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My impression is that knit ties are mostly of the same quality. They just differ on characteristics:
1. Material: Some of places, such J. Press and Rubinacci, use softer silks. Other places, such as Charvet, Lands End, and Drake's, use crunchier silks. Neither is better or worse; they're just different. Then you have cashmeres and wools, which might get into issues of quality, but those aren't as common as silk.
2. Weave: Drake's and Conrad Wu are a much tighter weaves than Charvet and Lands End. FWIW, the tight ones seem to come out of Germany and the loose ones out of Italy. I think I know the makers, and I'm pretty sure people are buying from the same factories and just rebranding, but I could be wrong. If it's the factories I'm thinking of, there's no differing quality levels within the same factory -- they just make the things according to your design.
3. Cut. Drake's is made wide, but tapers quickly at the neck. Lands End, on the other hand, is wide at the body, but doesn't taper as quickly, so you get a thicker knot.
The width of the body also determines whether you get a tubular or seamed construction. If it's narrow enough, the machine can knit it like a tube. If it's too wide, then you'll have to knit the body flat and then connect the sides in order to make a tube. If the knit has a seam, it's a little thicker, which can affect how the tie knots. Not better or worse not; just different.
Unlike regular ties, knit ties don't have any real special construction. No interlining, tipping, padding, or special handsewing. It's just a tube of fabric, so the differences are really marginal, and IMO better chalked up characteristics than quality.
But anyway, this is from a fairly lay point of view. I'm sure there are professionals here who actually make knit ties, and know better than me. The above is just my impression from some brief research years ago.
My impression is that knit ties are mostly of the same quality. They just differ on characteristics:
1. Material: Some of places, such J. Press and Rubinacci, use softer silks. Other places, such as Charvet, Lands End, and Drake's, use crunchier silks. Neither is better or worse; they're just different. Then you have cashmeres and wools, which might get into issues of quality, but those aren't as common as silk.
2. Weave: Drake's and Conrad Wu are a much tighter weaves than Charvet and Lands End. FWIW, the tight ones seem to come out of Germany and the loose ones out of Italy. I think I know the makers, and I'm pretty sure people are buying from the same factories and just rebranding, but I could be wrong. If it's the factories I'm thinking of, there's no differing quality levels within the same factory -- they just make the things according to your design.
3. Cut. Drake's is made wide, but tapers quickly at the neck. Lands End, on the other hand, is wide at the body, but doesn't taper as quickly, so you get a thicker knot.
The width of the body also determines whether you get a tubular or seamed construction. If it's narrow enough, the machine can knit it like a tube. If it's too wide, then you'll have to knit the body flat and then connect the sides in order to make a tube. If the knit has a seam, it's a little thicker, which can affect how the tie knots. Not better or worse not; just different.
Unlike regular ties, knit ties don't have any real special construction. No interlining, tipping, padding, or special handsewing. It's just a tube of fabric, so the differences are really marginal, and IMO better chalked up characteristics than quality.
But anyway, this is from a fairly lay point of view. I'm sure there are professionals here who actually make knit ties, and know better than me. The above is just my impression from some brief research years ago.
I like the weave and material of the LE knits also, but 1) the one I have is longer than I would like, and 2) I don't like the selection of colors they usually have. Usually just primary colors that I'm not interested in.
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Now that's an awsm post, cheers, and agree: You get very little bang for your extra bucks splurging on expensive silk knits, IMO, altho I haven't handled the Charvet. For me the width is key, 2.5" being optimal for an average guy.
Cashmere, IMO, is not a great cloth for ties. Too spongy and too light.
My impression is that knit ties are mostly of the same quality. They just differ on characteristics:
I'd have agreed with you a few years ago, when knits were somewhat rare specimens, but their boom in popularity has been accompanied by a boom in cheap, poor-quality ones. As you might expect. The are all sorts of thin, flat, limp, dead ones out there now, sometimes with dots that can't wait to come undotted.
I would not have thought a knit could hold permanent wrinkles until I bought one that did.