A Sam (and David) Hober Tie Appreciation Thread

[Al in Philly]

Navy Grossa in the wild. Double FIH knot. Pretty standard options - 4-fold, lined, self-tipped. 57" x 3.5".

 

[Flyswatter]



Unfortunately not mine . It was a pic taken from earlier in this thread of one someone else's 6-fold Hober grenatines. Just thought it looked awesome, lol.  Fortunately though, I'll be getting my own dark navy grenadine from Hober soon, although mine will be the standard 4-fold.

I have a dark navy grenadine (fina) on the way from Hober as well! Lined 4-fold, self-tipped, 3.5 inches wide. I'd have to say navy grenadines are my absolute favorite ties, and I'm sure I'm not alone in that sentiment.

My Hober order didn't arrive yesterday... maybe today will be the day. Is it a bad thing that I'm as excited as I am for these ties to arrive?

 

[MattSF]

My Hober order didn't arrive yesterday... maybe today will be the day.

Is it a bad thing that I'm as excited as I am for these ties to arrive?

Not sure if it's a bad thing, but definitely a sign you will fit right in at SF, lol.

My upcoming order includes:

Macclesfield Silk Tie #172
Macclesfield Silk Tie #84
Bitter Chocolate Grenadine Grossa
Dark Navy Grenadine Fina
Off White Stripe On Midnight Blue Grenadine Grossa

All are 63" x 3.75" (I'm 6'6", so the extra length and width are needed to look proportional on me). Still no word on shipping out, hopefully they ship this week and they arrive next week. Will definitely post pics when they arrive!

 

[Flyswatter]

Hmm, what have we here...?

Beautifully and meticulously packaged...

And with a thoughtful hand-written thank-you note...

The goods: Dark red grenadine fina, dark navy grenadine fina, and Macclesfield #78 (white dots on midnight blue). First pic is with flash, second without. I'm very happy with the colors.

Overall, I'm extremely satisfied with my purchase, and can't wait to wear the ties. Thanks, David! The grenadines are 3.5 inches wide, while the pindot is 3.75. Thought I'd experiment a bit, but I'll stick with 3.5 from now on.

Now to decide on my next purchase... probably just two more, then I need to cool it for a while on tie acquisitions.

 

[Syeknom]

That packaging and those ties are exquisite, nice one! Can't wait for mine.

The pindot especially looks gorgeous.

 

[MattSF]

Great looking ties! I might have to pick up that pindot on midnight blue in my next order...

 

[Flyswatter]



That packaging and those ties are exquisite, nice one! Can't wait for mine.

The pindot especially looks gorgeous.

Great looking ties! I might have to pick up that pindot on midnight blue in my next order...

Thanks! Better hurry on the Macclesfield pindot, as David's website shows only enough fabric left for one more. I opted for this tie instead of the "white dots on dark navy pindot #1", as I liked how the dots are fewer and more spaced out on the Macclesfield #78.

On a sizing note, I specified these ties to be 59 inches in length, but they all measure instead at 57-58 inches. Is this normal, to account for the ties stretching and lengthening over time after multiple wears? As it is, when I tie these, the back blade ends up roughly 4 inches shorter than the front. I'd prefer the back blade to be around 2 inches shorter than the front, so I guess I'll opt for 60 or 61 inch ties on my next Hober order. That seems strange, because I'm not that tall. 5'10" without shoes, neck size is 16 inches. My dress trousers don't have an unusually low rise, either. Maybe I have an abnormally long torso for my height, because I recall from the discussion on tie lengths in this thread a couple weeks ago that people taller than me were ordering ties shorter than mine. Thoughts? How long do you guys prefer the back blade in relation to the front?

Oh no, I'm getting too anal about things again... Still happy with the ties though.

 

[Cuttingboard]

Weird, I'm the same height as you and I order a 57" length tie and have never had a problem with the skinny blade being short. I'm seriously thinking about being 59" next time.

 

[Flyswatter]



Weird, I'm the same height as you and I order a 57" length tie and have never had a problem with the skinny blade being short. I'm seriously thinking about being 59" next time.

