A New Kilt

[OC Richard]

Next year will be 40 years kiltwearing for me. I've only owned full-yardage traditional wool handstitched kilts, in medium weight or heavy weight (13oz, 16oz, and my new 18oz).

Of course when I started wearing kilts that was the only sort of kilt there was! Casual kilts and Utilikilts were far in the future.

Myself and the vast majority of people in 'the pipe band scene' are traditionalists in that way, sticking with traditional kilts. I wear kilts anywhere I want to with no worries, and I have no interest in nontraditional kilts. Sorry, it's just the way I've always been.

By the way, pipe band kilts get very heavy usage: countless hours on coach trips, in the rain all day, in the sun, in pubs (where anything and everything gets spilled on them), being mistreated by young band members (thrown in a pile in the corner of their closet) and these kilts still look good after decades of such use.

[RockyR]

As I have a "dog in this race" as the OP was asking for opinions about USA Kilts vs. Atlanta kilts, I will bow out of that bit of the discussion.

To the other people's comments: the US Navy (aka Edzell) tartan is only available as a stock tartan in 13 oz wool from Strathmore or exclusively from us in PV material. USA Kilts is the only company with permission from the designing mill (Strathmore) to weave this tartan in any material other than wool.

[quincy2]

I very recently got my second kilt in 16 oz 5 yard wool from USAK. Great kilt, very nice, great craftsmanship (Thanks Rocky) The 5 yard is lighter and more comfortable than my "monster" 8-9 yard 16 oz kilt. I would think the 13 oz may be the way to go, and it really would still be top of the line in appearance. I would have done a 13 oz, but the tartan was not available in this weight. I do not worry much about damage, they are tough.

[Richrail]

For easy care and great looks I do love my semi-trad from USAkilts. I do know how you feel about the potential of damaging a beautiful and expensive garment. For knocking about, going to the pub, USAkilts PV's are great and machine washable does lend some peace of mind.

[TheOfficialBren]

A third endorsement in a row from me for USA Kilts. Rocky's work is top-notch.
Second endorsement for BCAC's and JockScot's suggestions.

A traditional wool kilt is tough. In fact, a little roughing up could maybe be interpreted as a sign that your kilt is loved, cherished, and (more importantly) actually worn out and about. It's not a relic. It's a garment (but do respect tradition).

Then again, they are expensive. Take pride in your investment. I own two kilts. A P/V (which I rarely wear regardless of the setting) and a 16oz wool (which I wear frequently, in all weather, all levels of formality). Wool may require dry cleaning but it's hearty and has many centuries of proven durability behind it. P/V looks great but is much lighter, generally.

[Nathan]

Best of luck to Rocky of USAK with his PV kilt sales, but I'm in the wool camp. This kilt heavy weight wool kilt (22oz) is over 100 years old. Here I am in photos accounting for the 21 years that it's been mine. I wore it in the military, on stage up to 4 nights a week for 6 years, in pubs, to black tie functions and it's still as good as new. Like Father Bill said, you need only worry about the moths.

So far so good.

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I used to wear it too low with the Celtic rock act, but you get the idea. It's still going strong!

[ratspike]

To be fair, I wouldn't think of a casual or semi-trad from USA Kilts to be a "lower end" kilt at all. Different from a tank, sure, but not low end. And if you're looking for something you can wear and not worry about, and throw it in the wash if you spill too much beer on it, then there's just nothing not to like IMO.

Atlanta Kilts appears to be the same kilt-shaped-objects imported from Pakistan that everyone else sells, and if that's the case I would absolutely consider them low end.

[AFS1970]

I have two kilts, one heavy weight wool and the other PV. To be fair I didn't have a choice in the PV one as I ordered it as part of a cloth order here on the forums and that order was going to be PV.

The only damage my wool kilt has suffered has been from two sources, first are moths, I have several minor holes on it, although none preclude me from wearing it. Second from my favorite sporran, which is heave and tends to rub against the apron. I noticed that there are definite signs of wear along the front as well as where the chain sits. While I have not noticed this wear on the PV kilt, I have not owned it as long as the wool one, so that may explain it a bit.

I did have one incident where I got a beer spilled on me at a bar by some idiot. It cost me enough to clean the wool kilt that I was considering a PV kilt when the cloth order came up. I have been pleasantly surprised with this kilt. It looks good, withstands whatever I seem to do to it. It is lighter weight and not as warm, but sometimes that is a good thing. Since having it, I haven't had a single thing spilled on it yet.

As for future purchases, I know that I want at least one more wool kilt, and I have been considering other PV choices as well. I have worn both in formal and informal settings and they looked good to me. I did have one person ask me what the PV one was made of as he thought it looked to light when he saw me in it. That was at a formal event and I was in a PC also. He was the only one of about 3,000 non kilted attendees at that dinner that commented about it. All the others were positive about the kilt.

[rmccool]

For easy care and great looks I do love my semi-trad from USAkilts. I do know how you feel about the potential of damaging a beautiful and expensive garment. For knocking about, going to the pub, USAkilts PV's are great and machine washable does lend some peace of mind.

What quincy2 said.