A shuttle is a tool designed to neatly and compactly store a holder that carries the thread of the

weft Warp and weft are the two basic components used in weaving to turn thread or yarn into fabric. The lengthwise or longitudinal warp yarns are held stationary in tension on a frame or loom while the transverse weft (sometimes woof) is draw ...

yarn while

weaving Weaving is a method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. Other methods are knitting, crocheting, felting, and braiding or plaiting. The longitudinal th ...

with a

loom A loom is a device used to weave cloth and tapestry. The basic purpose of any loom is to hold the warp threads under tension to facilitate the interweaving of the weft threads. The precise shape of the loom and its mechanics may vary, but th ...

. Shuttles are thrown or passed back and forth through the

shed A shed is typically a simple, single-story roofed structure that is used for hobbies, or as a workshop in a back garden or on an allotment. Sheds vary considerably in their size and complexity of construction, from simple open-sided ones de ...

, between the yarn threads of the

warp Warp, warped or warping may refer to: Arts and entertainment Books and comics * WaRP Graphics, an alternative comics publisher * ''Warp'' (First Comics), comic book series published by First Comics based on the play ''Warp!'' * Warp (comics), a ...

in order to weave in the weft. The simplest shuttles, known as "stick shuttles", are made from a flat, narrow piece of wood with notches on the ends to hold the weft yarn. More complicated shuttles incorporate

bobbin A bobbin or spool is a spindle or cylinder, with or without flanges, on which yarn, thread, wire, tape or film is wound. Bobbins are typically found in industrial textile machinery, as well as in sewing machines, fishing reels, tape measure ...

s or pirns. In the United States, shuttles are often made of wood from the

flowering dogwood ''Cornus florida'', the flowering dogwood, is a species of flowering tree in the family Cornaceae native to eastern North America and northern Mexico. An endemic population once spanned from southernmost coastal Maine south to northern Florida ...

, because it is hard, resists splintering, and can be polished to a very smooth finish. In the United Kingdom shuttles were usually made of boxwood, cornel, or persimmon.

Flying shuttle

Shuttles were originally passed back and forth by hand. However, John Kay invented a loom in 1733 that incorporated a

flying shuttle The flying shuttle was one of the key developments in the industrialization of weaving during the early Industrial Revolution. It allowed a single weaver to weave much wider fabrics, and it could be mechanized, allowing for automatic machine l ...

. This shuttle could be thrown through the warp, which allowed much wider cloth to be woven much more quickly and made the development of machine looms much simpler. Though air-jet and water-jet

s are common in large operations, many companies still use flying shuttle looms. This is due in large part to their being easier to maintain than the more modern looms. In modern flying shuttle looms, the shuttle itself is made of rounded steel, with a hook in the back which carries the filler, or "pick."

Health issues

The act of " kissing the shuttle", in which weavers used their mouths to pull thread through the eye of a shuttle when the pirn was replaced, contributed to the spread of disease.

Gallery

File:StickShuttle.jpg, Large stick shuttle File:Stick shuttles.jpg, Two stick shuttles, 24" and 16" long, both wound with 8/2 yarns File:'Schütze' des Honegger-Webstuhls von 1860 - Amthaus Rüti 2011-01-21 15-20-30.JPG, Rüti (Switzerland): loom built by in 1860, exposed in the former

Rüti Abbey Rüti, which comes from the Old High German word , meaning " clearing", is a popular name for towns in the German speaking part of Switzerland. It can refer to the following: *Rüti, Glarus in Glarus *Rüti, Zürich Rüti (sometimes written as ' ...

's File:Shuttle with bobbin.JPG, Threading a bobbin shuttle File:Shuttle for silk weaving. Khotan, Xinjiang. 2010.jpg, Shuttle for silk weaving.

Khotan Hotan (also known as Gosthana, Gaustana, Godana, Godaniya, Khotan, Hetian, Hotien) is a major oasis town in southwestern Xinjiang, an autonomous region in Western China. The city proper of Hotan broke off from the larger Hotan County to become ...

, Xinjiang. 2010

References

* Chandler, Deborah (1995). ''Learning to Weave'', Loveland, Colorado: Interweave Press LLC.

External links

Pak Shuttle Company (Pvt) Ltd.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shuttle (Weaving) Heraldic charges Weaving equipment