Allen, it may be that you have an earlier kilt. My Lennox was one of his earlier kilts, which did have similar issues, but all were repaired and upgraded with heavier-duty materials for free.

That said, I'd say that the Lennox kilt is better than my Armstrong, at least in initial quality. I needed to have the Armstrong redone a bit, since J Higgins didn't do things like stitch the bottom of the hem @ the end of the outer apron, where the fringe is, or provide enough holes on the straps so you could cinch it up. They also didn't use buttonhole thread for sewing on the buckles. I also noticed that the slot for the left buckle was starting to wear pretty badly. Started to look like the kilt was about to fall apart. He fixed all that was wrong with it for $5.00.

I've been pretty satisfied with North Channel. I just wish they'd update their website. It still shows my Lennox kilt @ $250. Got it for $150 in August of '02.
-J