I'll go with 60, maybe 61 next time. How long is the back blade relative to the front for you normally with your 57" ties?

Unrelated note, anyone have pics of their chocolate piccola grenadine #4 or dark burnt orange reppe solid #24? Trying to finalize my next set of Hobers. I'll put in one more order of three, then no more for a while, I swear.

 

[Cuttingboard]



I'll go with 60, maybe 61 next time. How long is the back blade relative to the front for you normally with your 57" ties?

All of my honkers are grenadine grossa and the back small blade is 2-3" inches shorter than the large blade.

 

[Flyswatter]



Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

Flyswatter,

Your comments are good ones.

I have been meaning to write more extensively on measuring and will later but let me share some thoughts now.

First, my comments are not specific to Sam Hober but apply to all luxury custom/bespoke tie makers:

Ties will be measured at all points along the way to being completed and at the tie makers work area you will see a calculator and ruler.

These measurements are by the person doing the the work and one other person as a quality control process.

The final tie is measured by two people (who did not make the tie). These two people will be professional at measuring and the odds that both make a mistake are very remote something like the odds of getting hit by lightning on a summer day.

A normal variance for a finished hand made tie before being packed is 1/4 inch +/- for the length and 1/8 inch +/- for the width.

Note that hand made ties will have different measurements on different days and that this is normal.

When a tie is unpacked out of the box it is also normal to have contracted an inch or two which will self correct after wearing the tie.

Ties are not made shorter with stretch in mind unless the customer requests this when the order is made and being discussed. Grenadines and other loose weaves will tend to stretch over time more than normal especially if the knot is a tight one. Also the longer the tie the more it tends to stretch. As an example I typically don't start commenting on grenadine ties stretching until 60 inches in length.

What if tie lengths seem off more than a quarter of an inch after wearing the ties a few times?

First, measuring ties can't be done in relation to other older ties in your collection as they will quite possibly have stretched.

Next, the ties need to be measured in a perfectly straight line on a table with pins to help with the measurement.

Finally, the original measurements with the order could be less than perfect...

You normally can't guess at a tie's correct length when making an order as many on this tread have noted there are many variables.

Some examples: knots, fabrics, your height, neck size and the most interesting - upper torso size.

So you really need to measure with the knot that you will be using on a tie that you have before making your new order.

First, carefully measure your old tie tip to tip (untied).

Then tie the tie placing the big end where you like it, with the knot that you will use for your new tie.

Typically you will want the little end to be 2 inches above the big end. Although some gentlemen enjoy different lengths such as both the big and small end being equal.

As an example if your test tie is 57 inches long and the small end is 4 inches above the big end, you will want to add 2 inches so that your new tie is 59 inches.

Back to Flyswatters' example:

At 5'10" and 16" neck he sounds trim and fit and he should not need more than a 57 inch length - so I would guess that if 59 inches is too short he does have a longer than normal upper torso.

So his 59 inch ordered length sounds good to start.

Most likely the tie will stretch a bit and be the correct length if not a new longer length is needed.

When correcting a length (assuming that after a few wearings it is not long enough) it is better to think in terms of needing extra inches rather than needing a total length of for example 60".

If all is not well after measuring and wearing your new tie always contact your tie maker to be sure that you are happy in the end.

David, thank-you very much for the prompt and thorough reply. Your explanation about the ties contracting during shipping makes perfect sense. I'm sure they'll stretch back out after some wears. Even still, I may add another inch to my next round. Once again, thank-you for the beautiful ties and fantastic service.

 

[Cuttingboard]

Great info...thanks David!

 

[Burton]

I follow this thread all the time, but rarely post. I don't know exactly how many Hober ties I have now, but they are quickly becoming the majority of what I own. I have the opposite problem of that described above - I have a short torso. Best advice I can give is, let David pick your length on the first few (afterall, he is the professional) and then modify as you wear them. Think about salting your food - taste it first.

 

[Flyswatter]

Striped grossa #3 and dark chocolate fina #5 will soon be mine.

 

[Tommi]

I ordered a forest green rough silk tie today. I'll post some pics when I recieve it.