The Official RRL Thread

[zmars]

For what a lot of this stuff costs, they had better be doing it the correct and costly way.

 

[Simonbarsinister]

For what a lot of this stuff costs, they had better be doing it the correct and costly way.

I know, you'd think for these prices. But handwork of any sort is through the roof expensive. Just look at the prices for the hand-knit sweaters vs. the machine knit ones.

 

[Simonbarsinister]

I really like those denim sawtooth western shirts. Favourite shirts atm

Thought I'd share this old gem from 2010. It's raw denim, very lightweight - I'm guessing about 6-7oz.; just barely heavier than chambray. And selvedge on both sides of the placket. And no deco stitch on the pockets.

 

[clee1982]

Those were the selvedge everything everywhere era

 

[Simonbarsinister]

I don’t think I’ve ever owned a RRL piece that I’ve had to re-sew on at least one button. Why oh why can’t RRL get that right?

Same here. They're sewn on by machine, and it's not a very reliable type of stitch. Sewing them on by hand is much better, but I imagine that would be too costly.

For what a lot of this stuff costs, they had better be doing it the correct and costly way.

I know, you'd think for these prices. But handwork of any sort is through the roof expensive. Just look at the prices for the hand-knit sweaters vs. the machine knit ones.

Now I'm not so sure about this. I recently received this shirt from the new releases, and the buttons are sewn on by hand, so they do it on some shirts for some reason.

https://www.ralphlauren.com/men-clothing-button-down-shirts/denim-workshirt/100044026.html#q=rrl&br=t&sort=online_from%2520desc&start=1

 

[clee1982]

Never had issue with shirt button, I think the only one that looked loose out the gate to me were the officer chino button fly

 

[clee1982]

Now I'm not so sure about this. I recently received this shirt from the new releases, and the buttons are sewn on by hand, so they do it on some shirts for some reason.

https://www.ralphlauren.com/men-clothing-button-down-shirts/denim-workshirt/100044026.html#q=rrl&br=t&sort=online_from%2520desc&start=1

View attachment 2320873

Maybe because it’s metal button?

 

[Simonbarsinister]

Never had issue with shirt button, I think the only one that looked loose out the gate to me were the officer chino button fly

Same here, I've had to re-sew many of those fly buttons! They're sewn on by machine, but then someone wraps thread around the stitching to form what's called a "thread shank'. I think the thread shank is done by hand; I don't see how a machine could do it. Maybe that's what they do on some shirts - sew the buttons on by machine and then make a thread shank by hand. I ponder these things!

 

[Simonbarsinister]

Maybe because it’s metal button?

Good guess. But then I checked, and I have this shirt with shell buttons, and they're sewn on by hand. (Or at least thread-shanked by hand) https://www.ralphlauren.com/men-clothing-button-down-shirts/denim-workshirt/394442.html#webcat=content-brands-double-rl-men-shop-all-cg&ns=shirts&prefn1=CategoryCode&prefv1=Casual%20Shirts%7CDress%20Shirts&ab=en_US_MLP_RRL_Slot_2_S1_L3_SHOP&start=1&cgid=brands-double-rl-men-shop-all-cg

(My apologies to anyone who's not interested in this S*&!!)

 

[zippyh]

Button neck wrapping machine.

 

[Simonbarsinister]

Button neck wrapping machine.

Holy %&*#, Zippy! You just blew the whole *&%$# discussion out of the water!!🤣🤣

 

[Simonbarsinister]

Button neck wrapping machine.

Button neck wrapping is a totally new term to me. In traditional tailoring it's always been called a thread shank. Anyway, thanks for the video. Very impressive what robots can do, and scary too.

 

[Simonbarsinister]

I really like those denim sawtooth western shirts. Favourite shirts atm

A few more sawtooth westerns, but these aren't denim.
The red one is chambray from 2012. No deco stitch on the pockets.
The brown one is pinwale corduroy, (85% cotton 15% silk) from 2004, before they started using conch buttons at the neck.

 

[clee1982]

Might be a mental block, it’s not like I ever button the top on western shirt but if it doesn’t have conch top button I don’t want it (as in western shirt in general across various brands)

 

[Simonbarsinister]

Might be a mental block, it’s not like I ever button the top on western shirt but if it doesn’t have conch top button I don’t want it (as in western shirt in general across various brands)

I prefer the conch buttons too. Many years ago, the RRL westerns had a snap at the neck. I always wore them with the top snap open, but whisker stubble would still get caught in it and it was pretty painful. So, I removed them and made buttonholes and sewed on buttons instead. In fact, I did that on the brown pinwale in the photo, but I just used a standard button. I think I'll swap it out for a conch one.