Buzz Rickson Khaki Review

[familyman]

I’m a khaki guy. I own jeans and wear jeans but I love khakis. So when I leaned that Buzz Rickson was making a pair of khakis that were supposed to be faithful reproductions of WWII khakis I was intrigued. I found 2000dBwho lives in Japan and was willing to help me get a pair of these khakis as they’re not available through any US retailers. After a few e-mails, a paypal payment, and a weeks waiting, the mail lady brought me this.

Which was very exciting. I opened it up to find this.

Another envelope. Not exactly hard work to open the mail but sure exciting. Opening the second envelope revealed this.

The fabric felt hard and unwashed, just the way clothes should be when new. I’m not a fan of having a company pre-wash the first 2-5 years of life out of clothes for me. Another reason I was interested in these pants. Opening them up revealed a very full cut pair of pants.

And a wonderfully finished button fly.

[familyman]

I spent some time looking at the amazing attention to detail on these pants. The stitching is perfect, on the hems the sewing goes all the way around and finishes in the exact same holes it started in. The finish on the interior seams is as high quality as the outseams. These pants are the nicest constructed pair of pants I think I’ve ever seen. Here’s a picture of the inside of the pants.

Here a photo of the inside pocket and the tag.

Sizing on these pants is pretty restrictive. They make them only in waist sizes 28-35 and you get what inseam you get, no choice. My waist size is 32 so I got inseam 34. Now, my normal inseam is about 30 and because these are a high rise pant I take a hemmed length shorter than that. Here’s a couple of pictures of the pants on me before they were washed. They’re still cardboard stiff. You can tell they’re quite roomy.

I’m a happy camper. Many thanks to 2000dB, a great guy to deal with.

[snugglepony]

you're right, familyman -- the construction looks great!

is the outseam flat-felled also?

can't wait to see 'em after a few washes and a hem job!

[cultpop 0217]

are they preshrunk? make sure you dont hem them too short. otherwise they look nice.

[familyman]

Inseam and outseam are both felled. Every seam on the pants, whether you can see it or not is finished to the highest level. Very cool.

Cult, they're not pre-shrunk in any way. A warm soak and a trip through the dryer on low only lost them 1/2 inch in length. I'm sure they'll shrink more. I'll just cuff them until they stabilize. Just you wait, this time next year all the cool kids will be cuffing their khakis.

[dismalfuture]

nice pants, and holy crap your hair is long. I'd seen your WAYWT post and noticed you had long hair, but would've never imagined...

[boystory]

i mean, ultimately i understand why you like them and you've explained that you like them...but i think those looks terrible. style/fashion aside, i just don't think they look good, regardless of what 'look' you're going for.

no comment on the hair.

[familyman]

i mean, ultimately i understand why you like them and you've explained that you like them...but i think those looks terrible. style/fashion aside, i just don't think they look good, regardless of what 'look' you're going for.

no comment on the hair.

No problemo, not trying to please anyone but myself. I like them. I like the very full WWII khaki look. I don't expect anyone to understand the fit of these any more than I expect I'll wake up tomorrow and understand ball crushing jeans. Different strokes.

[denimdestroyedmylife]

nice purchase. they should serve you well for years. i fetishize well-constructed garments as well. if jeans didn't demand my full attention, i'd definitely pick a pair up a pair of those khakis for myself.

[familyman]

Now you need some good looking polished boots and a nice military shirt. Cool buy, they look like they can take a beating.

I'm wondering how these will work with the wingtip Alden shells that should be here the first of the year. If they just don't go together then I guess I have an excuse to get a pair of Alden high lace boots in #8.

I might also have to get a pair of 'canes to go with the wingtips.

[YoungPunch]

nice purchase familyman. best quality khakis I've ever seen!

[steven]

how are these compared to a pair of dickies or ben davis? in terms of fit

[familyman]

how are these compared to a pair of dickies or ben davis? in terms of fit

Big, huge, gigantic. If you compare them to standard dickies (486's or whatever the number is) the dickies are like tights. These have a 15.5 inch rise. The waist is 32 inches, the seat is 46 inches around and the thighs are 27 inches around. This all sounds big and it is. These are exact reproductions of WWII pants. This is how they made them. If anyone is thinking of ordering some but wants to see how they fit, find a store that sells Bill's Khakis. Try on the M1 flat front, they fit very similar, they are both copies of the same pants but Rickson does it better.

