What mill?

[Paul]

I was previously considering getting a kilt from an independent kiltmaker - but I can get the same kilt for atleast £50 cheaper from Heritage of Scotland as they now have a great sale on! (check it out!)

I'm having trouble choosing the mill/tartan maker. I have the choice of:
Marton Mills 16oz £19.57
N Batley 16oz £14.69
House of Edgar 16oz £29.36

Is there a difference in quality between the mills? and/or which one is "best"?

Im getting the Campbell Ancient tartan

[Sammac]

I have a pv kilt from USAKILTS where the material came from MM, in ancient Campbell by the way. I also have a Scottish hand sewn wool kilt made with material from HOE. I would say both kilts are made from first rate material. However, my next kilt is going to be a wool one with the material from HOE.

[davidlpope]

I have fabric from all of these mills. I find that the Batley and Marton Mills selvedge is a much thicker, noticeable selvedge. It's not bad, it's just "there". I also find that these tend to have more of a "sheen". Once again, not bad, just noticeable.

HOE was in the process of switching over to looms which would produce a very fine selvedge, like Dalgliesh's, if I remember correctly. I think I'd go with the HOE, all things being equal.

That being said, fit and construction are going to be a function of the kilt-maker, not the mill, so I'd make sure that the person making your kilt will do a quality job. I haven't dealt with Heritage of Scotland, but there are several proven kilt-makers regularly discussed on this site. I'd consider them, even if the cost would be a little higher. Reputable kilt-makers have a real interest in making sure that their reputation stays high. I believe they offer a better investment in terms of customer service and reliability.


Cordially,

David

[Dall_Piobaire]

I must be missing something here???

Why am I seeing tartan from sixty up to eighty, not including shipping. Isn't that at least 40 pounds???

Should I order my own material and ship it myself to my kiltmaker?

[Paul]

http://www.heritageofscotland.com/Ki...65,product.php

Try that one.
If your tartans one on the list then you'll save quite a bit of money because theyll have it in stock
My kilts going to cost £180 and thats with it pleated to the stripe and choosing the most expensive mill

[ForresterModern]

HoS Makes a decent quality machine sewn kilt---double check your measurements before you send them becaseu they are hard to get to take a kilt back for alterations.

T decide on the fabrics you need to see them side by side if possible, although I doubt there is very much variation between a common tartan such as Ancient Campbell. Scotweb lists the same fabrics but shows individual swatches from each vendor separately where HoS uses the same swatch for all three mills. In my experience there is a reason Batley is cheaper---poorer brade selvedge, color schemes more off the standards than other mills, and a generally coarser cloth overall. Marton Mill Jura generally has good bright (especially ancient) colors, a decent selvedge although that can be spotty at times, and is less coarse than Batley but still more coarse than most other mills. HoE 16 oz is nice with a good hand, decent selvedge (they are still getting their rapier selvedges tuned up but are pretty good for the most part, and generally have a good true color pattern. When in doubt go ahead ad drop a few pounds for some swatches to compare before making a big decision, especially if you are matching other similar tartans in an outfit or with family members who weare the same tartan. Otherwise, decide what you think is most important---a little bit of savings in price versus the knowledge that the more expensive mills fabrics are more reliably of better quality overall.

I have HoE and Marton Mills fabrics (as well as Lochcarrons, Dalgleish, and Strathmore) so I am familiar with their quality, feel and finish. I have felt and seen Batley but not ever owned one or kept a swatch of fabric for comparison. I would personally stick with either Dalgleish or HoE, but Marton Mills would be a reasonable alternative. The little bit of savings you would gain from using Batley in my honest opinion is not worth the risk of getting abad piece of fabric or poor color match.

[Dall_Piobaire]

[QUOTE=
I have HoE and Marton Mills fabrics (as well as Lochcarrons, Dalgleish, and Strathmore) so I am familiar with their quality, feel and finish. I have felt and seen Batley but not ever owned one or kept a swatch of fabric for comparison. I would personally stick with either Dalgleish or HoE, but Marton Mills would be a reasonable alternative. The little bit of savings you would gain from using Batley in my honest opinion is not worth the risk of getting abad piece of fabric or poor color match.[/QUOTE]

Between the Lochcarron and Dalgleish, which did you prefer? Lochcarron seems to be popular around these parts

[ForresterModern]

Between the Lochcarron and Dalgleish, which did you prefer? Lochcarron seems to be popular around these parts

I think the quality of both is very good and probably comparable in my opinion. You will likely find a lot more folks on the forum who have lochcarron strome kilts than who have kilts made of 16oz Dalgleish, but I doubt you will hear any complaints from either group. If I had to choose between the two in comparable 16oz wt tartan, I would first base it on the colors of the tartan (can be very different from one vendor to another), and if that were equivalent or did not matter then make the decision based on price. As I said before I have either kilts or fabric in both and think they are equivalent. I know a very famous kiltmaker who prefers to get any custom runs of tartan from Dalgleish over all otehr available mills, based both on price and quality as well as speed and service, and that is good enough recommendation for me.

[Dall_Piobaire]

....and just who is this formidable kiltmaker you speak so highly of, I need to add another to my list of choices between which I still cannot decide!

[ForresterModern]

....and just who is this formidable kiltmaker you speak so highly of, I need to add another to my list of choices between which I still cannot decide!

I am pretty sure this person is already likely on your known list. 'Nuff said.


:ootd: