Process for coating yarn with hot melt thermoplastic

A process for coating a yarn with a hot melt composition comprising the steps of:

• (a) contacting a textile yarn with a melt of a heated hot melt composition to thoroughly coat the yarn;
• (b) passing the thus coated yarn through the opening of a heated die thereby compressing the melt coated on the yarn and forcing the melt into the interstices of the yarn while leaving the yarn with a smooth, uniform, melt-coated outer surface;
• and immediately thereafter
• (c) exposing the yarn of step (b) to ambient air and allowing the thus applied melt to return to a solid non-tacky state as a uniform film on the outside surface of the yarn.