scutched

Scutched is the past participle of the verb scutch, used in textile production to describe flax fiber that has undergone scutching. Scutching is a mechanical step that removes the bark and woody core from retted flax stems to expose the usable fibers. Scutched fiber is typically used for further processing into linen yarn and is distinguished from tow, the shorter waste fibers separated later in the process.

The process follows retting and drying. In traditional practice, a scutching mill or hand tools employ beating and scraping to loosen the flax rind and detach the woody shives from the fibers. Modern scutching machines use rotating drums or beaters with knives to bruise the stem and scrape away the woody material. The resulting scutched flax is cleaner and more uniform, ready for hackling and spinning; further combing (hackling) aligns the fibers and removes remaining impurities.

Historically, scutching was a central step in linen production, especially in regions with extensive flax farming. The term persists in technical and historical contexts, though industrial processes have largely replaced manual scutching in commercial production. In practice, scutched flax joins later stages to produce high-quality linen yarns, while the shorter, non-scutched fibers may be directed to other用途 or discarded as tow.