Do Wool Hunting Pants Need to be Hemmed

[GTS9]

I just found a pair of unhemmed Filson Mackinaw Bibs in my size at the local sporting goods store for $200. I couldn't pass that up. But I don't know whether or not I'll to have them hemmed for the sake of durability, or if they are supposed to stay unhemmed so they fit people with long legs like me better.

 

[JeffG]

You could blouse them with blousing bands or wear gaiters. A lot of wool pants go unhemmed for those reasons. Unhemmed wool tends to attract burr docks like crazy.

http://www.qmuniforms.com/rothco-bo...Vj1YNCh2fywBCEAQYASABEgIBB_D_BwE#.WbA8dMiGMyU

https://www.rei.com/c/gaiters?r=c&origin=web&ir=category:gaiters&page=1

 

[Patocazador]

I hemmed my 3 pair (not Filson) but my legs aren't long. I always tuck my pants into my boot tops anyway. Using velcro bands around the ankles makes it a lot easier for them to slide into the boots without bunching up.

 

[pintler]

If you're not overly concerned with aesthetics, a rough hem job takes maybe 10 minutes with a needle and thread.

My father in law just used to staple his

 

[jmr40]

If you don't they will start to unravel. It doesn't have to be fancy, I'm sure you can do a passable job if you can thread a needle.

 

[MCgunner]

My wife is like a sewing god......and she says lots of quality pants regardless of fabric come unhemmed so that you can hem them to length to fit. Never heard of that myself, but she says it's true and I won't argue anything about clothing, quilting, or general sewing with her. Besides, I buy most of my pants at Walmart.

If I had this problem, I'd just give 'em to her. Wouldn't take her long with that 8,000 dollar Viking sewing machine she's got and I could have her monogram my name on it while she's at it, maybe a duck hunting scene for effect.

 

[Col. Harrumph]

I guess it would depend on how long your legs are.

 

[Sav .250]

A personal choice. Or if to long....then hem.

 

[Jim Watson]

Elmer Keith said he just laid overly long pants legs over a stump and "stagged" them with a hatchet. And about every pair of pants was going to be long for Elmer, he was a short guy.

 

[RolandD]

If they are felted, they wouldn't have to be hemmed and shouldn't unravel. If there are threads coming loose, then they need to be hemmed.

I gotcha beat on a bargain, though. I picked up a pair of Woolrich felted wool pants for $7.50 last spring at the thrift store. They were new with the tags still on them.

 

[Sebastian the Ibis]

If you are asking, they should probably be hemmed to fit. Any dry cleaner can probably do it for $10 or so. Take them to a real tailor and they will fit perfectly.

 

[Charliefrank]

I used to wear wool pants all winter. Either Woolrich or Johnson. I believe they came with a small hem. Anyway I never did anything to them and never had problems.

 

[buck460XVR]

Cut them inch long and then roll them to desired length with the roll to the inside of the leg. You can buy three yards of iron on hemming tape at Walmart for about $2.

 

[entropy]

If they're at the length you need, you can just whipstitch around the ends.

 

[bandur60]

And yet no one has mentioned that they dry a lot faster and don't hold that moisture around your ankles or boot tops.... a lifetime working in the woods and I most often bought pants with longer legs and cut the hems off. If they unravelled a few threads no big deal, compare to fringes on buckskin shirts.