78th Fraser tartan

[Steve Ashton]

Correct The Black Watch and the 78th Fraser Tartans while very similar are not exactly the same.

[OC Richard]

Thanks for posting that comparison, it goes to show how the areas with the double-track lines moved to the edges (without separating lines) somewhat hides the effect which is so much a part of the Black Watch tartan.

I wasn't able to find anything on the 78th Fraser Highlanders Pipe Band Facebook page that discusses their new tartan or how it came about.

Like the new tartan that Simon Fraser University Pipe Band wears it's a change of colours.

The kilts SFU wore for decades



Their new kilts

[tokareva]

New ones look much nicer IMHO.

[Steve Ashton]

Just for clarity -

When I reference the 78th Fraser Highlanders I am speaking specifically about this group -



Headquartered in Montreal, Quebec Canada with garrisons across Canada and the US.

Freedom Kilts is the kiltmaker to the Vancouver and Victoria Garrisons.

https://www.78thfrasers.org/

[figheadair]

The kilts SFU wore for decades



Their new kilts

Surely the other way around?

The kilts SFU wore for decades


Their new kilts

[OC Richard]

Surely the other way around?

The kilts in the straightforward "ancient colours" with red-orange, pastel blue, and pastel green were AFAIK their original kilts which they've worn since the founding of the modern band in the early 1980s.

The kilts with the dark blue were adopted in 2010.

[figheadair]

Ah, so the sett? The photo is not clear enough and the 'new' one looks like a different sett.

[OC Richard]

Ah, so the sett? The photo is not clear enough and the 'new' one looks like a different sett.

I can't find the article that appeared in the SFU newspaper in 2010 when the new tartan was introduced, but as I recall they said that the only change was in the shade of blue.

And I think the article mentioned which mill they had worked with to produce the new colour-scheme, but I can't remember which mill it was.

[figheadair]

I can't find the article that appeared in the SFU newspaper in 2010 when the new tartan was introduced, but as I recall they said that the only change was in the shade of blue.

And I think the article mentioned which mill they had worked with to produce the new colour-scheme, but I can't remember which mill it was.

Thanks for clearing that up. Not a new tartan then but a new version of their Fraser, the colours look like Lochcarron's. I'm not a fan of this colouration which appear to be 'Old Colours' more or less. The uniform paler shades do nothing for the pattern IMO. Why or why didn't they go back to basics and get Wilsons' original shades matched. Here are two pieces of their cloth from the Highland Society of London's collection c1816-20.

[OC Richard]

Correct The Black Watch and the 78th Fraser Tartans while very similar are not exactly the same.

BTW this photo shows a comparison of Black Watch with the tartan worn by Simon Fraser University, not the tartan worn by the 78th Fraser Highlanders Pipe Band, as seen and discussed in the Original Post, which are rather different.

Here's the tartan originally under discussion, that of the 78th Fraser Highlanders Pipe Band