CROSS-BORDER JACQUARDS
A difficulty has always existed in working cross borders on handkerchiefs, cloths, &c., so as to avoid having to shift or change the cards, and also to do without the expense of getting a complete set of cards cut for the whole cloth. It may be also that different patterns are required on the cloth, such as cross bands of small figures, and if, say, twenty cards would make a repeat of one figure, and it was required to weave, say, 100 repeats of this, and then change to, say, fifty repeats of some other figure, the same difficulty would arise as with cross borders. When there is only a short distance between the changes of pattern, it will generally be found more profitable, all things considered, to have the complete set of cards cut, so as to require no changing, particularly if the pattern will run for a length of time; but when the patterns or cloths are long, the cards become very expensive, and even if it would be desirable to get a complete set for the full cloth, it may be that there would not be space on the looms to hold them, over 15,000 cards being sometimes required to weave a complete tablecloth.
Many methods have been adopted to remedy the inconvenience and to save expense. A few of them will be given, but it must be left to manufacturers to judge whether they would prove an advantage to them or not.
For weaving cloths or curtains it is a common practice to have the cross-border cards and one repeat of the centre pattern cut. The card rack is made as in No. 2 (Fig. 99).
When either the border or centre cards are working, they are put into the hollow part of the rack or card frame, as at F, and the other set is hung on the flat rest of the frame, at either D or E. When a change is to be made, a card-shifter has to go up and change from one set to the other, lifting the set that had been working out of the hollow of the frame, and putting it back or forward on the rest D or E, and bringing the set which is to work down into the place of those removed. This, of course, is expensive, gives a great deal of trouble, and is severe on the cards; at the same time, in many cases it is found to answer as well as any method yet adopted, particularly where space is a consideration, and when two or more sets of cards are used, in case of two or more machines.
A better plan is to have a sliding-card frame, as shown in No. 1 of the same figure. A is the frame for the rollers over which the cards travel, B, B are two bars on which the card frame C, with the roller frame A attached, travels. The card frame is only shown in end view. Two of these must be for each set of cards, and the whole frame must be fastened together complete for all the cards required, so that it will all slide on the bars B, B. Suppose there are two machines working there must be four card racks; on two of these the centre cards are hung, and on the other two the border cards. Either set can be placed opposite the cylinders of the jacquard, and wrought as long as is required; then they must be taken off the cylinders, the card frame shifted till the other set of cards comes into their place, when they can be put on the cylinders and wrought over. This is a very good plan for working long cloths, but takes up a good deal of space, and for more than two machines might in many cases be unsuitable.