The London Lounge

Inspired by the latest Cloth Club offerings, I'm hoping to fill out my closet with some workhorse heavyweights in gray worsted. The hopsacks and sharkskins from Scabal's Big Ben seem, to me, to have nice texture and character. Are they at the far end of the rusticity scale as compared to the Lesser and Smith heavyweight offerings? Is the Scabal cloth comparable in quality and durability? I look forward to your advice. Thanks.

Robert

Welcome Robert

The heaviest cloth in the distributors' books will be 15-16 ozs, a weight we would consider a middleweight. A heavyweight worsted would be anything in the 17-20 ozs range.

That being said, the Scabal "Big Ben" book is good. The best midweight worsted is the Smith's Wholefleece at 15 ozs and available only in twills in limited colors.

Cheers

Michael Alden

Thank you, Mr. Alden.

Not to look ahead too far, but do you think a few "business grays" might make there way into a future round of heavyweight division offerings?

Robert

R&T (Scabal)'s Silver Gander bunch has a number of "business suitable" cloths in 17.65 oz/yd. They're more complicated cloths than the usual 2x2 plains but I'd call them quite "conservative". Harrison's "Universal" bunch is also full of worsted business suitings in 17/18 oz weight- Sator's 22 ouncer is also out of that book.

Thanks, Yachtie. No sense wasting Heavyweight Division resources if Harrison's Universal fills the bill. For all its advantages to the residents of tailor-bereft cities like San Francisco, the traveling-tailor business model doesn't afford much leisure for flipping through swatch books. The cloth reviews here on the Lounge, and the customer-friendly distributors like Scabal, are a real blessing.

I've seen Silver Gander, but I put off ordering after reading Michael's post about the old Reid & Taylor Bronze Eagle. If I understood, SG approximates the look of BE using a different weaving method.

Robert

No sense wasting Heavyweight Division resources if Harrison's Universal fills the bill.

I will check it out tomorrow, but I suspect that a good deal of Universal is now Napolitano and that puts it pretty far away from the city by the Bay.

Doing heavy worsted cloth is going to be a challenge. I have tried to get heavy flannels but 13 ozs is about the best weavers can do anymore. So I have focused on Scottish Border tweeds.

The heavyweight books mentioned are old stock and they are not being replaced so if there is something that meets your fancy in them by all means BUY!

Cheers

I too agree that Harrison's Pederson & Becker Universal books are superb and recommend them highly. They are my go-to books for everything these days.

http://www.cutterandtailor.com/forum

Minnis still makes some heavier flannels, such as this 15/16 oz one:

http://www.hfw-huddersfield.co.uk/hardy ... =874679630?

I have also seen something in a similar weight in a Drapers book at my tailor's in Italy (but it might be the same -- Drapers seem to carry a rather eclectic selection, from Zegna to Harris Tweed). I really should've ordered odd trousers in that heavy flannel with the 500g Harris tweed sportscoat I commissioned; I went for a light brown-green cavalry twill. Oh well, next time.

Holland and Sherry also has some 17/18 oz flannels at the end of their Viceroy book ( solids)

So it seemsthat the stuff is still makeable. Wonder who their mill is?

yachtie wrote:Holland and Sherry also has some 17/18 oz flannels at the end of their Viceroy book ( solids)

So it seemsthat the stuff is still makeable. Wonder who their mill is?

It's described as a woolen but looks like a worsted to me. Nice hand but no mottling whatsoever.

Will wrote:

yachtie wrote:Holland and Sherry also has some 17/18 oz flannels at the end of their Viceroy book ( solids)

So it seemsthat the stuff is still makeable. Wonder who their mill is?

It's described as a woolen but looks like a worsted to me. Nice hand but no mottling whatsoever.

They're sending me samples along with a couple of escorial swatches that are really wonderfully obnoxious.
Maybe a plain jane 6x2 out of one of the greys.
If we could find their mill maybe we could get something more interesting .
It's a high of 12 degrees F here with promise of an ice storm and 7-10" of new snow. Where's the Global Warming? ( Just wait, next winter will be in the 40's)

Moscow, I hear, is enjoying its warmest winter in many a year. Even the bears at the local zoo have yet to hibernate. Meanwhile, in New England . . . .

Yachtie,

Please don't forget your local LL denizens!

Cheers,
Joel