# Anyone have experience with Mr. Ned in NYC...



## thurley (Apr 2, 2008)

I was thinking of giving them a try, but could not find a lot of information on the forum.


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## jdsox (Jan 22, 2009)

I recently bought a suit from Mr. Ned. Overall, I think it's a good deal. $850 for the base fabrics, more expensive for nicer fabrics. Additional $50 for working buttonholes on the sleeves (I presume other variations are possible for extra cost but I did not ask). The process involved 3-4 visits and took, I think, about 6 weeks.

Generally, I'm pleased with the results. I'm a size (42XL) that is difficult to find OTR and have one leg slightly longer than the other, which in the past has resulted in difficulties with in-store tailors at BB, Paul Stuart, etc. By contrast, Mr. Ned did an excellent job in terms of fit.

I'm certainly not an expert, but to me the fabric seems just OK. Not, I think, as nice as the fabric on Hickey Freeman and Corneliani suits that I own (all of which, it should be noted, were more expensive), but perfectly respectable (certainly for the cost). I may go back for another suit, in which case I'll probably pay extra for nicer fabric.


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## David Reeves (Dec 19, 2008)

What is the fit and style like? Does anybody have pictures?


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## nmprisons (Mar 20, 2008)

nice people. they do their best and care about their customers. decent deal for the money. 

do not expect magic. do not expect anything other than a suit that fits pretty well, but has some problems. do not expect the craftsmanship of a $2K suit and you will be fine with the results.

after having them make me a few suits, i am ready to move on, but starting there game me an idea of what i wanted


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## thurley (Apr 2, 2008)

How would one compare them to a mytailor suit, or even a BB MTM? The idea of having multiple fittings makes me lean more toward mr. ned, but it would be interesting to hear how the final product of each compare.


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## David Reeves (Dec 19, 2008)

thurley said:


> How would one compare them to a mytailor suit, or even a BB MTM? The idea of having multiple fittings makes me lean more toward mr. ned, but it would be interesting to hear how the final product of each compare.


You don't always need multiple fittings. The extra fittings are often for the benefit of the tailor as it's easier and less expensive to alter a suit at the try on stage than it is when finished.


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## thurley (Apr 2, 2008)

David, I don't disagree, but ease of altering at a second fitting two weeks after the first may be more advantageous than dealing with sending the suit back and forth to either Cali or HK as would be required by mytailor. Regardless, can anyone speak to how mytailor would compare to mr. ned.


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## rkipperman (Mar 19, 2006)

David Reeves said:


> What is the fit and style like? Does anybody have pictures?


For some reason, it's very difficult to find pics of Mr Ned's suits. I have been searching for quite some time.


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## David Reeves (Dec 19, 2008)

thurley said:


> David, I don't disagree, but ease of altering at a second fitting two weeks after the first may be more advantageous than dealing with sending the suit back and forth to either Cali or HK as would be required by mytailor. Regardless, can anyone speak to how mytailor would compare to mr. ned.


Quite so.


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## lichMD (Jun 30, 2005)

rkipperman said:


> For some reason, it's very difficult to find pics of Mr Ned's suits. I have been searching for quite some time.


I've used Ned's for a few years now, found them here actually. I've built a nice relationship with Varham and his father, probably have 10 suits, a camel hair coat, a tux and 6 sports coats from them. I find that they do a very nice 2B, double vent, waist suppressed, peaked or notched lapel suit with handpicked stitching, that fits well is comfortable and draws positive comments. Outside of an occasional loosened button the workmanship is very good and the price range (800 to 1k-ish) and turnaround time are very good.
My wife has also used them, 6 suits and a few sports coats, and is very happy with their work and fit.

As to his base fabrics, I think he has some very nice Super 100s that are "house" fabrics that are at the lower end of his cost structure. I started off on these and slowly migrated to Scabal, Barberis, Piana and others as I started to look for different patterns and looks. I don't think I've gone over 1k for any one suit (except for for my Tux).

If I can find the time I'll take some pics and post a few different views of a couple of my Ned suits
Cheers,
J


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## completelyclueless (Jun 12, 2008)

How much does Mr. Ned charge if I supply my own fabric? I'm thinking about heading over to the Loro Piana sale.


