Seamless Garments Made Possible With Karl Mayer’s Raschel Machines
Producing a complete garment in a single piece, without any seams at all, yet with an integrated body mapping design has been made possible by Karl Mayer’s double-needle-bar raschel machines with EL pattern drive and jacquard.
Karl Mayer showed a chic example under Warp Knit Seamless with a sports dress that attracted attention at ITMA 2023. The trendy outfit can be manufactured on a DJ 6/2 EL or RDPJ 6/2 EL in gauge E28 and offers all the performance features of functional sportswear.
Features include breathability through open areas in exposed places, freedom of movement and quick drying. The fabric is also soft and supple, thanks to the use of polyamide. To provide precise elasticity, jacquard bars were drawn in with a two-component yarn, comprising a polyamide core and elastane sheath.
An exciting look and comfortable feel are offered by a completely new seamless warp knitted fabric that cleverly combines three-dimensional and open structures in a single textile. The plastic pattern parts create extravagant irregular surface effects, paired with very fine yarns for a soft handle, yet the fabric only comes into partial contact with the skin.
They are produced using the jacquard bars of a specified machine, a DJ 6/2 EL or RDPJ 6/2 EL, each with a gauge of E28. The jacquard bars process a polyamide yarn with an elastane cover in alternating lapping with long float stitches, which creates plasticity by shrinking during finishing.
The jacquard bars allow the design elements to be placed as desired. The fact that the garments can produced almost entirely directly on the machine is another distinct advantage. Only a few processing steps are required until the item is finished.
When the spacer layer of 3D warp knitted fabrics is filled with bulked yarn, previously unattainable performance features and surface designs can be created. Smooth patterns, two-tone colouring, breathable mesh zones and clearly pronounced relief parts with individual placements and dimensions are possible.
Depending on the amount of filling and the design of the plastic motifs, a wide variety of textile solutions are possible; the product repertoire ranges from breathable fabrics like functional shoes, to cosy padded and warm jacket fabrics.
When it comes to garments with an insulating effect, 4D-KNIT articles stand out for their decisive sustainability advantage over napped fleece fabrics as fewer fibre fragments are released into the water during washing, as the insulation fibres are enclosed between the cover surfaces of the 3D textile.
The new spacer warp knitted fabrics are produced on a RDPJ6 6/2 EL FB, in gauge E28.
