Quote Originally Posted by Moosedog View Post
The description says "4-inch pleats" on both of them...I assume this is the depth of the pleat.
It's not clear what "4-inch pleats" actually means. If the kilt really has pleats that are 4" deep, then the sett would have to be about 9". That's an uncommonly large sett for a lightweight tartan. In my experience, lightweight tartans more typically have setts under 6" and sometimes even under 5". So, maybe this is a tartan with a 5" sett, and the kilt has pleats with 1" reveal and 4" total hidden inside the pleat (which would make it more like 2" deep pleats). Or, maybe it's a tartan with a 4" sett and they put in a pleat every 2 setts.

Realize that, if a kilt is pleated properly to the sett or to the stripe, a kilt can't be made with an arbitrary pleat depth. The pleat depth is governed almost entirely by the size of the sett (not by the amount of tartan in a kilt or by the size of the person). If you had a 5" sett, and a pleat roughly every one repeat, the pleats couldn't be more than a bit more than 2" deep. If the sett were 6", pleats would be a bit more than 2 1/2" deep. If the sett were 9", then the pleats would be a bit more than 4" deep.

Whether a kilt made from lightweight tartan has all of the internal construction details that a heavier weight kilt has depends on who made it. If the kilt is made properly and in traditional fashion, it doesn't need any reinforcing.

I agree with the others who have said that an 11 oz kilt wrinkles more easily. And I've also found that there's 11 oz tartan and then there's 11 oz tartan. Some makes better kilts than others.

And one last. Most 11 oz tartan is not made with a kilting selvedge, meaning that the kilt will have to have a hem.

Cheers,

Barb