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## lichMD (Jun 30, 2005)

completelyclueless said:


> How much does Mr. Ned charge if I supply my own fabric? I'm thinking about heading over to the Loro Piana sale.


Can't say as I've never tried CMT with them.
I suggest you call and ask.
Cheers,
J


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## zarathustra (Aug 24, 2006)

I have had 2 suits made there and am on my third. First, the gentlemen are quite entertaining and endearing. Second, the suit fits the way i need it to fit. While it may not have the handwork of a better suit, there are few compromises on fit. 

My only comment is that if you want something specific, you must speak up and let them know. Several times even.


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## thurley (Apr 2, 2008)

It sounds like Mr. Ned is at the very least less hit or miss than mytailor. I think this has solidified my choice.


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## Shirtmaven (Jan 2, 2004)

the difference between Ned and mytailor is mostly the proximity and process. if my tailor suit does not fit.. what do you do?

There are better Tailors then Ned, at twice the price.

I must say that we trade customers and clothing.
Ned is the best value in town.

Carl


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## shirtguy (Oct 12, 2006)

better than martin greenfield direct?


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## laufer (Feb 20, 2008)

I am glad somebody opened up this tread because I could not find any info on Mr. Ned here or on SF. I have question. Is Mr. Ned oferring MTM or bespoke suits. I was under umpression Mr. Ned is oferring beskope suits while MyTailor.com makes MTM suits.


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## StephenRG (Apr 7, 2005)

lichMD said:


> As to his base fabrics, I think he has some very nice Super 100s that are "house" fabrics that are at the lower end of his cost structure. I started off on these and slowly migrated to Scabal, Barberis, Piana and others as I started to look for different patterns and looks.


Do they have super 100s made by Scabal, etc? I'm sufficiently satisfied with past Scabal and Dormeuil Super 100s - excellent combination of light weight, drape, and longevity - I really don't see the need for higher numbers costing, er, higher numbers.


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## cazoo (Jan 29, 2009)

David Reeves said:


> What is the fit and style like? Does anybody have pictures?


Wes Anderson is one of Mr. Ned's famous clientele. I think I read somewhere that he owned over twenty of his suits. You should just do an image search for him and you could probably get a good sense of a Mr. Ned suit.


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## Shirtmaven (Jan 2, 2004)

Ned has the usual assortment of swatch books.
prices jump a bit once you go to the swatch books.
different experience then Greenfield.
quality is about the same.
Carl


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## misterdonuts (Feb 15, 2008)

laufer said:


> I am glad somebody opened up this tread because I could not find any info on Mr. Ned here or on SF. I have question. Is Mr. Ned oferring MTM or bespoke suits.


Now that you raise this question, it is an interesting one. When I was just starting out in life many moons ago, I bought 8, maybe 10, suits from him -- Ned had not yet retired. Are they MTM or bespoke?

Well, I always had a baste, forward and final fitting. The baste was literally just that, a baste, with no sleeves. Did they have my pattern on file? I'm not so sure because there was something a bit different about each coat even though they were all 3B SBs, be it the lapels, sleeve width, shoulder et al. It also seems to rule out a block pattern being used.

What I do know is that the jackets were fused. However, there was quite a bit of handwork albeit admittedly not the tidiest of stitches.

His cut does flatter. And, his "basic" cloths are really quite good, especially 14+oz ones. Back then, a 3 piece suit was $600.

Of course, I should add a disclaimer that the above observations are a bit dated.

As someone already said, Ned represents great value. You can get much better but for a lot more money, and for what Ned charges, you would probably struggle to find many better alternatives.


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## David Reeves (Dec 19, 2008)

Interesting that you got a fused suit but had a basted fitting. Have you seen the thread about if it's possible to tell if your suit will have floating canvas at the try on stage? I think your experience would be useful to the OP on that thread.

When I first started getting suits made in college (8 years ago) I used to get them made for 150 pounds I then went to a guy for 300 and then one for 1000 they couldn't get everything quite right until I spent the 1000 pounds plus. This seems fairly common. The guy at 300 was really nice and all of them did a basted fitting but I kept thinking I would pay the 300 guy double if only I didn't keep having to come back!

