Kilts Vs. Pants

[Yaish]

... and the pants just dont hold up.

A little comparative analysis here.

Approximately six months ago I got several pairs of dress pants to wear when I am working. Of these, one pair (the most expensive at around $60.00) developed a hole in the crotch after just about two months.
A different pair, that I wear probably three days a week cost less, but hardly held up better. The fabric is pilling badly, especially between the legs where it rubs. The crotch is very nearly worn through and is .about to burst.
These pants dont see much heavy use either. I am usually sitting at my desk, rarely doing anything physical anymore.
I probably walk less than a mile a day in those pants, and thats mainly short trips around the building or to my car and back.
They have only been dry cleaned, they havent been subjected to the washer or dryer.

By contrast, all my kilts which are much older are holding up just fine. My very favorite kilt, my Choc. brown Workmans gets worn at least as much as those dress pants, around three days a week (or more). I'm not babying that kilt either. I've done construction in it. I go camping and hiking in it. I wrestle with the dog in it, moved houses in it, competed in the highland games in it. I've done just about everything in it.
Its about a full year OLDER than those pants too, and gets washed regularly and thrown in the dryer as well. Yet, somehow its just in perfect shape. Oh, its faded a little since I got it, but a quick touch of an iron and it would look like new as far as the material is concerned.

Its not just the workmans model either though, one would expect those to hold up. My Nightwatch Camo kilt has held up equally well, and its done just about everything the workmans has too. During the first summer I got it I probably wore it MORE than three days a week as I didnt have many kilts then. Its dropped out of the rotation a bit with the cooler weather, but now that it has warmed up it gets worn a lot too. Heck, I've even gone swimming and sailing in that kilt. Again, no special treatment, in fact it gets treated pretty roughly and its still in perfect shape.

Poo on those who balk at the expense of kilts (especially UK's). You just cant get pants that will hold up to what a kilt will tolerate no matter what the cost. If I replaced the dress pants every six months, by now I would have paid for the price of the workmans, and definately saved money on an Original.

Pants just dont compare.

[kilted in kleaveland]

Regardless of the numerous testimonials, until you actually own one and KNOW that they can take a serious beating, it is hard for Joe Normal to understand the $125 and up price tag. My UKs have withstood punishment that makes my Levi cry. You get what you pay for!

[Kilted KT]

And this is just the UK's...I'd have to say my blackwatch e-bay kilts ( once properly re-worked) will stand up to anything at least as well as a uk, and far better than any pants I've ever seen (well, the nomex firefighter pants might hold up as well, but I don't own any, so there is no point of referral)

[Mr. Kilt]

What baffles me is how someone could balk at paying $100+ for a kilt, yet doesn't hesitate to shell out $100 or more for a pair of jeans. :confused:

Perhaps it's time for someone at UK headquarters, Stillwater, and the others to start pushing the longetivity factor in their websites. I've still got all my kilts, and they're all still in perfect condition. Can't say the same for the pants I've had to buy and wear in the same time period.

[auld argonian]

Who pays $100 plus for a pair of jeans? Holy Schnikes! I even gave up on Levis...$40+ and they stopped making the "model number" that fit me in favor of "relaxed fit" (read: baggy ***). I just buy the Rustler jeans at Kmart for $13-$15 a pair and they seem to last an adequate period of time...and if they get trashed, no big loss...back to Kmart.

We'll see how long the kilts hold up...I expect that the wool will prove to have more longevity but that PolyViscose stuff seems pretty hardy.

Best

AA

[GMan]

And the pants wearers call us nuts!

Granted they do have their place, but come on lets get practical here, Kilts are the best!

[Kilted KT]

Who pays $100 plus for a pair of jeans? Holy Schnikes! I even gave up on Levis...$40+ and they stopped making the "model number" that fit me in favor of "relaxed fit" (read: baggy ***). I just buy the Rustler jeans at Kmart for $13-$15 a pair and they seem to last an adequate period of time...and if they get trashed, no big loss...back to Kmart.

We'll see how long the kilts hold up...I expect that the wool will prove to have more longevity but that PolyViscose stuff seems pretty hardy.

Best

AA

go to any of the stores catering to teenagers and 'high fashion' at any mall in the US...I've seen jeans that were torn to shreads for more than $100 in more than one place...

[Caradoc]

I just buy the Rustler jeans at Kmart for $13-$15 a pair and they seem to last an adequate period of time...and if they get trashed, no big loss...back to Kmart.

I've been buying the Dickies' brand jeans at Ace Hardware. $20 a pair, and they seem to last forever.

Kilts aren't suited for crawling around in attic spaces and under houses, pulling network and/or video cables.

[TechBear]

Regardless of the numerous testimonials, until you actually own one and KNOW that they can take a serious beating, it is hard for Joe Normal to understand the $125 and up price tag. My UKs have withstood punishment that makes my Levi cry. You get what you pay for!

I volunteered at the Utilikilt booth for the Artist-Blacksmith Association of North America's (ABANA) national convention this last week, and we were selling quite a few of the workmans which start at $195. One of the volunteers had a great sales pitch: He would point out that the workmans were made using the same cotton canvas duck used to make Carhardts dungarees. He then asked (remember, these were mostly blacksmiths) how many pairs of Carhardts they would go through in a year, 3? 4? After a nod, he went on to say that the one kilt cost the same as a years worth of pants, was far more comfortable in a hot environment than any pants could possibly be, and were guaranteed never to wear out in the crotch or knees. That was usually all it took to get the guy in to be sized.

And as for the issues of working with hot metal in a kilt, there were several dedicated UK wearers already in the local group sponsoring the convention, which is how UK got invited as a vendor. They liked to wander by and offer suggestions to vacillating purchasers, such as using the modesty snaps to hold a leather apron extension to protect the shins, and attaching a suede liner inside the front (one guy told an amusing-after-the-fact story of how HOT the rivets can get when working at a forge. :rolleyes: )

[Yaish]

ad were guaranteed never to wear out in the crotch or knees.

Was it Scott that said that? I think I was the one who started that line a little over a year ago.