Blackburn | 20 dents per 45 inches. |
| Irish | 100 dents per 40 inches. |
| Leeds | 19 dents per 9 inches. |
| Macclesfield | 100 dents per 36 inches. |
All the above systems are convertible into dents per inch basis.
Example No. 01: Find the count of 10s Irish reed into the Huddersfield System.
Solution:
10s Irish,
….10 × 100
= …………….
………40
= 25 dents per inch.
1 Huddersfield = 1 dent per inch.
Therefore,
10s Irish,
……25
= ……….
……..1
= 25s Huddersfield.
So, the count in Huddersfield System is 25s
Example No. 02:
Find the count of a 40s Radcliff in the Stockport System.
Solution:
Count,
…..40 × 2
= …………..
………1
= 80s Stockport.
So, the count in Stockport System is the 80s
Example No. 03:
Find the number of ends per inch in a reed of 3/72s Bradford.
Solution:
72s Bradford,
….72 × 20
= ………….. ends per inch
……….36
= 40 ends per inch.
Therefore, the number of ends per inch = 3 × 4
= 120 ends per inch.
Counting of heald count:
The number of heald eyes per inch across the healds in a set expresses the count of the healds. When a set contains 4 shafts, it is called a plain set.
Example No. 04:
Find the count of the healds that will be required for weaving a 6 shaft satin fabric using 72s Stockport reed, drawn 3 ends per dent.
Solution:
Number of ends per inch in the reed,
….3 × 72
= ………….
……..2
= 108 ends.
Therefore, the rate of knitting,
…..108
= ………
…….6
= 18 healds per inch on the ribband.
Thus we require 6 healds of 72s plain set.