Non-advertiser vendor review.

[Sir Didymous]

A while back I took a chance and bought a kilt belt and evening sporran from Kiltmart.com. Specifically the smooth finish black belt and the antiqued brass Celtic knot buckle combo, and the calf skin sporran with the antiqued brass finished cantle. The belt is a good heavy leather, but it has a Velcro adjustment. This kept the price down, but adjusting it takes a bit of guess work. The buckle it came with is nice, but light weight. It is probably cast aluminum alloy that has been thickly plated in brass (though I could be wrong about that). It was well worth what I paid for it. The sporran is also good for the price, but you can tell that they are mass produced (no shock here). The leather back is good and sturdy, and the fur is nice and lays well. It has a snap closure, and the tassels are nicely matched to it. They are attached by punching holes in the front and feeding the chains through it then adding lager split rings to keep them from sliding back through. This is a bit tacky as there is no inner lining to hide it. The obviously aluminum cantle has clean designs, but the "antique brass" finish is so dark that it resembles a light gun metal. The finish chipped off the top finial due to hitting the bottom of the belt buckle. Which leads me to the final point of the review. The chain is sturdy and matches the cantle well. Remarkably it has no noticeable burs, but the clips are of course cheap and could catch the weave of the kilt. It was also rather short (the reason for it hitting the bottom of the buckle), but that was easily fixed by punching a new hole in the strap; which is also good and sturdy. Overall I give them a three and a half to four star (out of five) rating. You get what you pay for, but I don't feel ripped off. This is decent stuff for a new kiltie. BTW: The shipping was very quick. No pics at present, but They will likely be worn with my new jacket in an upcoming thread.

[Andrews Son]

They are attached by punching holes in the front and feeding the chains through it then adding lager split rings to keep them from sliding back through. This is a bit tacky as there is no inner lining to hide it.

I have a sporran done like this but sometimes when i put my hand in, the larger loops catch under my nails and cuts me. it only happens a few times but its like i have a crayfish in there. For the want of some lining.

[Chas]

The belt is a good heavy leather, but it has a Velcro adjustment. This kept the price down, but adjusting it takes a bit of guess work.

Once you know your size then it is job done, but if you ever have to do it again on a different belt here is a trick.

Put the belt on, inside out. So that the Velcro is outside. Make the adjustment (tighten an extra 1/2 inch), smooth the Velcro down, unclip, then put it on the right way - Perfect fit.

[Chas]

I have a sporran done like this but sometimes when i put my hand in, the larger loops catch under my nails and cuts me. it only happens a few times but its like i have a crayfish in there. For the want of some lining.

High class regimental sporrans are done exactly the same way - always seemed a bit shoddy to me. But - out of sight, out of mind.

[Carlo]

High class regimental sporrans are done exactly the same way - always seemed a bit shoddy to me. But - out of sight, out of mind.

My guess would be, that it is done this way, so that it is easier to exchange a broken tassel. Or maybe even to take them off for cleaning.
Just a guess.

[Nathan]

My guess would be, that it is done this way, so that it is easier to exchange a broken tassel. Or maybe even to take them off for cleaning.
Just a guess.

Bingo! ^^^

Even the suede lined sporrans I have handled have visible split rings when you look inside the sporran. This is the traditional method. It is useful because in addition to replacing or cleaning the tassels, you can adjust how low the tassels hang. Some prefer the centre one to be a tad lower than the two to the east and west of it. Others prefer them all to line up evenly.