Publish Time: 2026-10-29 Origin: Site
A buyer sourcing sweatshirt fabric often gets the same sample bag twice: one roll labelled French terry, one labelled fleece, both soft, both quoted at a similar price per kilo. The confusion starts at the machine, where two loop-forming systems make fabrics that look interchangeable in a swatch book and behave nothing alike after ten washes.
A terry circular knitting machine holds a pile yarn in a standing loop over a long-nose sinker, and that loop survives finishing intact. A fleece machine lays a third, coarser yarn as inlaid floats on the back, and those floats are brushed open into a nap. The differences sit in the sinker profile, yarn carriers, creel and frame height, and feeder density. The fabric difference is simply whether the loop is preserved or destroyed.
The comparison below works from the knitting head outward.
Both are single-jersey frames using three yarns per feeder, so they share a cylinder, cam box, and takedown. The third yarn separates them: terry knits it into a loop over a pile sinker, while fleece lays it in as a float for the raising machine to open later.
Feature | Terry machine | Fleece machine |
Loop formation | Pile yarn looped over a long-nose sinker | Backing yarn inlaid as floats |
Critical parts | Terry sinker and sinker cam | Fleece sinker, 4-track cam, high frame |
Fabric off machine | Loop-back, wearable as is | Long floats, not wearable |
Finishing | Dye and compact | Raise, then dye |
Finished weight | 200 to 350 g/m² | 280 to 450 g/m² |
Speed | 18 to 25 rpm | 25 to 30 rpm |
Either frame can be converted by changing the knitting heart, which is why used listings describe one cylinder as terry, fleece, and jersey capable. What does not transfer is the tuning: sinker height, carrier spacing, creel layout, and takedown tension all need resetting.
A terry machine knits a ground jersey stitch and, at the same feeder, lays a second yarn across the extended nose of the sinker so a loop of controlled height stands proud of the surface. A third yarn binds it into the ground. The loop is never cut, so the reverse is a field of upright arcs, not a fuzz.
The sinker is the whole technology. On a jersey machine it only holds the old loop down while the needle clears. On a terry machine it has an extended nose, the pile yarn is laid across it before the needle knits, and when the sinker retracts that yarn is left as a loop. Loop height is therefore geometry, not a tension setting.
Terry also needs room at each feeder for three yarn paths, so feeder density is lower than jersey at the same diameter, typically 2 to 3.2 per inch. The sinker cam is a wear item, because it takes the loop-forming load every revolution.
Loop height is the main lever on weight, and it works with yarn count rather than instead of it. A tall loop with coarse pile yarn gives a plush winter hand; a short loop with fine combed cotton gives the dry surface of premium summer terry.
Loop height | Pile yarn | Finished weight | Character |
1.0 to 1.5 mm | Ne 30 to 40 | 180 to 240 g/m² | Summer tees |
1.5 to 2.0 mm | Ne 20 to 30 | 240 to 300 g/m² | Standard hoodie |
2.5 mm and above | Ne 16 to 24 | 320 g/m² and above | Heavy sweat shirting |
Beyond roughly 4 mm the loop becomes unstable at speed and leans, which shows as a directional streak after dyeing. A taller loop also stops adding weight once the ground structure can no longer hold it.
A terry cutting loop machine adds a cutter at each feeder that slices the loop as it forms, producing a cut pile that resembles light fleece without brushing. Cut fibres shed, the surface pills faster, and tensile strength drops.
Parameter | Common range |
Cylinder diameter | 26 to 38 inches |
Gauge | E16 to E28, centre of gravity E20 to E24 |
Feeders | 52 to 90, about 2 to 3.2 per inch |
Speed | 18 to 25 rpm |
A loop pile circular knitting machine in this band covers towelling, robe fabric, and apparel loop-back from one platform, with the sinker set deciding which one the mill gets.
A fleece machine knits the same jersey face but feeds a heavier backing yarn that is tucked only occasionally and otherwise floats across the back. Those floats are the raw material for the nap, so the fabric leaving the knitting room is deliberately unfinished and harsh to the touch.
The structure is called three-thread: a face yarn forms the surface, a tie yarn locks it and gives density, and a backing yarn sits on the reverse. Because the backing yarn is inlaid rather than knitted, it can be much coarser than the face without distorting the stitch. Cheap coarse fibre supplies warmth and bulk; a finer face yarn carries colour and print.
The floating construction also explains the defects. Uneven backing tension makes uneven floats, and the brushed nap shows it as cloudiness or diagonal bands that no dye recipe can hide.
Three packages per feeder on a 30-inch cylinder with 90 feeders means 270 cones running at once. Fleece frames are built high-leg with side creels and a larger takedown roll, because brushed fabric is bulky and a small roll leaves compression marks that reappear after raising.
Raising happens in the finishing house on wire-covered rollers that comb the reverse and tear surface fibres into a pile. Nothing is added: warmth comes from air trapped in the opened fibre, which is why a 320 g/m² fleece insulates far beyond its weight while a terry of the same weight stays a mid-layer fabric. Raising also cuts tensile strength and ties the mill to third-party capacity. Descriptions of polar fleece set out the same mechanism for the synthetic version.
Parameter | Common range |
Cylinder diameter | 26 to 34 inches, up to 38 |
Gauge | E12 to E22, most commonly E20 to E24 |
Feeders | 78 to 102, about 3 per inch |
Speed | 25 to 30 rpm |
A three thread fleece circular knitting machine is normally ordered with the brushing partner already identified, because machine specification and raising schedule are developed together.
