Electric Shears for Textile Machinery

Electric shears put a powered cutting edge in the operator's hand or on the machine: reciprocating or rotary blades driven by a small motor, used to trim fabric, cut samples and selvedges, and do the cutting jobs around knitting machines that hand shears make slow and uneven. On and around circular and flat knitting machines they are standard workshop equipment, and they appear in machine parts catalogues — such as the Italian maker's range below — alongside the machine's own spare parts.

Where Electric Shears Are Used

In the knitting plant, electric shears trim fabric as it comes off the machine, separate knitted panels, cut down faulty sections for mending, and prepare samples and swatches. Their advantage over hand shears is a clean, continuous cut through multiple plies and through the synthetic fabrics that blunt ordinary scissors, with far less hand fatigue on repetitive cutting. Machine-mounted versions trim selvedges and cut yarns and fabric at set points in the process. Blade form follows the work: straight blades for long cuts, rotary blades for curves and continuous trimming, and hardened edges for abrasive or coated fabrics.

Choosing and Using Electric Shears Safely

Match blade type and motor size to the material and ply count; a shear that is forced through work it is too light for overheats and tears rather than cuts. Blades are consumables — keep the maker's spare blades and sharpen or replace on condition, because a dull powered blade is both a quality and a safety problem. Powered cutters demand the usual discipline: guards in place, the tool switched off and unplugged for blade changes, no loose clothing or gloves near the blade path, and the cable routed so it cannot be cut. The supplier below, RMB Massardi, lists electric shears within its range of parts for circular and flat knitting machines, which also includes bulb sockets, safe needles, yarn sensors, retainers and electronic yarn control devices.

Companies Supplying Electric Shears