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The source of Drakes knit ties - Page 2

post #16 of 64
8/19/12 at 10:11am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Manton View Post

OT I guess but I have only ever bought one drake knit, I liked it a lot but it was absurdly long, like 64". I complained on SF and someone saw the post and bought it from me. He had to be about 6'11" to wear that tie. Or had a neck as thick as a paint can.

Was it Greg Ostertag?
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post #17 of 64
8/19/12 at 10:27am
Quote:
Originally Posted by davesmith View Post

Quote:
Originally Posted by radicaldog View Post

Yes, in the Rome shop. Though maybe I've not seen their spotted ones, come to think of it. Could it be that they get the solids made up and then sew the spots by hand?

This is the case, they have a solid tie and then sew on the spots. This makes the price of the tie go up by 25% at least.

 

That's fascinating. I'm really surprised they can afford to do this for only a 25% upcharge. Wow.

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post #18 of 64
8/19/12 at 10:31am
Which store in Portugal? I think I may have seen the same ties.
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post #19 of 64
8/19/12 at 10:32am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Holdfast View Post

 

That's fascinating. I'm really surprised they can afford to do this for only a 25% upcharge. Wow.

 

At least, my maths aren't the best, in most cases I'm sure it's over 50%.

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post #20 of 64
8/19/12 at 12:52pm
Confirming my earlier post, I'd say the Rubi and KW knit ties I have are significantly different. Rubi is a looser weave, with bigger "holes" in the honeycomb of the knit. Sorry for not knowing the proper terminology. But it feels lighter. The KW tie has less open space.
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post #21 of 64
8/19/12 at 1:33pm

Courtesy of http://www.bespokemanblog.com/ (Some really fantastic articles on there!)

 

Edit: See how the handsewn spots are almost square, compare with KW whose a pretty much circles.. 

 

Quote:

On Silk Knit Ties

 

Brooks_Brothers_Silk_Knit_Ties-006-3.jpg.scaled500.jpg

 

Left - Brooks Brothers, Right - Sorley

I expanded my collection of silk knit ties and got two (green and orange) fromBrooks Brothers that were on sale. I immediately noticed the differences between the Sorley silk knit tie I picked up from The Armoury.

The ones from Brooks Brothers are noticeably thinner & lighter (made with less silk) and the grains are smaller (a tighter weave that makes them less spring-y). You get more out of a higher quality product and that is clearly reflected in its price. The Sorley's are a little less than twice the retail price of Brooks Brothers ($80, discounted to $40). I'm glad I got them on sale because I wouldn't pay full retail.

So what should you look for when buying silk knit ties? Don't go any slimmer than 2.25" in width (Brooks Brothers at 2.25", Sorley at 2.5") because it looks weird, at least to me. Look for larger grains in a loose weave that signify it was made with more silk and that it springs back when pulled from one end. The colors should also look vibrant. It's hard to illustrate these things but you'll know what I mean when you've picked one up.

 
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post #22 of 64
8/19/12 at 1:50pm
I went to a sales event at the Drakes factory in London a couple of years ago, where Michael Drake told me that the he used the same supplier for his knit ties as Hermes.

I have one from Charvet that seems pretty much identical to the Drakes' one.
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post #23 of 64
8/19/12 at 2:32pm
Yeah my navy knit Drake's is pretty long- I just do a Phat Guido double knot when I wear it, though. Most complimented-on tie.
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post #24 of 64
8/19/12 at 3:03pm
As some have said in this thread, vendors using the same supplier does not necessarily mean they have the same knit ties. And the same width/ weave/ length/ whatever you're using to infer from your personal collection of knit ties does not necessarily mean that two different vendors are using the same (or different) suppliers.

Knits fabrics are made on circular or horizontal knitting machines, and the different textural or color patterns you see are achieved by setting the machine to whatever is the necessary needle formation. This starts with the standard weave/ pearl stitch and then branches out from there. These machines aren't exclusive either, and a few vendors can have the same machines, but perhaps have different quality control processes. It's true, however, that there aren't that many knit tie suppliers in the world, but I suspect the number thrown around on StyleForum underestimates it.

Inferring who is using what suppliers from one's personal collection of knit ties is like inspecting your sweaters and thinking that everyone who makes a 30-gauge merino sweater must be using the same supplier.

Drake's uses a knit tie supplier in Germany, I believe. It's indeed a different weave than most knit ties you see. I've seen the same weave on Ralph Lauren knit ties, but I don't know if they use the same supplier.
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post #25 of 64
8/19/12 at 5:47pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by othertravel View Post

Which store in Portugal? I think I may have seen the same ties.

El Corte Ingles in Lisbon (it's actually a Spanish department store that sells mid-market to basic luxury items).
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post #26 of 64
8/19/12 at 5:53pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by dieworkwear View Post

As some have said in this thread, vendors using the same supplier does not necessarily mean they have the same knit ties. And the same width/ weave/ length/ whatever you're using to infer from your personal collection of knit ties does not necessarily mean that two different vendors are using the same (or different) suppliers.
Knits fabrics are made on circular or horizontal knitting machines, and the different textural or color patterns you see are achieved by setting the machine to whatever is the necessary needle formation. This starts with the standard weave/ pearl stitch and then branches out from there. These machines aren't exclusive either, and a few vendors can have the same machines, but perhaps have different quality control processes. It's true, however, that there aren't that many knit tie suppliers in the world, but I suspect the number thrown around on StyleForum underestimates it.
Inferring who is using what suppliers from one's personal collection of knit ties is like inspecting your sweaters and thinking that everyone who makes a 30-gauge merino sweater must be using the same supplier.
Drake's uses a knit tie supplier in Germany, I believe. It's indeed a different weave than most knit ties you see. I've seen the same weave on Ralph Lauren knit ties, but I don't know if they use the same supplier.

Thank you. I don't disagree with any of that. And I'm not interested in who supplies who per se -- I just want to find another source of knit ties of the same quality of Drakes', given that their colour and pattern selection is, of course, limited. Any leads on this German manufacturer?
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post #27 of 64
8/19/12 at 6:05pm
"Any leads on this German manufacturer?"

I don't know if they're exactly the same, but I've got quite a few silk knit ties by Ascot, a German tie manufacturer, which seem very, very similar to my Drake's silk knit.
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post #28 of 64
8/19/12 at 6:13pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Journeyman View Post

"Any leads on this German manufacturer?"
I don't know if they're exactly the same, but I've got quite a few silk knit ties by Ascot, a German tie manufacturer, which seem very, very similar to my Drake's silk knit.

You know, perhaps I'm imagining things here, but Ascot might well have been the brand of that Lisbon tie. It really rings a bell. Thank you! Now let's start the interwebz hunt for Ascot knits.

Edit: http://www.ascot.de/
Edited by radicaldog - 8/19/12 at 6:24pm
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post #29 of 64
8/19/12 at 7:31pm
I have quite a few knit ties from a wide variety of manufacturers/ brands - Lands End, Knottery, Saks 5th, Kilgour, Turnbull & Asser, Hermes, Ascot, Gallo, EG Capelli, RLBL and RLPL. I would say that there are marked differences in the weaves and constructions between brands.
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post #30 of 64
8/19/12 at 7:45pm
Which is crunchier? Hober or Wang?
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