In Between a Long and a Regular in a Suit

Yea I figured she made that one - she acceded to my length request fairly quickly - I don't know if that's because I'm a new client and this was the first jacket she was making for me or if it's some difference between the two of us, but she's got a great eye...I will be sure to post photos of that one when it's done. I have a couple of jackets that are about the length of yours that I now consider too short to wear (really there are enough fit problems with them elsewhere that the length is just a contributing factor) but I will post a pic of them later just for comparison. For further comparison, here's a jacket that's slightly longer (I'd say about an inch longer than the blue blazer above - I realize that to really assess the length a full length shot would be best, but these are all I got right now):

Look for the body length and worry about the sleeves later. That being said, a regular in one brand is often a long in another. You're bound to find one that meets the right length.

Thank you, everyone, especially PSG and Umbelragazzo. Our heights and sleeve length are very similar and your dialogue on the subject was immensely helpful.

Generally, what is the proper BOC for a regular and long? Would a regular be 29.5' to 31' BOC? Whereas a long would be 31.5' +?



New Shoes1 said:

At 6'2, I'm always steered to a long when suit shopping.  I've noticed, however, that they have to trim an inch off the cuffs and the jacket seems to be just a touch on the long side.  I've tried on regular and the sleeves are just a touch too short and the length is close, but on the shorter side. 

What do others in the 6'0 - 6'2 range typically do?  Are there some cuts/makes where the regular is longer or the long is shorter?  (say that quickly three times . . . ).  Do you simply size down to a regular and have the sleeves lengthened?  If so, how much can the sleeves typically be lengthened? 

Click to expand...

i'm 6'2" and i have exactly the same problem.

my perfect jacket length is about 31 3/4". at 6'2" i should normally be a touch longer, but i have a short torso and long legs, and so a slightly shorter jacket ends up being a bit more proportional. this is still a somewhat "progressive" length - most people of my height and build would probably go longer.

as to whether i buy a R or an L, it depends on two things, neither of which has to do with the sleeve length. i find that on every "R" my tailor has been able to extend the sleeve enough.

rather, what i look for is the button stance / position of pockets, and the depth (length) of the vents (i only do double vents).

button stance: jackets with a high button stance (and pockets that aren't too low) are generally more forgiving of being shortened, so i sometimes buy "L"'s in such cuts and have them shortened a tad. a lower button stance jacket will look very off-balance if it's shortened too much.

vents: similarly, jackets with deeper vents are more amenable to being shortened. if you buy an "L" without deep vents, shortening the jacket may leave the vents too short to look elegant. less of an issue for single vents, since SVs don't look elegant anyway

you mentioned that you're a brooks customer. i find brooks (already not a favorite brand) jackets these days cut extremely short, so on the rare occasions when i pick up something there, i buy an "L" and find that i don't need to shorten it at all. hickey freeman is cut even shorter these days, while remaining somewhat boxy -- a very odd look.

i really can't think of anyone that cuts a long "R" -- everyone seems to have gone quite short these days.

I would say the sleeves look fine. Looking at the back of the suit, I reckon the length of the jacket could do with about an inch off the bottom IMO but it looks ok as it is; it's a matter of personal taste really. I'm not keen on any rolling of the trouser at the bottom, I like my trousers to hang straight when I stand up, but that's just me.

I'm not sure of your budget for suits, but where I live you can buy a decent well-made off-the-peg suit for around £300 or around $480, but if you want to look good you will probably have to spend £100 or $160 having it fitted correctly. Here, you can get a full tailored suit from scratch for not much more. I just paid off my tailored suit the other week and that Cost £485 or $780. You can have a tailored suit for less than that on the Internet but to avoid disappointment you should really use a local tailor. That way, you get precisely what you want at the best possible fit and you can discuss ideas with the tailor in person; something you can't do over the phone or the Internet.

Best of luck

Paul

New Shoes1 said:

I've tried on a Samuelsohn Gable jacket that fit very well in the chest, shoulders, etc., but did not look at the length at the time. I may have to try that if the regular is a little longer. Where's a good place to find a good selection of Samuelsohns?

Click to expand...

Samuelsohn offers Long and Semi long (same for short too I suppose but I have similar problems as you)

Great thread. I'm 6'1 and a bit, and I've had the same problem only a little worse because I'm also a 36 and a 36L is a non-existent beast.

I just ran the measuring tape down the back of my jackets from BOC and they range from 30" to 31.5". I find the 30" jackets slightly unacceptably short but unfortunately they'll have to do. So far I've found my favourite length on an odd jacket is on a blazer that's 30.5 long but I think I would find it a touch short on a suit.

All I can do is look through any and all 36R jackets I see until I see one that is longer than usual with shoulders narrower than usual, and those are very very rare. Sales people are extremely unhelpful in this regard. Most will claim a 36R jacket is fine in length when it's clearly way too short, and this is being told to someone who is used to wearing shorter jackets already because of necessity.