Originally Posted By Jimshaw
Tom D
I think whats changed is there is no "weighted piston" anymore, no weight given nor diameter of cylinder stated, not weight per square inch remarked. I think they just fluff up an ounce of feathers and put it into a graduated cylinder with no weight and see how much room it takes up AND they do not then compress it down to see whether or not it actually takes up 0NE (1) unit of volume, also done under some un-stated amount of pressure/weight.

It is not obvious that there are in fact any standards or whether the "weighted piston" could be a piece of paper. So the stated fill power whether 700, 800, 850 or 900 has no meaning except price.

Try searching on "down fill certifications" or "certification of down fill" on the Internet. The is NOTHING. You would think that a lab that certified down would be listed huh???
Jim


There are good internet researchers, and then not so good ones.

International Down and Feather Laboratory.......
http://www.idfl.com/

They have a comparison of the DIFFERENT WORLD STANDARDS for measuring down fill and and discussion on DIFFERENT SAMPLE PREPARATIONS that are used in different parts of the world.

Last year I downloaded a dozen documents on this from them.

I've worked as a researcher in science for 30 years before retirement, and learned the importance of trying and trying different search strategies to locate what you want. The key words YOU THINK should be good aren't necessarily the key words that ARE good.

Here are some words from their page on down and feather testing.

http://www.idfl.com/downfeathertesting.asp
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Down & Feather Testing

IDFL is the foremost leader in down and feather testing and quality assurance. IDFL performs testing in compliance with all major country standards as well as internal company standards. Content, Species, Fill Power, Average Feather Length, Cleanliness Tests (Oxygen, Turbitiy) and more are all performed at IDFL by an experienced and well trained staff. Feel free to contact us or see our Sample Submittal Form for a full listing of down and feather testing options.
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Here is the page where they link to documents on testing and standards.

http://www.idfl.com/articles/
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ARTICLES

We have grouped our articles in the following categories:

* Cleanliness
* Content Analysis
* Fabric Tests
* Fill Power
* General Testing Information
* News and Announcements
* Quality Assurance
* Standards and Labeling
* Sterilization and Licensing Information
* Tolerances

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Whining is sometimes a good way to avoid learning about difficult tasks yourself.

Please enjoy reading about all of this stuff which you claim does not exist.

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