In the end I started making my own suits!



misterdonuts said:


> Now that you raise this question, it is an interesting one. When I was just starting out in life many moons ago, I bought 8, maybe 10, suits from him -- Ned had not yet retired. Are they MTM or bespoke?
> 
> Well, I always had a baste, forward and final fitting. The baste was literally just that, a baste, with no sleeves. Did they have my pattern on file? I'm not so sure because there was something a bit different about each coat even though they were all 3B SBs, be it the lapels, sleeve width, shoulder et al. It also seems to rule out a block pattern being used.
> 
> ...


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## Jordan (Mar 2, 2006)

Mr. Ned has a range of "base fabrics." There are some just "pretty good" ones and also some nicer ones (like Holland & Sherrey and Barberis and Scabal).


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## rkipperman (Mar 19, 2006)

Jordan said:


> Mr. Ned has a range of "base fabrics." There are some just "pretty good" ones and also some nicer ones (like Holland & Sherrey and Barberis and Scabal).


What does he charge for a suit using the above fabrics?


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## Shirtmaven (Jan 2, 2004)

the suits are not fused.
you can get a two pieces suit for $850 working buttonholes and pick stitiching still keep it under $1000.
I once got Varham about 20 yards of some fantastic wool/cashmere from Italy. He still kept the price under $1000 for his customers.

Carl


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## lichMD (Jun 30, 2005)

Shirtmaven said:


> the difference between Ned and mytailor is mostly the proximity and process. if my tailor suit does not fit.. what do you do?
> 
> There are better Tailors then Ned, at twice the price.
> 
> ...


Strong +1


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## HISMES PARIS (Mar 26, 2008)

So glad this thread got posted; I'm moving to NY and was on the verge of placing another order with the Bangkok tailors who I visited there, though they leave something to be desired. Carl, I'm coming to you for shirts, and to Mr. Ned for a new suit.


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## lichMD (Jun 30, 2005)

*Some quick and dirty pics*

Okay so these came out a bit darker than I thought.
Barberis 110s dark french blue pinstripe suit.
I wore this today, so excuse a few wrinkles.
The shirt is Carl's and the tie is Sam Hober's.
Hope this helps
Cheers


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## lichMD (Jun 30, 2005)

Some pics with the jacket off
Cheers


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## misterdonuts (Feb 15, 2008)

Shirtmaven said:


> the suits are not fused.


Either things changed or mine were done differently -- perhaps for insisting that I get measured and fitted by Ned himself rather than his brother whose name escapes me... I know that mine were fused not because I was clever enough to figure it out during try-ons but because I took apart a couple of them when they no longer suited me. The reason I took it apart was not because I knew enough about suit construction to even know about full canvas vs half canvas vs fused but because a comment from my father stuck in my memory and wanted to see what he meant my it: "Nice cut. But it's glued." And so it was.

If they are no longer fused and are still being offered at a grand or less, then, given a certain budget, one ought to think twice before choosing another tailor.

Out of curiosity, are they still in the loft space on Fifth, near Union Sq?


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## Ethan_Boston (Apr 21, 2009)

So is the process started in NYC and then finished in HK. This looks like it could be a good option for me as I don't think MTM will work for me.


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## rkipperman (Mar 19, 2006)

Ethan_Boston said:


> So is the process started in NYC and then finished in HK. This looks like it could be a good option for me as I don't think MTM will work for me.


Who said it's finished in HK?


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## shirtguy (Oct 12, 2006)

i beleive all work is done on premises


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## Ethan_Boston (Apr 21, 2009)

i just incorrectly assumed it was. I am curious given the number of hours it takes to make a suit and the fact they they are in a very expensive city how they could produce a suit for around a grand or so?


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## shirtguy (Oct 12, 2006)

exactly must be that a lot is done by machine so u get what you paid for however a suit from martin greenfield will cost above that and the quality of construction is better


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## lichMD (Jun 30, 2005)

*Not true*

I have suits from both Greenfield and Ned's and the workmanship is close to the same.
Ned's suits are done on premises. No work is done in HK.


