APPAREL MANUFACTURING – II 3(3+0)

Lesson 13 : Cutting

Straight knife

The workhorse of most cutting rooms, if correctly used, it is the most versatile and accurate. It is also called as the vertical reciprocator cutting machine. The elements of a straight knife consists of a base plate, usually on rollers for easy movement, an upright or standard carrying a straight, vertical blade, an electrical motor above it, a handle for the cutter to direct the blade and a sharpening device. Two kinds of power are required to operate a straight knife (fig3).

FIG 3 Straight Knife

Motor power drives the reciprocating blade and operator power drives the knife through the lay. Normally available blade heights vary from 10cm to 33cm. The greater the blade movement, the faster the blade cuts the fabric.(Eastman1.flv )