Terry keeps its loops and fleece destroys them, and nearly every commercial difference follows: terry breathes, wicks, and resists pilling, while fleece traps air, insulates, and pills.
Property | French terry | Brushed fleece |
Surface | Smooth face, upright loops inside | Smooth face, raised nap inside |
Hand | Dry, crisp, structured | Soft, plush, voluminous |
Insulation | Moderate | High |
Air permeability | High | Low |
Moisture | Wicks, dries quickly | Absorbs, dries slowly |
Pilling | Low | Higher |
Cost | Knit and dye | Knit, raise, dye |
French terry sits between 200 and 350 g/m², with 240 to 300 g/m² covering most hoodies and joggers. Brushed fleece runs 280 to 450 g/m² and above, partly because raising consumes surface fibre. The two are not substitutable at equal weight: a 300 g/m² terry and a 300 g/m² fleece will not sew, wash, or wear alike.
No, if the weight suits the season. Warmth comes from loop height and mass, not the structure, and a 180 to 220 g/m² combed cotton terry with a short loop behaves like a substantial T-shirt: it breathes and moves moisture. Terry only becomes a summer problem at 300 g/m², or when the loop is so dense that air cannot pass.
Circular machines divide first by needle arrangement, single jersey with one cylinder and double jersey with cylinder and dial, then by structure: jersey, rib, interlock, pique, jacquard, mesh, terry, fleece, cut loop. Terry and fleece are single-jersey frames fitted with different sinkers, cams, and yarn systems, not separate families.
Type | Needle arrangement | Structures | Gauge |
Single jersey | Cylinder only | Jersey, pique, lacoste | E20 to E32 |
Double jersey, rib | Cylinder and dial | Interlock, rib, ponte | E18 to E32 |
Jacquard | Electronic selection | Stripes, blister, placement | E18 to E28 |
Terry, loop pile | Pile sinkers | French terry, towelling | E16 to E28 |
Three-thread fleece | High frame | Brushed fleece, diagonal | E12 to E22 |
Both belong to the single-jersey branch, which is why a circular knitting machine quotation often offers the same frame under three descriptions. The test is the knitting heart: count yarn carriers per feeder, check for a pile nose on the sinker, and confirm the cam tracks.
Five specifications decide whether the machine holds the fabric you sold: gauge, diameter and feeder count, sinker profile, cam configuration, and creel and frame arrangement.
E20 to E24 covers most apparel terry and fleece. Coarser gauges to E12 suit heavy blanket fleece and coarse towelling, while gauges above E26 serve light summer terry. Because gauge, yarn count, and stitch length do not scale linearly, verify on a controlled sample, as this guide to circular knitting machine gauge explains.
A 30-inch terry frame at 60 feeders and 20 rpm runs about 20 to 26 kg per hour at 280 g/m², while a fleece frame on the same cylinder with 90 feeders and 26 rpm reaches roughly 30 to 38 kg per hour at 320 g/m². The gap is the cost of forming a stable loop with three yarns at every feeder.
Cost element | Terry | Fleece |
Hourly output, 30-inch cylinder | 20 to 26 kg | 30 to 38 kg |
Finishing | Dye, compact | Raise, dye, optional shear |
Fibre | Finer pile yarn, higher cost | Coarser backing, lower cost |
Yield loss | Low | 2 to 5 percent to lint |
A fleece line running 35 percent faster but losing 4 percent to brushing and paying an external raising charge can land near a slower terry line on cost per saleable kilogram.
Terry and fleece sinkers are not interchangeable, and the cam driving them is specific to a loop height range. A four-track box gives the selection for twill, diagonal, and blister effects, and for jacquard terry where the loop is formed selectively. Conversion kits swap the knitting heart so one frame runs both structures, though changeover takes a shift or more and runs at the lower performance envelope.
Its weaknesses are the price of integrity: cotton terry shrinks more than expected, the loop side adds bulk at seams, the face shows shade variation across a lot, and loops snag in wear.
Tubular cotton terry commonly shrinks 5 to 8 percent in the first wash unless compacted, and the loop side shrinks unevenly against the face, which reads as cockling. Require a compacted finish and a wash test on the actual lot.
The loop side adds thickness at every seam, so flatlock settings that work on jersey leave a ridge, and sewing costs rise accordingly.
The flat face takes pigment, reactive, and digital print well. The loop side does not, and print that strikes through sits unevenly. Long loops also snag on zips, and a pulled loop cannot be repaired invisibly.
Can one circular knitting machine produce both terry and fleece fabric? Yes, with a conversion kit. The cylinder and frame are shared, while sinkers, sinker cam, and yarn carriers are replaced. The converted machine runs at the performance of the structure it is set up for, so the flexibility is real but not free.
What gauge is used for terry and fleece knitting machines? Most apparel terry and fleece runs between E20 and E24, which balances loop definition, yarn count, and speed. Coarse machines from E12 to E18 handle heavy fleece and towelling, and gauges above E26 suit light summer terry.
Is brushed fleece always knitted on a fleece machine? No. Any loop-back fabric with enough surface fibre can be raised, including some terry and cut-loop qualities, but the result differs: a raised terry loop gives a shorter, denser nap with less loft. Brushing a fabric not designed for it usually produces patchy coverage and strength loss.
WELLKNIT was founded in Taiwan since 1987, and in 1995, we set up the production base in Quanzhou, Fujian, is the first Taiwan-funded weft knitting machine manufacturer to take root in Quanzhou.