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## rkipperman (Mar 19, 2006)

lichMD said:


> I have suits from both Greenfield and Ned's and the workmanship is close to the same.
> Ned's suits are done on premises. No work is done in HK.


Which one did a better job with the fit?


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## mickeyd (Jul 2, 2005)

Ethan_Boston said:


> i just incorrectly assumed it was. I am curious given the number of hours it takes to make a suit and the fact they they are in a very expensive city how they could produce a suit for around a grand or so?


You'd be surprised what you can do in NYC if you have been a tennant in the same space for a very long time or you own the building. These days many old businesses are going under just because their leases expire and the new rent is just too much. I suspect there's something like that going on with Mr. Ned's loft space.


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## lichMD (Jun 30, 2005)

rkipperman said:


> Which one did a better job with the fit?


I'd say that depends on point of view.
I'd gone to Greenfield's BB event and was measured by him personally. Loved the suit and fit. Went to Ned's and have to say I like their fit better. But the looks are different.
Greenfield's look is an elegant, English variant on the sack.
Ned's is more fitted. I wear my Greenfield suits to meetings with more conservative individuals. Ned's is more expressive, to me.


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## lichMD (Jun 30, 2005)

mickeyd said:


> You'd be surprised what you can do in NYC if you have been a tennant in the same space for a very long time or you own the building. These days many old businesses are going under just because their leases expire and the new rent is just too much. I suspect there's something like that going on with Mr. Ned's loft space.


Varham and his father own their loft.
Cheers,
J


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## shirtguy (Oct 12, 2006)

when you were fitted by martin at bb and the suit was ready for the first fitting it was the sales accociate that did the finishings so its not fair to compare.
the answer should be based on all the fittings being done by martin direct compared to mr ned


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## lichMD (Jun 30, 2005)

shirtguy said:


> when you were fitted by martin at bb and the suit was ready for the first fitting it was the sales accociate that did the finishings so its not fair to compare.
> the answer should be based on all the fittings being done by martin direct compared to mr ned


Actually my second fitting was with a tailor from Martin's shop, at my request.
The final fitting was with the tailor at BB.
I think the comparison is fair, as far as I'm comparing the final product and not how my wishes were relayed into the final product. There is a "house" look that is Martin's and a house look that is Ned's. I'm expressing my preference, which is my right and fair.


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## rkipperman (Mar 19, 2006)

lichMD said:


> Actually my second fitting was with a tailor from Martin's shop, at my request.
> The final fitting was with the tailor at BB.
> I think the comparison is fair, as far as I'm comparing the final product and not how my wishes were relayed into the final product. There is a "house" look that is Martin's and a house look that is Ned's. I'm expressing my preference, which is my right and fair.


How would you describe Ned's house look? To whom would you compare his look to?


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## lichMD (Jun 30, 2005)

rkipperman said:


> How would you describe Ned's house look? To whom would you compare his look to?


I'm not a student of different house looks, nor am I in the business. I'd say that there is something of the Huntsman look to the jacket cut and fit, IMHO.
I'd be curious as to what Carl or someone else in the business on the forum thinks
Cheers,
J
'


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## jon462 (Apr 27, 2009)

I'm currently getting a suit from mr ned. Went back for the first fitting just last week. My experience has been good 

For those of you that are experienced with mr ned, were there any specifications that you asked about the pants? This is my first custom suit and although he asked me a lot of questions about the jacket, details, etc. There was not a lot of back and forth about the pants. Just wanted to get it right the first time.


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## David Reeves (Dec 19, 2008)

lichMD said:


> I'm not a student of different house looks, nor am I in the business. I'd say that there is something of the Huntsman look to the jacket cut and fit, IMHO.
> I'd be curious as to what Carl or someone else in the business on the forum thinks
> Cheers,
> J
> '


I am sure if any Huntsman cutters read that they would be very upset!:icon_smile_big:


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## misterdonuts (Feb 15, 2008)

rkipperman / lichMD, I think that comparing Ned's house style (or anyone's for that matter) with that of any other firm is fraught with danger. I only have one Huntsman piece, a bespoke tweed jacket, but struggle to find too many similarities between N and HH except in a very general and generic sense: you would not mistake it for an Italian piece. Again, this may be a bit outdated, but I recall that Ned's default style is characterised by straight shoulders, clean chest, nipped waist and a modest drape in the back. That said, I think that you would struggle to call it English -- there is something American about it. I know that I am not being particularly articulate here, sorry. lichMD, would you agree?

jon462, with respect to trousers, everything ought to be open for discussion. If you want a certain style or feature, you should just let them know. If you are not sure about something, then don't be shy about asking -- it's all part of the process to be enjoyed.


