Shooting socks vs kilt hose

[Jock Scot]

How real shooting hose are worn in , er well umm , in action. Its difficult to be too precise because of rule 11 constraints, but I hope that you can see the difference between how those "that know" and OCR's picture.



Well, well what a surprise! I cannot download pictures and I could not yesterday either. I have had problems before but-------------? Is it me? It probably is, or, is there a problem with the system? Answers in non techno-jargon would be helpful.

Anyway, for those that might be interested, I have posted pictures before here that show how shooting hose are worn in action with some shooting britches, which is very different from the "plus 4" style. Nevertheless, shooting hose are certainly not worn as OCR's picture demonstrates!

I will try again later.

[OC Richard]

I know nothing whatsoever about shooting in the UK.

"Shooting" here in the US (which I've done many years of) is a completely different thing with completely different clothes.

All I know is that when looking at British shooting socks for sale (my intention being to wear them as kilt hose) I've seen photos of them with wellies, sometimes pulled over the wellies, sometimes pulled up to the knees, either way higher than kilt hose would be, which is our topic here.

I bought a pair of shooting socks and indeed they're too long for kiltwearing without doing a tricky multiple foldover thing.

And as I had said I bought a Cheviot pair, sold as kilt hose, only to discover it was a mismatched pair, one kilt sock and one shooting sock which was around five inches too long, the same length as my pair of shooting socks.

[Micrographia]

As Jock said, in the UK "shooting socks" are specifically designed to be worn with breeks (or britches or breeches) - short trousers that are fastened by a strap at the bottom just below the knee. There are arguments over whether the sock should go under the bottom strap of the breeks or over them before being folded back (I prefer the latter - keeps the ticks out ). They are longer than kilt socks because they need to reach the knees after folding down the top, are worn with both shorter boots or wellies and as we all know are kept up by garter ties (in my case tied above the bottom strap of the breeks, effectively locking the 2 together). Since they are mainly meant to interact with breeks it would be unusual to see them folded over the top of wellies. There are welly socks designed to do this because in the absence of garter ties or similar, wellies are excellent at levering long socks down into the boot while walking and a fold-over can sometimes help with this. But if you do this you are significantly reducing the height of the waterproof protection from the boots - just walking through wet vegetation will cause water to be wicked into the boot, not ideal when you're out all day.

Wellies are actually much comfier with breeks and shooting socks as you don't have to fit trouser bottoms into the boot. The sock fold gives a double width of material that effectively plugs the top of the welly while letting the top of the boots move as you walk. In that picture it looks like the boots are being squashed down from the top, likely by the sock fold-over. Guessing a stylist thought it was a good way to show the sock tops and ties?

Regards, EEM.

[Guiness gets my Irish up]

I have to admit that I'm learning a lot here. I've never seen shooting in the flesh in my neck of the woods, but I really dig the looks of them. I think the garters just have a better look than the flashes. Of course, in my neck of the woods, one seldom sees kilt hose either. The kilt hose that I own were purchased online and shipped to me and I'm quite sure that they're not of the highest quality. The flashes that I own probably aren't either. I normally wear very tall boots with my kilt and forego the hose and flashes altogether. I may have to invest in a pair of shooting socks and garters and give those a whirl.

[Jock Scot]

If any of you are interested, if you go onto the Westley Richards, website and go to the "Apparel and Accessories" section and then go to the"socks" section, you will find a selection of shooting socks that might catch your eye. Be warned, you need to be sitting down before viewing!

These particular hose do look as though they are much longer than kilt hose and personally, I think the garter ties are quite unsuitable ( too long for kilt attire and for that matter for those wearing plus 4's too), flashes need to be just that, a flash, not some snake like appendage flapping about in the wind and creating the dreaded "windsock effect".

[FossilHunter]

If any of you are interested, if you go onto the Westley Richards, website and go to the "Apparel and Accessories" section and then go to the"socks" section, you will find a selection of shooting socks that might catch your eye. Be warned, you need to be sitting down before viewing!

These particular hose do look as though they are much longer than kilt hose and personally, I think the garter ties are quite unsuitable ( too long for kilt attire and for that matter for those wearing plus 4's too), flashes need to be just that, a flash, not some snake like appendage flapping about in the wind and creating the dreaded "windsock effect".

For £295 I’d expect my socks to do the walking for me as well. ;)