Raschel Knitting Machine Types: Match Configuration to Your Fabric
A raschel knitting machine is defined by two things: how many needle bars it carries, and what its guide bars are doing. Everything else on a quotation follows from those two decisions, which is why two machines both sold as raschel machines can be unable to make each other’s fabric.
This page stays on the machine side: the main raschel families, how to read a guide bar map, and the gauge convention that catches most first-time buyers. If you have already settled on lace and want gauge-and-bar detail for that case, our guide to choosing a raschel lace machine goes deeper there. For the wider warp knitting picture, start at types of warp knitting machines.
Needle bars and guide bars decide everything else
Raschel machines form loops with latch needles rather than bearded needles, and that single mechanical choice is what lets the family run from fine lace all the way to carpet-weight structures.
The published comparison against tricot machines is consistent on three points: raschel machines take the fabric away at roughly 160 degrees against about 90 degrees on tricot, raschel guide bar counts run from about 4 up to 70 against 2 to 4 on tricot, and raschel gauges are coarser while running at lower speed. The gentler 90 degree take-off is why tricot keeps the advantage on fine filament at high speed.
There is a practical consequence buyers underestimate: each guide bar has to be fed. On tricot machines the beam count tracks the bar count, which is one reason those bar counts stay small. Add pattern bars to a raschel machine and you are also buying a beam and creel problem, floor space included.
The main raschel families and what each is bought to make
Engineering references group the family roughly as follows. Treat the table as a routing tool, not a spec sheet.
| Family | Needle bars | Guide bar character | Bought to make |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single needle bar, multi-bar raschel | One | Many pattern bars | Dress and household fabrics, elastic lace, trimmings, curtain nets |
| High-speed standard raschel | One | Few bars, simple lapping | Simple structures such as suiting-type fabrics |
| Multi-purpose raschel | One | Bars plus weft insertion | Patterned fabrics and weft-inserted structures |
| Jacquard raschel and double needle bar raschel | One or two | Jacquard-controlled guides; second bed on double needle bar | Plush, tubular fabrics, scarves, mesh vests |
Our own machine pages sit under those headings: raschel warp knitting machines for spacer and technical structures, double needle bar raschel machines for tubular and plush work, lace machines, and raschel bag machines for the bag and net end of the range.
The name itself is older than any of this. A warp knitter in Apolda, Germany produced lace shawls on a warp-knitted rib machine in 1855 and sold them under the name of the French actress Rachel Felix; Wilhelm Barfuss later fixed the name raschel on his latch needle rib machine. The 12-bar raschel machine of 1956 is the point at which patterned lace became an industrial product rather than a specialty.
Read the guide bar map, not the bar count
A bar count on its own tells you almost nothing. What matters is which bars form the ground, which carry pattern, and which carry elastane.
A high-speed lace machine reported in the trade press makes this concrete: GB1 and GB2 sit at the front as ground bars and do the loop forming, 42 pattern bars sit behind them, and GB47 works as a rear ground bar carrying elastane. That is a 47-bar machine whose real capability is described by three roles, not by the number 47.
Ask any supplier to send the bar map before the bar count. If the answer is only a number, the quotation is not yet a technical document.
Gauge: the number most often misread
Two gauge conventions are still in circulation for raschel machines, and published sources do not agree.
General warp knitting references describe current practice as E gauge meaning needles per inch, spanning roughly E1 to E32. Raschel-specific references still quote gauge as needles per two inches, on which an E36 machine works out at 18 needles per inch. Both readings appear in print, so an E36 and an E32 quotation may not be describing what you assume.
The fix is unglamorous: before comparing two machines, confirm in writing which convention each quotation uses, and convert both to needles per inch yourself. As a reference point on our own equipment, the spec section of our raschel warp knitting machine page lists gauge options E28 and E32.
Raschel or tricot: a conditional answer
If you sell open or structural fabric, meaning lace, nets, bags, spacer, plush or tubular goods, then you are buying a raschel machine and the remaining question is which family.
