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Thread: Ex hire kilts?

  1. #1
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    Ex hire kilts?

    Greetings! I’ve been looking at ways to feed the kilt habit on a budget, and ex-hire kilts appear to be one way to go. Some questions:
    1. Are these generally low-quality mass manufactured kilts (i.e.- no stabilization, cheap wool, spotty construction, etc), or are there real deals to be had?
    2. How can you tell a quality garment from a picture alone? What should be looked for?
    3. Generally, how heavily used are these items? Hired until the threads pop then sold, or just rotated to keep stock fresh?

    Thanks in advance!

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steelkilt View Post
    Greetings! I’ve been looking at ways to feed the kilt habit on a budget, and ex-hire kilts appear to be one way to go. Some questions:
    1. Are these generally low-quality mass manufactured kilts (i.e.- no stabilization, cheap wool, spotty construction, etc), or are there real deals to be had?
    2. How can you tell a quality garment from a picture alone? What should be looked for?
    3. Generally, how heavily used are these items? Hired until the threads pop then sold, or just rotated to keep stock fresh?
    I have purchased an ex-hire jacket and waistcoat, and I've looked at ex-hire kilts (from the same company and others). This is what I learned from my experience buying ex-hire from Kilts4Less:

    1. It probably varies slightly, but I would assume mid-quality. Made in Scotland, machine sewn, not the top manufacturers, but not the bottom either. If they sell new and ex-hire kilts, they would be made by the same company or companies.

    2. I would investigate (or ask about) the name of the manufacturer(s). That's probably more informative. Even if they rely on multiple manufacturers, ask whether they could provide the name of the one or two that they use most frequently.

    3. Again this is something you could investigate or ask about. The Kilts4Less policy is that it spends a year as hire, then it's sold as ex-hire, regardless of the number of times its been worn. Since I'm fairly average sized, I would assume mine was a bit more heavily used than the average jacket. People of less average sizes would likely get stock that's been hired out less (if they can find their size at all). The wear and tear on my jacket/waistcoat wasn't visible, but I assume it has some.

    4. The biggest drawback is they're not quite custom. You're essentially buying off-the-rack, so you get to pick a waist size and maybe a narrow range of drops/lengths, but you'll get no input on hip measurements.
    Last edited by Karl R; 19th October 19 at 05:40 AM.
    Trying to look good on a budget.

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    I think if you use a reputable kilt maker - that also does hire wear then you won't go far wrong.

    I have bought to ex-hire kilts - very pleased with both.

    One was from McCalls - I had already bought a new Jacket and Vest from there. This is in a range of tartan's to their own house design (Hunting Pride) and the same quality as their bespoke range. Yes sizing isn't perfect - but close enough - and it's not new - but at over £400 less, I think I can live with it.

    The other is from Slanj. I have had them make stuff for me in the past and been hugely impressed with the quality. This is in the Scottish Rugby Union Tartan - Slanj had the exclusive licence for this until July this year. This has now been granted to Kinloch Anderson - forcing Slanj to sell of their hire stock in this tartan. The kilt looks like new. I paid a bit more for this than the one from McCalls - but it was still less than half the price of a new one. They have an ex-hire sale on at the moment: https://slanjkilts.com/ex-hire

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  5. #4
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    Great advice and direction- thank you!

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    I pulled the trigger on two ex-hire kilts from Kiltsforless (they have a sale going on), so we’ll see what comes of it! Should I expect these kilts to have stabilizers? Expect some minor wear/flaws? Should I plan to clean them before wearing them?

    On the last question- dry clean? Hand wash? Spot clean? Thoughts?

    Thanks (again) in advance!

  7. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steelkilt View Post
    Should I expect these kilts to have stabilizers? Expect some minor wear/flaws? Should I plan to clean them before wearing them?
    The jacket & waistcoat from Kilts4Less had no visible wear. (I assume that it has some invisible wear.) No visible flaws. I'm sure that my order had been cleaned before it was sent, so I would assume the kilts receive the same treatment.

