where to find used military kilts?

**Mael Coluim** · 2nd June 12, 06:49 AM

Originally Posted by CMcG

I'm back from Hong Kong and passed by a local army surplus store to inquire about military kilts. He told me that they don't sell very well and so they don't bring them in anymore. He did tell me that a company called Strum supplies most of the kit for the Scottish and Irish regiments in Canada.

There is another surplus store downtown that actually had one before I left (basting stitches still in) and I'll pass by there again sometime soon.

Strum? Bet he means Burnett's & Struth. I'll PM Brandon who is a member here with B&S.

**CMcG** · 2nd June 12, 10:11 AM

Originally Posted by Mael Coluim

Strum? Bet he means Burnett's & Struth. I'll PM Brandon who is a member here with B&S.

That's probably right and I thought that might be what he meant... I asked twice and he spelled it out for me as "S T R U M," so maybe he was just confused.

We'll see what Brandon says.

**rsvpiper** · 2nd June 12, 01:52 PM

Originally Posted by Tobus

Ahh, good catch on that photo. Now that I look more closely, it does seem that we're looking at the back of his shirt (no seam or buttons visible). Wonder why they took the photo that way, with the sporran around the back?

My waist is 33", and I have seen several MOD surplus kilts sold in that size. But what I wonder about is the length. I see many of them sold with only the waist size listed, where others have a tag that shows waist size and a height range (i.e. sized to fit a person 5'-6" to 5'-7" tall). I'm hesitant to buy one that lists only waist size, for fear that it would be made for someone much taller than me. I'm 5'-7".

Would it be able to be resized to 33"? And what is the length on it? My height requires about a 20.5" drop, so for a regular kilt with a 1.5" rise, the total length would -be 22". Military kilts have a 3" rise, correct? Or is it 4"? That would mean the total length I'd need is around 23.5" to 24.5", but I'm not certain.

-
So you should be looking for a kilt around 174-84-100 height waist breach
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BRITISH-AR...ht_1050wt_1163

**Nick the DSM** · 2nd June 12, 04:08 PM

What do you mean by tiny? All I can find are 32"s and up.

**crash** · 3rd June 12, 01:29 PM

Mostly 32's on down presumably cadet uniforms.

**Mael Coluim** · 4th June 12, 06:16 PM

Originally Posted by Mael Coluim

Strum? Bet he means Burnett's & Struth. I'll PM Brandon who is a member here with B&S.

Originally Posted by Brandon

Hello Ern,

Yes we do manufacture for many regiments across Canada including the 48th Highlanders, Black Watch, The Lorne Scots, to name a few.

Yes absolutely we do military box pleat or knife pleat in the Black Watch tartan for a civilian not a problem and in any size.

Let me know if you have any other questions

Cheers,

Brandon

Originally Posted by Mael Coluim

Hi Brandon,

Does B&S make the kilts for the Canadian Kilted Regiments?
See this thread.

If so, would you make a military kilt in the new governmental/Black Watch tartan for a civilian?

Thanks, bud!

Ern

**Tobus** · 6th June 12, 05:50 AM

Suddenly I'm seeing some interesting ex-military kilts pop up on eBay. Some are pretty close to my size, but would need to be altered. Please tell me your thoughts on this.

Again, my waist size is currently around 33". It looks like there are a couple of kilts that are tagged for my height, but the typical waist size on them is around 30". Is it possible to just replace the original straps on a kilt like this with slightly longer ones to cheat 3" from it? Or would that cause some weird issues with the aprons not overlapping correctly, etc.?

Also, I see many of these military kilts listed with sizes such as 14, 20, 26, etc. But I can't make sense of the sizing system. Does anyone have a chart or a link to somewhere that explains the size numbers on these military kilts?

**Arnot** · 6th June 12, 08:39 AM

[QUOTE=Tobus;1098510] Is it possible to just replace the original straps on a kilt like this with slightly longer ones to cheat 3" from it? Or would that cause some weird issues with the aprons not overlapping correctly, etc.?QUOTE]

I followed some advice from Robert MacDonald of West Coast Kilts and altered an MOD kilt (Seaforth kilt that still had basting stitches) with a 33 inch waist to fit my 36 inch waist by making adjustments to both sides of the apron. I then let a little bit out on the under apron. I did the work myself and am quite happy.

**Tobus** · 7th June 12, 05:32 AM

Hmm. I may have to end up doing that. I really don't want to, but I just can't seem to find anything that's sized correctly for me. Or I could just pay to send it to someone who knows what they're doing and have them let it out for me, so it doesn't end up being yet another project that lays around for years before I can get to it (I've got too many of those!)...

What I'm really hoping, though, is that a military kilt sized for 30" is really adjustable to 32" with its original straps, so there's really only a 1" difference I need to accommodate. That might make it easier to cheat the size with longer straps, rather than reworking the whole thing. I suppose the only way to know for sure is to get one and see.

**CMcG** · 7th June 12, 06:38 AM

You might take a look at the Ministry of Tartan, who specialize in used Highland attire and sometimes get regimental kit. Send them an email too, just in case they don't have what you're looking for in their listings. Caveat: I've never bought anything from them, so this is just a suggestion not a recommendation.