Where can I find new or used men's tailsuits?

I'm looking for one, too, size 44L or 45L. Some sources tell me there is a difference between tailsuits for International and those for American, and others say there is no difference. Is there?

Look at some Onik suits. You'll notice the "scooped neck" that some guys complain about. I think this just compensates for guys who raise their shoulders. The English tailors don't use the scoop, and if the shoulders go up (because of poor frame) the collar goes up. Looks bad. I guess the Onik suit is designed to compensate for that a bit. The other good thing about the scoop neck as opposed to the normal collar is that sometimes the normal collar won't fit right--not sure how to describe it, but it curves wrong around the neck and gets these kinds of corners in the drape. I'm sure you'd know what I mean if you saw it.

That being said, I'm graduating from my Onik suit and getting a new suit made by Ashmore's in England.

If you're looking for a used suit, try the classifieds here or the other dance websites, or the classified section of the Amateur Dancers magazine that you should be getting with your USABDA memebership.

On the Onik order form, they actually ask you which style will the suit be for. I had them make me an American style suit. Since it's my first and I've never danced in an International one, I can't give you any personal, comparative observations. I can however tell you that doing American style in a tailsuit is much more constricting than wearing a vest, but I asked for an American tailsuit which implies that it provides for a wider range of upper-body motion, whereas the International tailsuit is concerned with accenting your top-line in a closed dance position. My advice is don't be cheap... you'll want to wear it for a long time, so make sure it's made for you and you're happy with it. 0

"Do or do not, there is no try," Yoda, Episode V

I had an Onyk suit and I never liked it. Onyk makes them from scratch and I went to the initial measuring and then about one month later we had the final fitting after he has roughed out the suit. It just never seemed to fit that well, and it didn't "behave" the way I expected. I will get a different one from someone else next time.

I could never dance american in my tailsuit.
It is impossible to raise my arms much above dance position. I have heard that ONYK knows how to make such a suit. He has no clue how to make an international style suit but maybe he can do a good job with an american style suit.

There are some used ones for sale here on ballroomdancers.com.

I found one 'accidentally' when I called a studio near me to inquire if the owner knew where I could have one made. He was selling his, and it was my partner's size, what luck!

I've always thought that American competitors wear dance-cut tuxedos, without tails. I just read something earlier today about American dancers needing more freedom in the arms than Standard dancers, but that it's difficult to get the specialized dance-costume tailors to do this.

you cant find them anywere

Best made to measure suits in the world are by Brakleys of London, it doesnt ride up when your arms go up, it looks fabulous, is cost effective and is available in tails or lounge. Brackleys made all the suits for the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing.
There are a couple of dancers in the US who have these suits so you can see them in action. One of them is Craig Shaw who dances with Katya Afanaseva.

I disagree about Onik.

Many pros wear his suits and look great - and I've owned two of them, and they are excellent. He is also very accurate in measurement (if you don't TAKE accurate measurements, it will not work, tho - and if you are in the 'portly' category, don't expect ANY suit to work as well as a vest, for instance).

Onik also is in the USA so that means alterations etc are a few days by fedex, instead of a week each way to England. This means a LOT if you tear something, for instance - and if you compete regularly, you don't have time for it to be gone for weeks on end.

The 'curved' collar is very subtle, by the way - and yuo are seeing it on other manufacturer's suits as it becomes more in demand. Things like small weights in the tails, and differnt sized armholes were once thought of as 'outlaw' innovations that are today standard. Hey, we need all the help we can get!!