    Given that they purchase from multiple Scottish manufacturers (and then put their own Clan Alba brand on the products), I expect there's some slight variation from kilt to kilt. However, you have 14 days to decide whether you like the product, or whether you want a refund. And frankly, if they send you a kilt that isn't stabilized, you might strongly consider exercising that option.
    Trying to look good on a budget.

  8. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steelkilt View Post
    1. Are ex-hire kilts generally low-quality mass manufactured kilts (i.e.- no stabilization, cheap wool, spotty construction, etc), or are there real deals to be had?
    I'm in the USA but I do keep an eye on the Kilt Hire industry in Scotland. I've spent some time perusing the Scottish kilt hire sites, and on my visits to Glasgow and Edinburgh I always pop into the shops and have a look.

    My main observation is that the industry has changed in recent years.

    Traditionally the legitimate Highland Dress firms hired top-quality kilts, handsewn 8-yard all-wool kilts. This is still to be seen AFAIK with legitimate firms such as McCalls, Slanj, and firms of that sort.

    A few years ago I began seeing several new kilt hire firms popping up around Scotland, and straight away I could tell, both from their pricing and from the look of their products, that they were hiring Pakistani tat.

    You have to hire things for a percentage of what they cost, and if a firm is hiring at a dramatically lower cost you know they paid dramatically less for their clothing.

    Quote Originally Posted by Steelkilt View Post
    2. How can you tell a quality garment from a picture alone? What should be looked for?
    The best guide is the prices the kilt hire firm charges to hire the items. There's a clear pricing dichotomy between the traditional firms hiring hand-sewn kilts made from UK-woven tartan and new firms hiring machine-sewn kilts made from Pakistani cloth.

    Also many of the legitimate firms doing the hiring are Highland Dress makers and/or retailers so you can see how much their kilts cost to buy new.

    Quote Originally Posted by Steelkilt View Post
    3. Generally, how heavily used are these items?
    It varies. The legitimate traditional Highland Dress firms will be honest and clear about the condition.

    The firms in Scotland that hire Pakistani items, not so much. A scheme I've seen is for them to sell new kilts and jackets but call them "ex-hire" to trick the customer into thinking they're getting high-quality items at bargain prices. No, you're getting a new low-quality Pakistani kilt for a price that IMHO is too high for what it is.

    Here, on Ebay. I bought one of these. It is not an ex-hire kilt but a new kilt. The tartan fabric is low-quality and IMHO quite obviously woven in Pakistan. The kilt is crudely machine-sewn. These particular Pakistani kilts are easy to identify due to the wide leather thing sewn on the back.

    https://www.ebay.com/itm/Spirit-of-S...C7L64drX5UILMA

    Also there's something odd about the sett of Spirit Of Scotland, but I can't put my finger on it. Here's the actual tartan



    It looks like all the sky blue and purple stripes have been made the same colour, not sure.

    In contrast, here's a Scottish firm selling what I believe to be a traditionally made kilt in genuine Spirit Of Scotland fabric

    https://www.ebay.com/itm/MENS-EX-HIR...MAAOSwmvBdPtXA

    Now, why am I suspicious about the tartan used by Kilts4Less? One, I bought a Spirit Of Scotland kilt that was obviously Pakistani-woven. Two, they have been selling items on Ebay said to be Isle Of Skye tartan but which are actually variations on Isle Of Skye, which is a privately owned tartan and illegal to produce and sell without permission.

    If you look closely you will see that the two front panels of this Kilts4Less waistcoat are made of two versions of Isle Of Skye:

    Last edited by OC Richard; 30th October 19 at 04:42 AM.
    Proud Mountaineer from the Highlands of West Virginia; son of the Revolution and Civil War; first Europeans on the Guyandotte

  9. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Karl R View Post
    The jacket & waistcoat from Kilts4Less had no visible wear. (I assume that it has some invisible wear.)
    See my response to SteelKilt, above.
    Proud Mountaineer from the Highlands of West Virginia; son of the Revolution and Civil War; first Europeans on the Guyandotte

  10. #9
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    Thank you all for the very complete replies! I asked the vendor (kilts4less) my questions, and they replied that the kilts are un-stabilized, 13oz wool, and have some cleaning and alterations before shipping (new buckles and straps. I decided to cancel the order, thank you again for your insights.

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