If you sell flat, fine, lightweight yardage at volume, then tricot is the better fit: the 90 degree take-off is gentler on fine filament, the machine runs faster, and 2 to 4 bars keep changeovers short. Our tricot machine page and the tricot and weft knitting comparison cover that side.
This conclusion does not apply in two situations. If a jacquard requirement is already fixed by your customer, the jacquard system decides the machine before the class does. And if you are extending an existing line, the beams and creels you already own can outweigh the machine comparison entirely.
What a raschel spec sheet actually commits to
Machine class gets you to a shortlist; the spec sheet is where a machine stops being generic. Per the specification section on our raschel warp knitting machine page, the configuration is described as four ground guide bars, individual needle and tongue bars, a stitch comb bar and a knockover comb bar, and a working width up to 8636 mm, which is 340 inches.
The same page lists the beam side in a way worth copying into your own checklist: three warp beam positions as standard, sized for sectional beams with a 32 inch flange diameter, with optional four-position setups for 21 inch or 30 inch flanges. Flange diameter sets how much yarn a beam holds, so it sets how often the machine stops for a beam change, which is a production number rather than a catalogue number.
Monitoring is described there as the GrandStar Command System with Laserstop technology and a high definition camera unit, with CE certification and a one-year warranty. Replacement elements and consumable parts for warp knitting lines are handled on the group site’s warp knitting spare parts pages.
Send this before you ask for a quotation
A raschel enquiry that contains the following eight items gets a technical reply instead of a brochure:
- A fabric sample, or the structure you intend to knit
- One needle bar or two
- Required guide bar count, and what each bar is doing
- Gauge, plus which gauge convention you are quoting
- Working width, and the finished width you actually sell
- Beam positions and flange diameter
- Yarn type and whether elastane is running
- Whether jacquard control is required
Items 3 and 4 are where most quotations diverge from each other, and they are the two a buyer can settle in a single email. Settle them first and the rest of the comparison becomes arithmetic.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a raschel machine and a tricot machine?
Published comparisons put three differences first: the fabric take-off angle is about 160 degrees on raschel against about 90 degrees on tricot, raschel machines carry roughly 4 to 70 guide bars against 2 to 4 on tricot, and raschel gauges are coarser while speeds are lower. In practice raschel covers open and structural fabric such as lace, nets and plush, while tricot covers flat, fine, lightweight yardage at higher speed.
How many guide bars do I need on a raschel knitting machine?
The count follows the structure, and the map matters more than the number. One reported high-speed lace machine uses GB1 and GB2 as front ground bars to form the loops, 42 pattern bars behind them, and GB47 as a rear ground bar carrying elastane. Ask a supplier which bars form ground, which carry pattern and which carry elastane before comparing bar counts between quotations.
What does E28 or E32 mean on a raschel machine?
It is the gauge, but two conventions are still in use. General warp knitting references treat E gauge as needles per inch across roughly E1 to E32, while raschel-specific references quote needles per two inches, on which E36 equals 18 needles per inch. Confirm in writing which convention a quotation uses and convert everything to needles per inch before comparing machines.
Can one raschel machine make both lace and net?
Rarely across the full range. Multi-bar single needle bar machines are built for elastic lace, trimmings and curtain nets, while plush, tubular fabric and mesh vests sit with jacquard and double needle bar machines. If your product list spans both ends, expect the bar map and gauge to be optimised for one of them and to compromise on the other.
Do I need a double needle bar raschel machine?
You need the second needle bar when the fabric has two faces or a closed form, which covers plush, tubular fabrics, scarves and mesh vests. If everything you sell is single-face open structure, a single needle bar machine with the right guide bar map will do the same job with fewer moving parts to maintain.
Hey, I’m Vincent!
Solving complex challenges with precision and creativity in the warp knitting industry. Passionate about advancing textile engineering and turning innovative ideas into reality. Shaping the future of warp knitting.
