Well as with most things there is more than one answer. So let me add mine. Bearding, I have learned, occurs due to a number of factors. At first I thought it was one particular batting, W&N. It will beard if it is not turned right side up. It used to say so on the package. It is needle punched and does have a right side. BUT, with a loosely woven backing, I have only ever experienced bearding on the back, W&N will beard even when turned right. I have had W&N beard with top quality wideback batiks. For me, W&N is the biggest culprit. I personally would not put a dark batting on a light quilt because of shadowing. But if I was concerned about bearding, I would use it to conceal it. Did I say I don't like the look you get with bearding. Just ugly.:( If you can find Pellon 80/20 or 60/40, you probably won't have bearding. I can't say that for sure about W&N. This is my experience on a longarm. I can't speak on the dsm.

Thanks Prism99 for the explanations.
I had no idea that so few battings had scrim, but that is probably because W+N seems to be the most popular in the LQS' around here.

Two questions come to mind, that perhaps you would clarify for me ...

Battings with scrim ... how should it be placed in the sandwich to avoid bearding?

Then, the 2nd question, with so few types having scrim, then what purpose does it serve?

My thoughts had been that it "held" things together, and allowed you a further apart quilting distance.
However, if so few have scrim, I have a feeling that I am totally out-to-lunch on this!

Look forward to you helping to clear the fog in my brain!

If the batting is W&N, the smooth side is supposed to be next to the backing -- at least according to this prior thread on the QB: https://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f...e-t219447.html . I think Nature's Touch 100% cotton is also needlepunched through scrim but I think the scrim is centered so there is no right side/wrong side. I could be wrong about this, though. I rarely use this kind of batting anymore so I would probably Google to get accurate information if I were going to layer a quilt with one of these.

Scrim stabilizes the batting a *lot*, which is why you can quilt W&N up to 10" apart. That is the purpose of scrim -- to create a very stable batting. Vintage style all-cotton battings did not (and still do not) have any kind of stabilization, which is why the recommended quilting distance for those types of batting is 2" or less. When quilting lines are farther apart with these battings, the batting tends to ball up with washing and use and become lumpy.

There are other ways manufacturers stabilize batting (other than needlepunching through scrim). Quilter's Dream, for example, creates very stable battings just by needlepunching (without scrim). Other manufacturers use chemical bonding materials (probably more common with polyester battings) or heat to make the batting more stable. Some bonding processes are mechanical (e.g., needlepunching), some are chemical, and some involve heat. All are designed to make the batting more stable so that quilting distances can be greater than 2" without the batting becoming lumpy over time. These battings typically specify quilting distance somewhere between 2" and 10", with 4" being common.

Wool batting requires different processing to make the batting stable, since wool fibers have little hooks that can cause the wool to irritate skin and/or migrate (beard through fabric). This is one reason to stick to brand names for wool batting (Hobbs and Quilter's Dream). Newer manufacturing processes stabilize the wool batting much better. Before these processes, wool batting needed to be encased in cheesecloth before it could be sandwiched in a quilt (so you didn't get scratchy wool fibers migrating through the fabric creating a bearding problem).

The different stabilization processes result in different characteristics of the batting. Needlepunching through scrim, for example, produces batting that is relatively heavy in weight and stiff in drape. The drape softens over time through washings and use, but the weight remains. A large quilt made with W&N will be much heavier (especially when wet!) than the same size quilt made with QD cotton, or Hobbs 80/20 or a polyester batting. The lofts vary with each of these as well.

Hope this is helpful.

Just two words from me: New Needle!

Watson .... have you considered using two layers of batting?

Not sure if this will even work with regarding to the possibility of a bearing issue (meaning if it's going to beard, will the wrong color batting pull all the way up or down through the second batting?). It would solve the issue of the wring color batting showing through the top or back though.

Exactly my thoughts! I put a new needle in my longarm with each large quilt. If your needle is dull you will get bearding on the back of the quilt because the dull tip shoves the batting ahead of it instead of cleanly piercing through the batting.

Yes, new needle and on my APQS I use a size 16 needle instead of a size 18. That also helps.