Well, remember, the width of the pleat reveal you are talking about is a fairly recent development.

In the early days of kilt design pleats were any old width that the kiltmaker wished. They were also not always pleated as we do today. Pleating to either the stripe or to the Sett was not adhered to until the military standardized the look of kilts.

Box Pleats need to be in the 2" to 3" range to give good swish, On the original Kingussie kilt the pleats are wide, but those are the exception today. Most traditional Kilts today have pleats between 3/4" and 1 1/8".

Knife pleats with a 2" or 3" reveal only came back to common use with Utilikilts. They take less fabric, are easier and faster to manufacture, and give the "In your face" masculine look that UK tries to put forward.

I use a 1 1/2" pleat reveal on my Cargo Model to do the same thing. It produces a kilt with a rugged look.

If you're not using Tartan fabric or have lots of fabric to work with there is no reason you can't have a pleat reveal of whatever size looks good to you.

Within reason of course. Pleat reveals of less than 3/4" look busy. and are prone to a jumbled, or pick-up sticks look. Pleats over about 2 or 2 1/2" have the opposite problem. They move like cardboard and are prone to curling.