# 'Modal' fabric



## rwjones (Jan 29, 2009)

Perhaps many of you have already jumped onto this bandwagon, but I just discovered this wonderful (so far) fabric called Modal, which is apparently made from plant cellulose fibers.

It's a proprietary name, so there's only one company that produces the raw material, but I absolutely love the way it feels. It's like a supima cotton/spandex/jersey/cashmere hybrid. Really nice to the touch.

I'm not even sure if it's "new" or not, but I just heard about it a few days ago.

I currently only have a crewneck that I believe is meant to be an undershirt(?) but I'd say it's only a matter of time before they start making regular tees and polo shirts out of this stuff. Currently, I think CK and PRL are the primary designers using it.

Any idea how this stuff washes?



> *ASKANDY UPDATE: *Check out our article covering the details of modal fabric, including where it comes from and how it's made.


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## Scoundrel (Oct 30, 2007)

I've heard of this fabric before. The only times I've heard it mentioned is with designer underwear. Never tried it myself though. I'm more of a polyester man.


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## Cary Grant (Sep 11, 2008)

Modal is technically not a fabric, it's a cellulosic man-made fiber, a type of rayon. It's often combined with polyester.


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## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

rwjones said:


> ...Any idea how this stuff washes?


I'm not at all sure this is even close to the same thing but, I have several pair of socks made of bamboo fibers that, after six months of laundering, still look almost brand new and are really quite comfortable to wear. Should this be what you are referring to, my response would be, it holds up very well to normal use and in the wash.


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## dingbat (Jul 24, 2008)

rwjones said:


> Perhaps many of you have already jumped onto this bandwagon, but I just discovered this wonderful (so far) fabric called Modal, which is apparently made from plant cellulose fibers. It's a proprietary name, so there's only one company that produces the raw material, but I absolutely love the way it feels. It's like a supima cotton/spandex/jersey/cashmere hybrid. Really nice to the touch. I'm not even sure if it's "new" or not, but I just heard about it a few days ago.
> 
> I currently only have a crewneck that I believe is meant to be an undershirt(?) but I'd say it's only a matter of time before they start making regular tees and polo shirts out of this stuff. Currently, I think CK and PRL are the primary designers using it.
> 
> Any idea how this stuff washes?


As far as I know, it's made from some kind of wood...?

Anyway, I discovered Modal about two years ago and haven't looked back. All my undershirts and underwear are now modal, or at least modal-rich. It's great, great stuff.


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## aluminiumfish (Feb 19, 2009)

Modal is an improvement on Viscose which has poor life expectancy.
That is the main driving point for finding new ways of producing reprocessed celluloic fibres ( making more fibres from left over wood, cotton lint etc)....Viscose is nice....but has little or no internal structure...so in water it will tear easier ...just like paper gets easier to tear in water.( hence poor washibilty)
So hence the rush to '_modulate_' the characteristics ...hence 'new' stuff like _Modal._

Vicose and Acetate are the oldest man made fibres going back a cebntury or so.


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## lizardking (Oct 18, 2008)

*Trivia*

Modal is made from cellulose sourced from beech trees. It is more water absorbent than cotton. I have a few undershirts of the material, and they are quite nice. A bit on the expensive side, though.


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## dfloyd (May 7, 2006)

*I have a few tees and polos made from modal ....*

The ones I have are from Paul Fredrick and they have worn ok; however, they are subject to pilling. I try to stick with all cotton rather than a man-made fabric. IMO a cotton mercerized tee is superior to any man-made fabric.


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## ToryBoy (Oct 13, 2008)

I have CK's that are 90% modal and 10% lycra. 

The first few times I had them on, I though I would definitely get some more because it was a nice fabric and had a great feel; however, after they had been washed several times, it was obviously is was not the most resistant fabric. 
There is pilling on the boxers (a lot more compared to my other boxers), I will have to wait and see how durable they are before making a decision to purchase more or not.


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## Guest (Mar 4, 2010)

You can't beat mother nature, or at least not until we get force fields around or bodies for protection from the elements.


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## Mannix (Nov 24, 2008)

Modal = HWM (high wet modulus) Rayon

It's a regenerated cellulosic fiber from wood pulp.


