Quote Originally Posted by 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!
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: )