Judging Wool Quality
(Page 2 of 3)
March/April 1983
By the Mother Earth News editors
Density refers to the number of wool fibers growing in a specific area of skin (such as a square inch) and will, of course, depend to some degree upon the diameter of the individual strands. The Merino sheep, with the finest wool, has about five times as many fibers per unit of skin area as does any other breed: Its wool is therefore the most dense. You can determine density by grasping the side wool to feel its fullness, orby simply parting the fleece to see how close together the fibers are. In addition to scoring well in the foregoing areas, a desirable fleece must have fibers with enough strength to be spun without breaking. if a sheep has had a bout with parasites or illness, or if its feed hasn't been nutritious enough, it may produce "tender wool" with fibers that break easily at a particular point.
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Finally, after you've taken a good look at the wool to determine its length, diameter, density, character, and strength, you need to estimate how much extraneous matter will have to be removed. Grease wool is the term used to describe a shorn, unwashed fleece that contains many natural and acquired impurities. Among these contaminants are the yolk—consistingof woolgrease and suint—and sundry bitsofgrass, dust, dung, and even paint or sheep dip. Wool grease — or degras, as it is also called—is a natural, waxy coating composed chieflyofcholesterol. When purified, degras is the lanolin used in various ointments, unguents, and cosmetics. Suint is the sheep's equivalentofsweat—easily rinsed outofthe fleece—and is most likely the sourceofthe distinctive odor I call "essence de sheep". Handspinners would rather work with clean wool that hasn't had the lanolin removed, but commercial buyers must gauge the worthofa fleece according to its weight after all the impurities have been removed. As this process can result in a certain amountofshrinkage (up to 75% for a really dirty fleece!), the buyer must be highly trained and experienced in order to judge the cleaned weightofnewshorn wool accurately.