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## jon462 (Apr 27, 2009)

thanks misterdonuts

I guess I'm not sure what features or styles one would/could ask for in regards to the trousers. any advice/hints would be great.

This is my first foray into custom suits after getting a few CEGO shirts with hopes I wont have to be wearing baggy brooks brothers pants for much longer.


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## David Reeves (Dec 19, 2008)

you can talk about all kinds of things. Flat front, pleated,belt loops, pockets etc. 

Style of trouser is also important. Maybe use your own trousers as a starting point or the pictures posted on this thread. Think about how narrow or not you would like your trouser bottoms. You may want a narrow trouser bottom or even a boot cut. Think about where you would like to wear your trousers high or low? There's loads of options. My best advice would be to wear a pair you really like and tell your tailor what you like about them and what you would like to improve if anything.

He should also gently push you in the right direction if your going wrong. If you don't want to be pushed don't let him. If he looks like he doesn't know the first thing about style (does his suit look good?)don't take his advice or maybe don't even commision his services.


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## misterdonuts (Feb 15, 2008)

jon462, if you know what you DON'T want, that is as good a place to start as any, so tell them exactly that. You may have a vague notion of what you DO want. If you do, then try to tell them that as well. If you have photos or pictures that illustrates what you do or do not want, then bring them along with you to your next appointment. Don't worry about not being able to tell them exactly what you want at this stage because that sort of certainty only comes after much experimenting as well as accumulated knowledge -- even then your whims, moods and preferences are likely to evolve over time. To look at it from another perspective, it is important to understand the progression and manage your own expectations as well: it is more than likely that you will not get it "right" the first time, neither you nor your tailor. But that's a large part of the fun.


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## lichMD (Jun 30, 2005)

David Reeves said:


> I am sure if any Huntsman cutters read that they would be very upset!:icon_smile_big:


I'm sure their all busy tending to their clients. 
Cheers,
J


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## David Reeves (Dec 19, 2008)

lichMD said:


> I'm sure their all busy tending to their clients.
> Cheers,
> J


Maybe not. Unfortunately they seem to go bust every year these days. Maybe all there client's have gone to Ned.....


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## rkipperman (Mar 19, 2006)

misterdonuts said:


> rkipperman / lichMD, I think that comparing Ned's house style (or anyone's for that matter) with that of any other firm is fraught with danger. I only have one Huntsman piece, a bespoke tweed jacket, but struggle to find too many similarities between N and HH except in a very general and generic sense: you would not mistake it for an Italian piece. Again, this may be a bit outdated, but I recall that Ned's default style is characterised by straight shoulders, clean chest, nipped waist and a modest drape in the back. That said, I think that you would struggle to call it English -- there is something American about it. I know that I am not being particularly articulate here, sorry. lichMD, would you agree?


Thanks for your detailed response. Would like to hear lichMD's thoughts as well.


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## misterdonuts (Feb 15, 2008)

Shirtmaven said:


> the suits are not fused.
> you can get a two pieces suit for $850 working buttonholes and pick stitiching still keep it under $1000.
> I once got Varham about 20 yards of some fantastic wool/cashmere from Italy. He still kept the price under $1000 for his customers.
> 
> Carl


Apologies for resurrecting an ancient thread, but I thought that I should set the record straight. As previously mentioned, the one that I took apart was fused. I was cleaning out my attic yesterday and came across one remaining Ned suit jacket. I did not take this one apart, but this one is definitely not fused. Both jackets are (were) of the same weight, 10/11 oz, and IIRC even from the same book. Go figure.


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