[Nick M]

They look great.

The coin pocket is a nice touch.

[lil brown brother]

nice khakis familyman ... the coin pocket looks really good .... enjoy yr new pants

[Kevin_Land]

The construction on those pants is immaculate. But the sizing is enormous. Just wondering do you think they will ever shink down to a more reasonable size, or will they just stay baggy so they can stay true to the original contruction of the pant?

[familyman]

This isn't a very superfuturey outfit but I'm wearing the pants today. This is how they're supposed to fit. They're true to the WWII pants and the look I'm working to achieve which is post WWII workwear/smart casual.

[denimdestroyedmylife]

they look nice, actually. did you machine wash them to get the shrinkage out of the way? or just a soak???

the folsom cuffs are kinda cool

you plan to hem them?

[damnIam]

I am also a great big ole fan of WWII khaki. I have about 6 pair of originals and I have to tell you, those Rickson's are actually made better than the originals. Most of the originals were made in a very hasty fashion. The full cut to me is awesome and I think they look great. I wear mine with red wing boots and I cuff them most of the time as well. They can be dressed up on or down with a T shirt. Best of all, they are tolerable in the summer heat.

[Joe E Taleo]

No problemo, not trying to please anyone but myself. I like them. I like the very full WWII khaki look. I don't expect anyone to understand the fit of these any more than I expect I'll wake up tomorrow and understand ball crushing jeans. Different strokes.

Frankly I feel the same way you do. I've been pretty obsessed with work wear from the early part of the century, and just bought a post overalls No. 1 shirt. Thing is crazy, the entire garment is almost completely chainstitched, and the detail is incredible. The shirt was delivered unwashed and was super drapey, but once I washed it it shrank down very nicely. I imagine it's got a little shrink left, so I'll have to be careful, as the sleeves are a nice length right now.

I like those buzz ricksons you got, and they look best after they've been washed. I'm tempted to get a pair myself.

[minya]

Those are some crazy pants, man! Not my style at all but they look great on you. Not to mention, there's a lot of pleasure to be had in owning anything made with such attention to detail and historical respect.

[damnIam]

I really like them when they are starched up. That is how they were intended to be worn, (they are uniform pants). I starch the hell out of mine but without a crease. I think they look the best that way with work boots.

[familyman]

they look nice, actually. did you machine wash them to get the shrinkage out of the way? or just a soak???

the folsom cuffs are kinda cool

you plan to hem them?

I soaked them and put them in the dryer on low. There's probably some shrinkage left in them so I'm going to hold off on the hemming for a bit. I'm not sure exactly where I want to hem them, this will give me time to figure it out.

Thanks for the comments everyone, I'm really enjoying these pants.

[adsurgo]

they look really good in the outfit. you pull them off 1000 times better than i thought.

[mizanation]

familyman, my man, my mello!

great khaki's man. they look great after you washed them. thinking of getting a pair of khakis for my trip to japan and thailand in a few weeks.

Just you wait, this time next year all the cool kids will be cuffing their khakis.

about you making khakis a fashion item, i think dr. dre beat you to it :

Dr. Dre is the name, I’m ahead of my game

Still, puffing my leafs, still fuck with the beats

Still not loving police (uh huh)

Still rock my khakis with a cuff and a crease (fo sho)

fo sho.

[familyman]

fo sho miz, fo sho.

[adsurgo]

what a bad album that was. catchy... but bad.

[mizanation]

i didn't think it was that bad. and that song was one of my favorites from that year.

[LeicaLad]

I really want to say Thank You to Familyman for this thread. It was a very thorough review with excellent photos to match. I like this sort of stuff, but live far (very, very far) from where I can ever see such things without just ordering stuff cold. This review was fabulous. Yet, again, many, many thanks.

[familyman]

I really want to say Thank You to Familyman for this thread. It was a very thorough review with excellent photos to match. I like this sort of stuff, but live far (very, very far) from where I can ever see such things without just ordering stuff cold. This review was fabulous. Yet, again, many, many thanks.

No problemo. This sort of thing is a big part of what Superfuture is about to me. There's a ton of stuff reviewed with great pics on here that there's no way I'd ever get to see in person. Tons of shirts and coats and especially jeans. Look at all the fit info for jeans on here that lets people buy them cold and get a great fit. This place is great.