Apron drafting arrangement

An apron drafting arrangement for fibrous material moving in a predetermined direction of material flow, comprising a pair of back rolls, a pair of intermediate rolls, a pair of front rolls, the intermediate pair of rolls including a top roll and bottom roll, a top apron guide cage comprising a pair of non-rotatable top deflecting elements connected to said cage in spaced relation, a top apron loosely placed about the top roll of the intermediate pair of rolls and about said pair of top deflecting elements, said top pair of deflecting elements, viewed in the direction of material flow, including a respective one of said deflecting elements located upstream and downstream of the top roll of the intermediate pair of rolls, said top apron guide cage including means for receiving the top intermediate roll, a pair of bottom deflecting elements including a respective one of such deflecting elements located upstream and downstream of said bottom roll of said intermediate pair of rolls, a bottom apron loosely guided about said deflecting elements of said second pair of deflecting elements which are located upstream and downstream of the bottom intermediate roll, the intermediate pair of rolls being arranged closer to the downstream located deflecting elements,

• said top and bottom aprons including a respective lower and upper run disposed in confronting relationship between said pairs of deflecting elements located upstream and downstream of said intermediate rolls to provide a supported travel path for said fibrous material moving from between one pair of deflecting elements to another pair of deflecting elements.