Cotton duck (fromDutch:doek, meaning "cloth"), also simplyduck, sometimesduck cloth orduck canvas, is a heavy,plain wovencottonfabric. Duck canvas is more tightly woven thanplain canvas. There is alsolinen duck, which is less often used.
Cotton duck is used in a wide range of applications, fromsneakers to painting canvases totents tosandbags.[1]
Historically, white untwilled cotton or linen fabric uniforms of this name were worn by British and French soldiers serving in the tropics.[2]
Duck fabric is woven with two yarns together in thewarp and a single yarn in theweft.
By treating with wax, duck fabric can be made waterproof (seewaxed cotton).
Cotton duck strips were the origin of duck tape, recorded in theOxford English Dictionary as having been in use since 1899[3] (seeduct tape).
Duck is classified according to weight in a numerical system, with grade 1 the heaviest and grade 12 the lightest variety. Besides this, traditional names exist, which are rarely used today.
The classification system used today dates from the 1920s. A numbered duck classification system was put into effect by the Cotton Duck Association and theUnited States Department of Commerce[4] when discrepancies came about with various specifications and qualities of material. In a technical paper titled "Development of the Standard Numbered Cotton Duck Specification", the Department'sNational Bureau of Standards established a set of specifications acceptable to manufacturer and consumer.[4]
According to the Department of Commerce,[4] "The number of the duck is based on the following computation: Number of Duck = 19 − (Weight per linear yard 22 inches wide in ounces)." This numbering system is used to describe the various weights of duck cloth, based on the weight of a 36-by-22-inch (91 cm × 56 cm) piece. Weights below 19ounces are called numbered duck. Those above 19 ounces are callednaught duck. The grade of numbered duck refers to the number of ounces subtracted from 19 for a 36-by-22-inch piece of fabric. For example, a piece ofNo. 8 numbered duck with dimensions of 36 by 22 inches weighs 11 ounces (310 g) (19 − 8 = 11).[5]
Numbered duck is nominally made in weights from 1 to 12, but numbers 7, 9, and 11 are no longer used. Some typical uses of various grades (with weights in ounces) are:[1]
There is often confusion when it comes to matching up weights and the correct number duck classification. The table below accurately represents the weight and number duck classification[6] per square yard instead of linear yard 22 inches wide.