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## aluminiumfish (Feb 19, 2009)

Mannix said:


> Modal = HWM (high wet modulus) Rayon
> 
> It's a regenerated cellulosic fiber from wood pulp.


HWM is a just a fancy way of saying it won't fall apart in water as quickly as viscose does because this type of viscose has been modulated.

Viscose has a wonderful characteristic of absorbing a huge amount of moisture ...expanding 150% ...
thats the characterisitic that they prized for underwear ( for comfort not incontinence )......

but it has a limited life span if washed hard and often which it need to if made into underwear.

Hence Modal.

Modal , paper , viscose , cotton fibres are all cellulose in differing forms.
All burn to a fine ash , get damaged by bleach and acid , like Alkalis .


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## Mannix (Nov 24, 2008)

aluminiumfish said:


> HWM is a just a fancy way of saying it won't fall apart in water as quickly as viscose does because this type of viscose has been modulated.
> 
> Viscose has a wonderful characteristic of absorbing a huge amount of moisture ...expanding 150% ...
> thats the characterisitic that they prized for underwear ( for comfort not incontinence )......
> ...


I was just quoting from my textbook for an accurate definition. And yes, it is stronger than viscose rayon.


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## aluminiumfish (Feb 19, 2009)

Mannix said:


> I was just quoting from my textbook for an accurate definition. And yes, it is stronger than viscose rayon.


I meant the manufacturer had a fancy way of calling the product HWM ...
Sorry...I did'nt mean to imply you were dressing it up a bit.

Which is fair of the manufacturer to do so....Viscose is a weak fabric with serious problems...

I think I might have called it something really different though...
Modal sounds like something you try to sleep through in a Maths or Physics lesson


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## jst (Oct 22, 2008)

I have two boxer shorts from Tesco Stores 100% modal according the paper ticket on them. The retail price is about $9, I bought them in the sale for $3 before Xmas. I am giving them rotation and still hold well.


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## goplutus (Jun 4, 2005)

dfloyd said:


> I try to stick with all cotton rather than a man-made fabric. IMO a cotton mercerized tee is superior to any man-made fabric.


Is creating the fabric from wood pulp any more or less "man-made" than weaving a fabric from cotton? They both come from plants, and it's merely the method of producing the fabric is different.


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## StephenRG (Apr 7, 2005)

rewozz said:


> You can't beat mother nature, or at least not until we get force fields around or bodies for protection from the elements.


Not true. When it comes to wicking athletic wear, I've not come across any natural fabric to compare with the synthetic fabrics in my sports apparel.


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## aluminiumfish (Feb 19, 2009)

When it comes to wicking ...Acrylic is the king of the Hill

and therefore used for sports socking


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## CuffDaddy (Feb 26, 2009)

goplutus said:


> Is creating the fabric from wood pulp any more or less "man-made" than weaving a fabric from cotton? They both come from plants, and it's merely the method of producing the fabric is different.


The quantity of chemicals required to process celulose into fibers/filaments is huge. Some rayon manufacturers got busted by the FTC for deceptively marketing their products as being "made from bamboo." Saying that modal is "from wood pulp" is like saying that a car is made "from the earth," because all the iron, carbon, copper, etc., that is in the car was in the earth at some point in time.

https://www.ftc.gov/opa/2009/10/bamboosa.shtm

Bottom line: man-made fibers are not the same thing as natural fibers. They may be what you need/want for a particular application, but don't think that they are natural, or that you're doing something "green."


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## Mannix (Nov 24, 2008)

aluminiumfish said:


> I meant the manufacturer had a fancy way of calling the product HWM ...
> Sorry...I did'nt mean to imply you were dressing it up a bit.
> 
> Which is fair of the manufacturer to do so....Viscose is a weak fabric with serious problems...
> ...


I believe HWM rayon is the generic name, not a trade name.

Other names for HWM rayon include: High peformance (HP) rayon, or polynosic rayon. In Europe they tend to label items polynosic or modal rather than rayon.


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## dingbat (Jul 24, 2008)

StephenRG said:


> Not true. When it comes to wicking athletic wear, I've not come across any natural fabric to compare with the synthetic fabrics in my sports apparel.


High quality merino base layers, e.g. Icebreaker, are superb in my experience. For winter sports synthetics can't beat them.


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