Standards Update - New British Standard Test for Snagging – BS8479:2008

Release Date 01.19.09

Editor’s note: This article is featured in the Fall 2009 issue of SDL Atlas Update, the company’s quarterly newsletter. To sign-up to receive the newsletter, send us an e-mail at info@sdlatlas.com.

Snagging is a phenomenon in which undesirable loops of varying sizes appear on the surface of a garment, usually as a result of the fabric catching on sharp points or objects. Fabrics made of filament yarns, both textured and untextured, are most prone to snagging. This British standard gives a method for determining the propensity of fabrics to snagging, and related surface defects. The standard is applicable to knitted and to woven fabrics. The committee members involved in the development of this new test method found it highly effective for predicting the snagging propensity of many apparel fabrics, particularly those for which the Mace Snag Tester proved to be too severe.

The new test uses the SDL Atlas M227 ICI Pilling and Snagging Tester equipped with special octagonal rotating boxes/drums fitted with four lines of inward pointing pins. Test specimens are mounted around wool-felt-wrapped polyurethane tubes and tumbled with the chambers rotating at 60 r/min and run for a total of 2,000 revolutions. The specimens are then graded and classified within the prescribed viewing chamber. Copies of the new test method may be ordered from www.bsigroup.com.

Equipment and accessories needed to perform this test may be ordered from your local SDL Atlas office or representative.