Which Mill?

[markv]

There are 7 mills to choose from on the USAK website when ordering a 5 or 8 yard kilt. I'm curious if there is any major difference between the mills? Is a single tartan from one mill all that different from another?

In general I'm looking at the Ferguson Ancient tartan.

Thanks!

-Mark

[Downunder Kilt]

Each of mills has their own pecurliarity. Most of the mills have a tuck in selvedge as they weave on rapier looms but Dalgliesh and House of Edgar have traditional selvedge as they use older looms. Different mills also produce a tartan that have different feels, i.e. hard or soft.

Some mills produce different size setts in their 13oz and 160z tartans eg. House of Edgar produce a smaller sett size in their 13oz MacLaren material.

Best person to talk to would be Rocky who is a font of information would would be able to give you all the info to guide you on your selection

[lukeyrobertson]

Rocky is well respected on this forum.

[Spartan Tartan]

I can speaking from experience on this....call Rocky. I asked him a hundred questions. He was very helpful and I ended up with a wonderful custom weave for my kilt.

[Riverkilt]

I don't think there's a "bad" mill. Whichever mills weave your tartan in the weight you want choose between them, or be grateful if just one does.

[RockyR]

Different mills have different 'attributes' or 'characteristics' to their cloth. ALL of the mills we offer on the site produce a cloth worthy of making a kilt (if they didn't, we wouldn't offer their cloth).

There have been other threads up here discussing the merits of one mill's cloth over another (and PLEASE don't re-hash that argument again). Every kiltmaker I know has their own favorite mill's cloth to work with. Some prefer Dalgliesh for the kilting selvedge. My wife (and fellow kiltmaker) prefers House of Edgar's cloth for it's 'hand' in 13 oz fabric. I prefer Lochcarron's cloth for it's soft feel and ease of ironing. Others prefer Strathmore or Marton Mills for it's 'hard' finish.

Again, WHICHEVER mill you choose, you will get a kilt built with the utmost care.

ALL THAT being said, I would say this... if you're looking at a 5 Yard Wool kilt model, if possible, choose the 16 oz cloth. B/C of the additional cloth weight, it hangs slightly heavier than the 13 oz and since there's less fabric in the kilt (5 yards vs. 8 yards), it makes a slightly nicer kilt IMHO. There's nothing WRONG with a 13 oz 5 Yarder, but in my opinion, I prefer the 16 oz cloth for that model.

If you have any more questions or would like me to expound on any point raised here, ring me up at the shop: 610.948.4110